Karbala police chief and governor deny killings after protesters and rights groups say gunmen fired on a sit-in. Video footage reportedly taken at the scene and shared online showed demonstrators running for cover, as a constant volley of machine gunfire crackled in the background. But security officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that 18 were killed.
If true the Karbala attack would mark one of the single deadliest attacks since anti-government protests erupted earlier this month. In total at least people have now been killed as the leaderless and largely spontaneous, rallies have been met with bullets and teargas.
A local journalist in Karbala told The Independent that protesters defied a curfew imposed by the local governor on Monday night and tried to enter a local government building. The witness said that masked gunmen in black plain clothes arrived and started shooting at the protesters. Tents caught fire, igniting a blaze, he added. It was complete horror. There were women and children.
The children were screaming. The security forces dispersed everyone and started chasing them into the side streets. The demonstrations, which have gripped areas across the country including Baghdad, Karbala and cities in the south, first erupted at the start of October. Why all this blood? Why have all these young men lost their lives?
An Iraqi government committee investigated the first wave of rallies and found that civilians were killed because security forces used excessive force and live fire to quell protests. The report said more than 70 of the deaths were caused by shots to the head or chest and held senior commanders responsible but stopped short of blaming the prime minister.
