Dozens of Iraqi protesters again clashed with security forces in Baghdad Monday, a day after a rally marked the first anniversary of the start of nationwide mass anti-government demonstrations.
Police fired stun grenades and tear gas at protesters who were burning tyres and hurling rocks on the strategic Al-Jumhuriyah bridge across the Tigris River leading to the highly fortified Green Zone, an AFP photographer reported.
The bridge, barricaded by towering concrete walls, separates the Green Zone from Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the old and new demonstrations.
The highly-secure Green Zone, where government offices, parliament, and the US embassy are located, is off-limits to ordinary Iraqi citizens.
In a repeat of last year’s demonstrations, rallies were also held in Shiite Muslim-dominated southern towns and cities.
Overnight in the shrine city of Karbala, which was a hub of demonstrations last year, protesters skirmished with riot police who eventually fired live bullets into the air to disperse them.
