Coronavirus curfew fails to clear Iraqi protest squares
Despite a curfew and other restrictions imposed by the Iraqi government to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus, Iraq’s major protest squares remain packed with demonstrators.
Anti-government protests that began in October and raged through Iraq for months were officially suspended in late March as part of efforts against the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic. Major squares, however, remain occupied. Some protesters say they have to stay amid continued assassinations of activists.
Umm Abbass, a well-known female activist in Nasiriyah, was killed on April 5 when militias allegedly stormed her home at dawn.
Security forces have found it difficult to make much of the population fully comply with orders to close all non-essential businesses. Flights from Iran seem to have continued despite the ban and religious processions have gone ahead despite risks of contagion.
It is unclear whether force will be employed to clear the squares at some point under the justification that they pose a public health risk.
