The latest breach of Baghdad’s Green Zone by angry protesters may set the stage for further violence between demonstrators and security forces, as well as sharpening political divisions in Iraq.
Supporters of cleric Moqtada al-Sadr broke into the Green Zone — a fortified Baghdad area that is home to Iraq’s main government institutions as well as various embassies — and stormed the premier’s office on Friday.
Security forces used tear gas, water cannons, sound bombs and a barrage of bullets largely fired into the air to disperse the protesters, harrying them away from the Green Zone and back across the Tigris River.
But at least two demonstrators died of bullet wounds, officials said, while dozens more people, including members of the security forces, were injured in the unrest.
The United Nations Iraq mission expressed “deep concern about the escalation of confrontation” during the protest.
It “shows how events could take a different turn and escalate, causing casualties,” UN representative Jan Kubis said.
The security measures — which were much tougher than those protesters faced when entering the Green Zone three weeks earlier — enraged the demonstrators, some of whom threw rocks and other debris toward security forces.
After sporadically using tear gas and water cannons against protesters gathered at a gate they had breached, security forces sallied out, firing in the air and shooting tear gas into the crowd of demonstrators, who fled down the street.
Some irate protesters equated Iraqi politicians with the hated Islamic State (IS) militant group, which carries out frequent bombings targeting civilians in Baghdad.
Security forces had largely stood by during previous demonstrations, including when Sadr supporters broke into the Green Zone and stormed parliament in April.
But the period of tolerance of such actions appears to be over, and that, combined with demonstrators angered by the deaths and injuries they sustained Friday, could lead to further violence between the two sides.
