Rioters Protesters Shut Roads to Ports, Oil Fields in Iraq
BAGHDAD (Dispatches) – Demonstrators in southern Iraq continue to shut roads to two major ports and a key oil field, port officials and AFP correspondents say, leading to an operational halt.
Correspondent in oil-rich Basra province saw protesters block access routes to the ports of Khor al-Zubair and Umm Qasr, as well as Rumailah oil field.
Trucks waiting to load up goods from the ports could be seen waiting empty behind crowds of demonstrators.
Khor al-Zubair is used for some heavy crude exports but also to import fuel products like benzene, while Umm Qasr is the main entry point for food and medicine into Iraq.
"Export and import activities have stopped because trucks cannot enter Khor al-Zubair or Umm Qasr ports," one official at Basra's port authority said.
A second official later said the route to Khor al-Zubair had been reopened but Umm Qasr remained shut.
Sit-ins have become a go-to tactic for Iraqis demonstrating against the government since early October.
In recent weeks, protesters have shut the road to Umm Qasr several times, causing a delay in offloading operations that on one occasion forced around a dozen ships to unload their cargo in another country.
Road closures have also impacted heavy crude from the Qayyarah field in northern Iraq from reaching Khor al-Zubair since earlier this month.
The prime minister's office has warned security forces "will not allow" protesters near key infrastructure.
