Hundreds of Iraqis on Saturday mourned two reporters shot dead the previous evening in the country’s southern city of Basra, where they had been covering months of anti-government protests. “Armed men attacked them and sprayed them with bullets on Friday night, which killed Abdessamad. The protests have also slammed neighboring Iran for economic and political overreach in Iraq and for propping up a ruling class reviled by demonstrators. Around a dozen activists have been shot dead and are among the more than 460 people killed in protest-related violence since October. The Committee to Protect Journalists, meanwhile, condemned the killing and urged Iraqi authorities to do more to protect reporters covering the movement.

Source: Manila Bulletin January 11, 2020 13:39 UTC