UN warns violence risks placing Iraq on dangerous trajectory
Denouncing attacks against Baghdad protesters, UN warns
‘violence risks placing Iraq on dangerous
trajectory’
7 December
2019
strongly condemned the shooting of unarmed protesters in
Baghdad on Friday night, which left a high number of deaths
and injuries among innocent citizens, calling for the
perpetrators to be “identified and brought to justice
without delay”.
The top UN official in Iraq has
“The
deliberate killing of unarmed protesters by armed elements
is nothing less than an atrocity against
the people of Iraq,” said Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the
Secretary-General's Special Representative in the
crisis-gripped country.
She also urged Iraqi Armed Forces
to spare no effort to protect the peaceful protesters from
violence by armed elements operating outside State control,
and at the same time called on peaceful protesters to
cooperate constructively to ensure the peaceful protests can
be duly protected.
New reports from the region put
Friday's death toll in the dozens with more than 100 injured
during nighttime attacks by unidentified gunmen that
targeted anti-Government demonstrators in central Baghdad.
“Acts of violence that are gang-driven, arising from
external loyalties, politically motivated or intended to
settle scores, risk placing Iraq on a dangerous
trajectory,” said Ms. Hennis-Plasschaert, who also heads
up the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).
It was essential, she
underscored, “to join hands in defending fundamental
rights, such as the right to peaceful assembly and freedom
of speech.”
Finally, the UN envoy expressed her deepest
condolences to the families of those who lost their lives
and wished the injured a speedy recovery.
‘Rightful
demands for reform’
Briefing the UN Security Council via teleconference
from the Iraqi capital just four days ago, Ms.
Hennis-Plasschaert said that “out of love for their
homeland”, thousands of Iraqis have taken to the streets,
asking for their country to reach its “full potential for
the benefit of all Iraqis”.
“However,” she lamented
“they are paying an unimaginable price for their voices to
be heard”, pointing out that since 1 October, more than
400 people have been killed and more than 19,000 injured.
She explained that although today’s youth had no
recollection of life under the former dictator Saddam
Hussein, they are aware of what was promised after his death
and “through the power of connectivity, they know
perfectly well that a better future is possible”.
Noting that most protesters were peacefully seeking a
better life, the Special Representative stressed that “it
is the primary responsibility of the State to protect its
people”, spelling out that all forms of violence are
intolerable and must not distract from “the rightful
demands for reform”.
The UNAMI head argued that the country was
as at a crossroads that could not be resolved by “buying
time with band-aid solutions and coercive measures”.
She called on Iraqis to build a sovereign, stable,
inclusive and prosperous country: “Now is the time to
act”, Ms. Hennis-Plasschaert said, wrapping up her Council
briefing. “The great hopes of so many Iraqis call for
bold, forward thinking”.
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