BAGHDAD (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th October, 2019) Unidentified snipers have killed two officers and two demonstrators in Baghdad amid ongoing protests ravaging the country, Iraqi security forces said on Friday.
The Iraqi capital and southern regions have seen a wave of violent protests since Tuesday. Protesters demand the ouster of the government, as well as economic reforms and the end of corruption. On Thursday, a curfew was declared and internet access halted in Baghdad and five southern provinces.
"Unknown snipers have killed two security personnel and two civilians at Tayaran Square and near the Al Nakheel complex in Baghdad," the security forces said.
The death toll in protests across the country has, meanwhile, risen to 50, the head of the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights told Sputnik. The number of injured now stands at 1,936, according to Mustafa Saadun.
The country's Health Ministry reported casualties and injuries in the protests only on Tuesday, when they broke out in Baghdad.
Earlier in the day, the Iraqi Shiite spiritual leader, Ayatollah Ali Sistani, urged the authorities to take action against corruption, denouncing violence against demonstrators and security forces.
Amid the protests, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, in turn, has said in a televised address that there is no "magic" solution to all problems, but promised payments to low-income families.
