Continued Protests in Basra; Iraqi Parliament to Hold Emergency Session

Hundreds of protesters gathered in the streets of Basra on Thursday evening for the fourth consecutive day. Angry protesters destroyed several administrative buildings and set fire to the offices of some political parties. According to Iraqi security officials, since the beginning of the wave of protests on Monday, ten protesters have been killed by security forces' gunfire, and more than a hundred others have been injured. Dozens of security personnel have also been injured in these clashes. Reuters reported on Friday that the Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament has agreed to hold an extraordinary session to discuss the situation in Basra. This session will take place on Saturday. On Thursday evening, protesters targeted several government administrative buildings in Basra, including the governor's residence, which was set on fire. Access routes to the center of Basra were also blocked. The furious protesters also attacked the offices of several political parties and groups, including the Dawa Party, the Badr Organization, the Supreme Council of Iraq, Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, and Kata'ib Hezbollah, setting these buildings ablaze. The offices of the Iraqi media networks Al-Iraqiya, Ghadir, Al-Furat, and Radio Nakhil were also among the targets of the angry protesters. The protests continued on Thursday evening despite local government and security officials declaring a curfew. The protests in Basra, an oil city in southern Iraq, began over economic and livelihood issues, with protesters voicing their grievances about corruption in government offices, poor job conditions, power outages, and the low quality of drinking water. Residents of this two million population city claim that the drinking water is salty and has made them ill during the long summer months in Iraq. According to reports, hundreds have been hospitalized due to drinking the city's water. On Wednesday, protesters disrupted operations at Umm Qasr Port, Iraq's largest port and a key entry point for goods into the country. While protests in Basra have continued in recent days, political groups in the country are engaged in negotiations to form a coalition government. The unrest in Basra has led some political groups to call for the resignation of Haider al-Abadi, the Prime Minister of Iraq. Muqtada al-Sadr, the leader of the Sairoon Alliance, which was at the forefront of the recent parliamentary elections, has also called for an extraordinary parliamentary session to address the unrest in Basra. This influential Shia cleric has threatened that if Abadi does not respond, he should resign. Al-Sadr also condemned the security forces' shooting at unarmed protesters in a tweet. Ayatollah Ali Sistani, a prominent Shia cleric in Iraq, has also supported the demands of the protesters.