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BASRA / ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) – Civil unrest fueled by anger against the Iraqi political elite scattered across the country's south on Friday as protesters stormed the Iranian consulate in Basra as security forces cracked down. others took workers in a nearby oilfield.
Iraqi protesters are seen in front of the Iranian consulate burned in Basra, Iraq, on September 7, 2018. REUTERS / Essam al-Sudani
After five days of deadly demonstrations in Basra in which government buildings were ransacked and set on fire, protesters stormed and damaged the consulate offices, shouting for the condemnation of what many perceive as the power of the government. Iran on Iraqi political parties.
Security sources said the consulate was empty when the crowd burst.
Towards the end of the day, some 65 kilometers northwest of the second largest city in Iraq, another group of civilians entered a water treatment facility connected to the West Qurna 2 oil field, managed by Lukoil. .
They held two Iraqi employees hostage, according to a Lukoil source and a source in the Basra Energy Police.
West Qurna 2 produces 390-4000000 barrels a day, the source said, adding that an interruption of three days would be enough to completely close the field.
The demonstrations in Basra, led by residents who said they were taken to the streets by corruption, allowed the collapse of infrastructure, leaving neither electricity nor safe drinking water in summer, intensified Monday.
Since then, at least 11 protesters have died in the city of 2 million people, mainly during clashes with security forces.
Since Thursday protesters have closed the only major seaport of Iraq to Umm Qasr, 60 km south of Basra. It remained closed on Friday, local officials and security sources said, although oil exports from offshore platforms have not been affected.
Smaller demonstrations also took place on Friday in other cities, including Karbala and Baghdad.
The unrest has plunged Iraq into another major crisis at a time when politicians have not yet agreed to a new government after an inconclusive election in May. The new parliament finally met on Monday for the first time, but separated after a day without even electing a speaker.
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's National Security Council met on Friday and said it was investigating the victims of the protests. Abadi, anxious to pledge more money to repair Basra's utilities, said the funds previously allocated would be unblocked.
Reports made by Aref Mohammed to Basra and Raya Jalabi in Erbil; additional report by Babak Dehghanpisheh in Geneva; Written by Raya Jalabi; Edited by John Stonestreet
