BASRA: The United Nations envoy to Iraq called Wednesday for “calm” in Basra, after six died in the bloodiest day of protests over poor public services in the southern city.
In a statement, Jan Kubis, the UN’s special representative in Iraq, called on “the authorities to avoid using disproportionate, lethal force against the demonstrators.”
He also urged authorities to “investigate and hold accountable those responsible for the outbreak of violence.”
The authorities said in a press conference on Wednesday that security personnel were wounded in Tuesday’s clashes.
“Thirty members of the security forces were wounded by grenades and incendiary objects being thrown,” said General Jamil Al-Shammari, who is in charge of security operations in Basra.
Basra was nearly deserted on Wednesday morning.
Many shops were closed, while burned tires lay strewn across the city’s streets, an AFP correspondent said.
The city — along with the province of the same name — has been hit by protests since early July against poor public services.
Residents are angry over pollution of the local water supply, which has put 20,000 people in hospital.
Kubis in his statement called on the government “to do its utmost to respond to the people’s rightful demands of clean water and electricity supplies as a matter of urgency.”
The authorities said they would take measures to put an end to the health crisis that has ravaged the oil-rich province.
The local governorate’s headquarters, the main rallying point for protesters, bore the traces of damage from molotov cocktails and fireworks thrown late into the night.
“Six demonstrators were killed and more than 20 wounded” in front of the government building on Tuesday evening, said Mehdi Al-Tamimi, head of the government’s human rights council in Basra province.
Medical sources confirmed the death toll to AFP.
Tamimi accused the security forces of “opening fire directly on the protesters.”
In his weekly press conference in Baghdad on Tuesday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi said he had ordered “no real bullets ... to be fired, in the direction of protesters or in the air.”
Shiite leader Moqtada Sadr said in a tweet that “vandals infiltrated” the protesters.
Sadr’s political bloc won the largest number of seats in national elections held in May, and he is trying to form a new government with Abadi.
Protesters also blocked roads and burned tires elsewhere in Basra province on Tuesday night, a correspondent said.
Abadi announced in the night that he had met lawmakers from Basra, who are in Baghdad for the parliament’s first session since the elections.
He again indicated that water pollution would be addressed, without specifying any measures.
In July, the government announced a multibillion dollar emergency plan for southern Iraq, to revive infrastructure and services.
But protesters are wary of promises made by the outgoing government, as negotiations drag on over the formation of the next administration.
UN’s Iraq envoy calls for calm after bloody day in Basra
UN’s Iraq envoy calls for calm after bloody day in Basra
- Jan Kubis, the UN’s special representative in Iraq, called on ‘the authorities to avoid using disproportionate, lethal force against the demonstrators’
- Residents are angry over pollution of the local water supply, which has put 20,000 people in hospital
President Abbas hopes 2026 brings progress on Palestinian statehood
- Leader endorses Gaza committee, cites positive indications from US administration to resolving cause
RAMALLAH: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said on Thursday that Palestine is determined to continue its efforts with US President Donald Trump and other relevant partners.
He expressed hope that 2026 will witness progress toward resolving the Palestinian cause, citing positive indications from the US administration.
He was speaking during a ceremony marking his receipt of an honorary doctorate from the Arab American University in Ramallah.
Abbas said the state of Palestine has announced its support for the formation of the Palestinian Administrative Committee in the Gaza Strip during the transitional phase.
He expressed appreciation for the efforts of Trump and mediators Egypt, Qatar, and Turkiye, and for moving toward the implementation of the second phase of Trump’s plan.
Abbas reaffirmed the importance of linking the institutions of the PA in the West Bank and Gaza, stressing the need to avoid creating parallel administrative, legal, or security systems that would entrench division.
He outlined his political vision based on the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and return, and the establishment of an independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, living in peace and security with its neighbors.
The president said the Palestinian state would be democratic, based on equal citizenship, political pluralism, freedom of expression, the formation of political parties, the rule of law, good governance, human rights, integrity, and equality.
Abbas stressed that direct legislative and presidential elections are the foundation of democratic governance and the only path to the peaceful transfer of power under the rule of law, transparency, accountability, and the empowerment of women and youth.
He noted that work is underway to draft a temporary constitution and a political parties law in preparation for the upcoming elections.
Abbas affirmed that the Palestinian state remains committed to international law and the agreements and treaties signed with other states and international organizations.
The president reiterated that peaceful popular resistance, alongside political, diplomatic, and legal action, remains the strategic choice to end the occupation.
He said the Palestinian people continue to safeguard their presence, history, identity, and national memory despite immense challenges, adding that despite the catastrophe caused by the war in Gaza, they remain determined to rebuild the enclave and what has been destroyed across the West Bank.
Abbas also voiced confidence in Palestinian universities, saying they will not only transmit knowledge but also advance it through investment in scientific research and partnerships with the private sector and the state, emphasizing that science and technology are key drivers of national progress.
He stressed that it is time for the Palestinian people to write their own complete history, present their authentic narrative, and decisively refute false and distorted accounts that seek to misrepresent the reality and history of the Palestinian people.
