Mass protests erupted early Friday morning in most of southern Iraq's major cities, including Baghdad, Basra, Najaf, Karbala and Nasiriyah. In Baghdad, protesters began gathering and organizing at night on Oct. 24.

Today's protests are seeing a larger turnout than the previous wave of demonstrations that started in early October and ended with about 150 dead and more than 6,000 wounded.

Protesters and security forces alike were more organized compared to the previous demonstrations. However, angry protesters faced heavy tear gas around the Green Zone in Baghdad when they tried to enter it. Security forces also used sound bombs and hot water at the Green Zone’s gates to disperse the protesters. So far at this time, one protester has been killed and 224 wounded — including 68 members of the security forces — according to the Human Rights Independent Commission.

Prior to the protests, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi addressed the public with a number of reform plans, including amending the cabinet and providing poor citizens with increased welfare, asking the protesters to give his government a chance to fix the issue. But this just added more fuel to the fire as protesters see his plans as nothing more than a tactic to stop the protests.