Iraqi security forces yesterday shot dead 44 people in the country’s south in one of the bloodiest days of violence since the anti-government protests erupted in early October.
In Nasiriya city, 33 protesters were reported killed after security forces used live ammunition and tear gas canisters on crowds while another 11 people were killed in Shia holy city of Najaf, where an Iranian consulate was torched a day earlier by angry protesters.
Security sources told another 233 people were wounded in the crackdown on protests in Nasiriya.
The Iraqi Government fired Lieutenant General Jamil al-Shammari, who was appointed a day earlier to manage the unrest in Dhi Qar Province, of which Nasiriya is the capital, following the deadly violence.
Amid escalating protests in the country’s south authorities in the capital, Baghdad, dispatched troops to restore order there, which has seen significant protests for weeks.
