Protesters and protesters in Iraq regained control of a third bridge in the center of the capital, Baghdad. The security forces deployed tear gas and stun grenades yesterday to stop people crossing the Ahrar Bridge. Beyond the Tigris River lies the Green Zone of the capital with ministries and foreign embassies.The demonstrators erected a barricade of old boxes, manure pails and metal parts on the bridge, while the security forces took up positions behind the walls, which themselves serve as protection against bomb attacks.
Sinak Bridge occupied
On Saturday, protesters and demonstrators had already occupied parts of the neighboring Sinak Bridge and a nearby skyscraper from which security forces had evicted people a week earlier. A third bridge, Jumhurija Bridge, has been under the control of the demonstrators since the end of October.
Since the beginning of the protests against the government in early October, more than 300 people have been killed. The demonstrators accuse the ruling political class of corruption and the representation of foreign interests and demand their departure. These are the biggest protests since the fall of the then head of state Saddam Hussein in 2003.
