ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Medical sources in Iraq’s Karbala on Tuesday announced that several protesters were killed as security forces attempted to crack down on demonstrations.
Sources from the health directorate in Karbala said the city’s forensic medical department received 20 bodies, all protesters, most of them very young. It added that over 100 others were injured.
According to the sources, some security forces used live rounds while trying to break up the crowd, and others fired tear gas shells directly at the protesters’ heads, killing them in the process.
Authorities at the Karbala Police headquarters denied allegations of the deadly incidents.
Iraq’s Red Crescent, meanwhile, confirmed the deaths of 18 protesters in Karbala.
International media also reported the deaths, but some numbers were lower. Reuters said 14 people were killed in Karbala while the Associated Press said 18 died.
Elsewhere in Baghdad on Monday, four individuals died, and many more were wounded as security forces tried to disperse the crowds who were marching toward Tahrir (Liberation) Square after midnight, defying a curfew.
Read More: Thousands in Baghdad defy midnight curfew, take to streets
Fresh protests began on Friday, quickly turning violent as they continued on Monday for the fourth day, reportedly resulting in the death of 74 individuals. Another bout of demonstrations earlier in the month went on for about a week, leaving at least 140 dead.
Demonstrators have been calling for an end to the economic woes of the people of Iraq—demands that have been repeatedly made during such protests.
According to Reuters, the death toll since the unrest began on Oct. 1 is now at least 250 people.
Editing by Karzan Sulaivany