The UN on Saturday called for an end to the “senseless loss of life” in Iraq as the death toll from the anti-government protests climbed to 99 with nearly 4,000 people injured.
Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, head of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq, said, “Five days of deaths and injuries, this must stop”.
“Those responsible for the loss of life should be brought to justice,” the BBC reported.
The protests against unemployment, poor public services and corruption in the country began in Baghdad before spreading to the other parts of the country.
Earlier on Friday, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi ordered to lift the curfew in Baghdad. despite anti-government protests continuing in the capital city.
On Thursday, the Prime Minister declared the curfew in Baghdad until further notice after two days of violent protests in the capital as well as in central and southern provinces.
It is the deadliest unrest since the so-called Islamic State (IS) group was declared defeated in Iraq in 2017.
It is seen as the first major challenge to Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi’s fragile government, nearly a year since he came to power.
The authorities have been trying to control the protests through curfews and a near-total internet blackout.
Iraq has the world’s fourth-largest reserves of oil, but 22.5 per cent of its population of 40 million were living on less than $1.90 a day in 2014, according to the World Bank.
One in six households has experienced some form of food insecurity.
The unemployment rate was 7.9 per cent last year, but among young people, it was double that.
Almost 17 per cent of the economically active population is underemployed.
(With agency inputs)
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