SPECIAL REPORT

Iraq protesters set up free public services in Baghdad’s Tahrir Square

Baghdad’s Tahrir Square has been a focal point for the protests that continue to roil Iraq. For many demonstrators, the square has become a blueprint for the kind of state they want, with free public services provided but no central authority to govern it. FRANCE 24’s Simona Foltyn reports.

Issued on: 03/11/2019 - 22:27Modified: 03/11/2019 - 22:29

Demonstrations broke out on October 1 in outrage over rampant corruption and unemployment in Iraq. They were met with a violent crackdown that left dozens dead. France 24 screengrab

Text by: FRANCE 24 Follow

Advertising

Dozens of tents have popped up in Tahrir Square over the past few days, offering medical care, legal advice, supplies, food or a place to rest – all of it free of charge. Protesters there are calling for the overhaul of the political system established after the 2003 US-led invasion.

“We don’t have a government,” says Sijad Waleed, a tuk-tuk driver. “They only know how to steal.”

Click on the video player above to watch FRANCE 24's report.