Iraqi security forces fire tear gas to disperse demonstration in Baghdad

Iraqi security forces fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters, demanding reforms, gathered in central the Iraqi capital of Baghdad on Friday, and attempted to head to the heavily fortified Green Zone.

The demonstrators, most of them followers of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, pushed into the lines of the security forces in Tahrir Square in downtown Baghdad.

The protesters then, crossed the barbed wires and tried to pull down of heavy concrete walls set to block the nearby Jumhouriyah Bridge, which leads to the restricted area, where main Iraqi government offices stationed and some foreign embassies.

The angry crowd failed to pull down the security walls after the security forces fired tear gas in an attempt to disperse them who eventually withdrew to Tahrir Square before they end their protest.

The Iraqis have been protesting sporadically since March, demanding comprehensive reforms and protesting against corruption, as well as calling for the cabinet reshuffle in the government of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.

The protesters have breached the government zone twice, the last of which was last Friday, when hundreds of protesters broke into the heavily fortified Green Zone by force. Dozens were injured and three killed during clashes with security forces firing tear gas and warning shots.

In the evening, the protesters withdrew from the government compound after they entered the prime minister's office and parliament.

The latest protest came despite Abadi's appeal the day before on Sadr followers to postpone protests during fierce battles of the security forces against the Islamic State (IS) militants to free Fallujah, some 50 km west of Baghdad.

On Thursday morning, Abadi, also Command-in-Chief of Iraqi forces, visited the security forces near the IS-held city of Fallujah, as the troops were gaining some headway in military operations to retake Fallujah in the country's western province of Anbar after four days of battles against IS extremist militants.

During his visit, Abadi hailed the victories achieved by the troops and also appealed to Sadr's followers to postpone protests so the government could focus efforts on freeing Fallujah from IS militants.

"We call on our dear young people to postpone demonstrations until the liberation of Fallujah, because our forces are busy with the liberation," Abadi said during his visit to Fallujah Operations Command.

"This battle requires great effort. (Although) it is their right (to demonstrate), but it will impose pressure on our forces which have to provide the needed protection (for the protests)," said Abadi.

A series of failed reform measures have paralyzed the Iraqi authorities as the country struggles to fight the IS group, which seizes swathes of territories in northern and western Iraq. The country is also in dire need to respond to an economic crisis sparked in part by a plunge in global oil prices. Endit