Hundreds of people took to the streets of Baghdad and other Iraqi cities yesterday, denouncing what they say was a lack of government progress after a 100-day deadline set by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki expired.
About 400 protesters converged on Baghdad’s main Tahrir Square, carrying banners and chanting slogans against Maliki’s administration and calling for better public services, notably electricity.
However, the demonstration was overshadowed by a larger rally of about 3,000 people, also at Tahrir Square, calling for the execution of 25 accused insurgents, whom authorities allege took part in the 2006 massacre of a wedding party.
Security forces were out in large numbers at the square, which was closed to vehicle traffic. The thoroughfare is located in the heart of Baghdad, the traditional site for weekly demonstrations.
Hundreds of anti-government protesters also converged in the city of Hilla and dozens in Basra, both south of Baghdad. Authorities have also banned vehicle traffic in Tikrit City and Diyala Governorate, north of the capital.
“Our hearts are stronger than your government,” a banner carried by anti-government demonstrators at Tahrir Square read.
“We want the government to improve basic services,” read another banner, carried by a trio of women wearing red, white and black scarves, representing the colors of the Iraqi flag.
“I am protesting against everything because everything is wrong,” said Mohammed Jassim, a 28-year-old jobless protester.
Activists had called for protests in the capital and other parts of the nation yesterday, the first Muslim holiday since Maliki’s deadline expired on Tuesday.
The “Great Iraqi Revolution,” a group set up on social networking Web site Facebook, drew more than 36,000 members and urged supporters to take to the streets.
While signs of progress are visible — from road-building projects to sewerage upgrades — little in the way of landmark legislation has been passed, and key issues remain unresolved.
Maliki had set the timetable on Feb. 27, saying that reviews would be carried out based on ministerial performance over the ensuing 100 days and warning that “changes will be made” based on those assessments.
However, the day before the deadline was set to expire, he said that no top politicians would be dismissed for poor performance, insisting his remarks had been misunderstood.
In response to the February rallies, Iraq reallocated US$900 million originally earmarked to purchase fighter planes to buying food for the poor, reserved US$400 million for generator fuel to power air conditioners over the hot summer and started demonstrable projects such as the roadworks and sewage repairs.
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
‘IN A DIFFERENT PLACE’: The envoy first visited Shanghai, where he attended a Chinese basketball playoff match, and is to meet top officials in Beijing tomorrow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday arrived in China on his second visit in a year as the US ramps up pressure on its rival over its support for Russia while also seeking to manage tensions with Beijing. The US diplomat tomorrow is to meet China’s top brass in Beijing, where he is also expected to plead for restraint as Taiwan inaugurates president-elect William Lai (賴清德), and to raise US concerns on Chinese trade practices. However, Blinken is also seeking to stabilize ties, with tensions between the world’s two largest economies easing since his previous visit in June last year. At the
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese