The tension began in Iraq from October until in December the then Prime Minister, Adel Abdel-Mahdi, resigned as president of the country. The demonstrations were in response to the brutal police repression, and in the UN report released on Saturday, the UN has called Iraq to account.

After a year and a half of political paralysis, the new Prime Minister, Mustafa Al Kadhimi, has announced that he will look at cases of police abuse and paramilitary groups that were violent to protesters. In addition, it has promised to liberate the imprisoned activists.

Protracted political crisis

Since 2003, the country has been in the midst of a geopolitical crisis. The United States Army invaded the country and expelled Saddam Husseim, an Arab, Pan-Arab and Arab socialist nationalist, to convey "his freedom" to the people.

Until 2005, a transitional government was formed in which they were governed by US forces. Later came the governments that defended the interests of the Western powers. Tension increased and between 2014 and 2017 there was a civil war.

The 2019 protests forced the government to take another step, as it promoted the resignation of the Prime Minister. However, the UN has denounced that police violence with the help of the United States since the beginning of the invasion has been excessive. Iraqi human rights groups estimate that there have been more cases than those provided, with 550 deaths at the Independent High Commissioner for Human Rights in Iraq (IHCHR). The Iraq War Crimes Documentation Centre estimates the maximum death toll at 660.