Two rockets were fired on Wednesday into Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone, killing one Iraqi soldier and adding to the violence gripping the country amid unprecedented anti-government protests and a violent security crackdown.
One of the Katyusha rockets landed about 100m away from the perimeter of the US embassy, triggering alert sirens, security officials said, adding that a soldier guarding a checkpoint near a restaurant was killed.
The Green Zone is home to several Western embassies and government offices.
An eyewitness near the embassy said he heard two explosions.
It was not immediately clear where the other landed.
Earlier this week, three rockets struck a large military base north of Baghdad that houses US and Iraqi forces. No casualties were reported from that attack.
Iraq has been engulfed by deadly anti-government protests that have picked up momentum.
The semi-official Iraq High Commission for Human Rights said that 100 people have been killed and more than 5,000 injured since Friday last week, when protests resumed after a three-week hiatus.
The deaths bring to nearly 250 the overall number of people killed in the past month as security forces crackdown on the growing protest movement.
Tens of thousands of people gathered in a central square in Baghdad and across much of the country’s Shiite-majority central and southern provinces on Wednesday.
The sound of tear gas explosions echoed throughout the day as security forces battled young men trying to advance toward the Green Zone across Joumhouriya Bridge.
Later on Wednesday, hundreds of people headed to the al-Sanak Bridge that runs parallel to the Joumhouriya Bridge, opening a new front in their attempts to cross the Tigris River to the Green Zone.
Security forces fired volleys of tear gas that billowed smoke and covered the night sky.
Security and hospital officials said that two protesters were killed in the vicinity of Tahrir Square, which has emerged as the epicenter of the protests.
Earlier in the day, the mood was festive in the square, despite the nearby tear gas.
Barbers give free haircuts to protesters. Young men grill carp fish for a national dish called masgouf and distribute to the crowds. Others play dominoes, oblivious to the chaos all around.
“We are now in Tahrir Square, which is called nowadays ‘the holy land,’ supporting our sons, brothers and friends who are here [protesting], to show a civilized image of the protest to the whole world,” said middle-aged Jenan Kareem, who decided to join the protesters.
The protests have grown and demonstrators are now calling for sweeping changes. Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi has promised a government reshuffle and reforms, which the demonstrators have already rejected.
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