Iraq is suffering one of the greatest demonstrations, leaving the country with no room for peace and prosperity. With an effort to put an end to extreme rates of unemployment, poor public services, and government corruption, Iraqi protestors have recently taken to the streets to express their outrage at the sluggish and nefarious administration performing nothing to enhance the lives of individuals. While the government deliberately chose silence as their primary response to avoid being part of the narrative in the short-run, police have reacted violently against passionate citizens who are desperate for change. Their response has led to the death of 100 civilians and approximately 4,000 have been injured. The Iraqi’s remonstrance is worsening day by day and has rapidly expanded into Southern Iraq, making the current protestation the deadliest social crisis since the dispute between Islamic State and Iraq back in 2017.
The stimulation of Iraqi uprising dates back to September when an unfortunate political announcement was publicly made. The highly lauded general, Abdul-Wahab Al-Saadi, was dismissed from the counterterrorism command position and appointed as the Ministry of Defense. The majority of the Iraqi citizens firmly believed that General Al-Saadi fought well on the battlegrounds of Mosul and Fallujah against the Islamic State. The beliefs of Al-Saadi’s courageousness and determination automatically constituted a leader the perplexed people could look up to in a time of turmoil. With their trusted leader removed without an exact explanation, people started to accumulate sentiments of animosity towards the government who were fully responsible for Al-Saadi's termination. The protest was the spark that finally released all the amassed grievances of the irritated Iraqi people. In other words, Iraq’s governance crisis reached an irreversible boiling point. As the General Al-Saadi was part of the Shia Islam* community, yet he revealed his determination for unity when he did not adjoin with any political party, making him a “soldier-hero” within the society. Abbas Kadhim, the Iraq Initiative director and a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, acknowledged that knowing General Al-Saddi “was less important than what he stood for.”
The lack of attention towards reformation was another consequential factor that provoked men and women to slowly, but surely, become more rebellious. Government organizations have continually promised the Iraqi people that progress for rehabilitations were going to be made in the upcoming years. Nevertheless, regardless of the fact that Iraq boasts the world’s fourth-largest oil reserves, 22.5 percent of the country was living on less than $1.90 a day in 2014 and according to the World Bank, one in six households has undergone varying degrees of food instability. The long-lasting war against the Islamic State has also concluded making conditions much more manageable for Iraqi authorities to reconstruct their collapsing nation and approach humanitarian matters. Furthermore, Iraq’s government has shown no incentive to spend money on developing job programs in hopes of preventing further unemployment. It is estimated that roughly 7.9 percent of the population was 2018’s unemployment rate and was double the percentage for the youth population in Iraq. With Iraq’s unemployment skyrocketing, the foundational economic basis has started to shatter, igniting the civilian’s frustration even more as they are being left with harsher living conditions; once again showing the significant role the government’s careless concentration towards employment programs has triggered.
Although the demonstrators initially conveyed their emphasis on promised reforms through peaceful means, direct violence from the police forces has influenced the agitated protestors to become more aggressive. Public television stations have been attacked multiple times and six different political headquarters have been set on fire in the city of Nasiriyah. Ibrahim Amid Yusuf, a 34-year-old who suffered a neck injury from protesting in the Baghdad Tahrir Square, described the acidic relationship, between the government forces and the people, as the Iraqi people being “greeted brutally by the security forces.” Living circumstances remain dire due to the recent Islamic State disagreement, yet it is certain that conditions will worsen if no emphasis is placed on recovering and rebuilding the nation.
Despite the fact that the government has already responded to the chaos in absolute silence, citizens are ensuring that the administration can no longer neglect the citizens’ concerns. Adel Abdul Mahdi, the Prime Minister of Iraq promised to thoroughly react to this complex disaster, yet he mentioned that finding a “magic solution” to Iraq’s current status was practically impossible at this stage. Prime Minister Mahdi also attempted to defend the security forces’ actions, and boldly declared that the forces were following the procedures based on “international standards” in dealing with the maverick objectors. Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq’s senior Shia Muslim cleric, perfectly summarized the purpose of these tumults and requested the government to satisfy the citizens’ demands for societal transformation. The United Nations alongside the other human rights organizations have started to exhibit their concern after overflowing criticism from senior religious leaders, and have heavily recommended the authorities in Iraq to instantly act upon this issue.
The Iraqi conflict is by no means an easy query that an enchanted remedy could solve. Even though, the Iraqi government authorities have implemented curfews in hopes of neutralizing or at least declining the severity of this social obstacle. Nonetheless, protestors have been defying the government-enforced curfews in Nasiriyah, Amara, Najaf as well as in Hilla. The internet blackout was put forward by the government to slow down the immense expansion of these protests and disconnect the protesting body, yet more and more Iraqi people have started swirling the rumor mill through varying communications by phone, making this event even more challenging to settle for Mahdi’s government.
At this point, seeking assistance from international communities is the catalyst that would start to unravel the tied up difficulties in Iraq. Although Amnesty International and the United Nations are prominent organizations that are capable of supporting Iraq’s economy and social status, the United States could potentially contribute to a greater degree. Iraq is open to any and all states for aid, yet recent Iraqi opinion poll showed a United States favorability rating at 22 percent, which was clearly higher than the Iranians (16 percent). On the other hand, the opinion poll also notified that 53 percent of the Iraqi population firmly believed that the 2003 United States invasion’s objective was to “occupy Iraq and plunder its wealth.'' The statistics explicitly represent that a reaction from the United States could also make terms much worse. Regardless of which community decides to step in at the end, it is certain that Iraqis need to put aside their own interests by lowering their barriers with the United States and other neighboring nations so that it is easier for the benefactors to get involved. Whether a major or minor action is being taken, it is certain that more needs to be done in order for Iraq to stay stabilized in the future years to come.
*Shia Islam: Shia Islam and Sunni Islam are the two main parts of Islam. These two branches constantly clash with each other due to their differing religious beliefs. Around 1400 years ago, the question of who would lead the Muslim community following the death of the Prophet Muhammad (632 A.D.) led to this distinctive separation. Some believed that Prophet Muhammed’s cousin, Ali, was the rightful leader, while others thought that one of Prophet Muhammed’s oldest friend was the more suitable choice. Today, members of the Shia community firmly believe that religious leadership came from Prophet Muhammed’s descendants while the Sunni’s don’t.
Originally published at www.lvillecontour.org on January 17th, 2020
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