Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi held talks in Basra on Friday in a bid to restore calm in the southern city, which has been gripped by protests over unemployment. Abadi flew straight into the city from Brussels where he attended a Nato summit to discuss the Islamic State group, and immediately held talks with officials, a statement said.
As Abadi met the governor of the oil-rich province and the head of the power company, Iraq's top Shiite authority voiced support for the protesters, calling Basra one of Iraq's "most miserable areas". "It is not fair and it is never acceptable that this generous province is one of the most miserable areas in Iraq," Abdel Mehdi al-Karbalai, the representative of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, said at Friday prayers in Karbala.
Giving the weekly sermon, Karbalai said many residents of Basra "are suffering from a lack of public services" and urged the "federal and local government to deal seriously with the demands of citizens and work urgently to do what can be done." The protests erupted on Sunday and security forces opened fire killing a protester, sparking further anger. Demonstrators set tyres ablaze to block roads and tried to storm government installations.
As well as unemployment, those involved are frustrated by rising living costs and a lack of basic services in the city, the capital of Basra province. Hundreds of demonstrators waving Iraqi flags gathered Friday in front of the provincial headquarters in Basra city centre, with security forces including riot police deployed heavily. "People are hungry, there is no water, no electricity," protester Abdullah Khaled, 29, told AFP. "Our simplest demands are job opportunities, water desalination projects, and the construction of power plants."