The killing of an Iraqi activist sparks protests against impunity
A leading Iraqi anti-government activist was killed early Sunday, security sources and activists said, sending supporters of a protest movement onto the streets to demand an end to bloodshed.
Ihab al-Wazni, a coordinator of protests within the Shiite shrine city of Karbala, was a vocal opponent of corruption, the stranglehold of Tehran-linked armed groups and Iran’s influence in Iraq.
He was shot overnight outside his home by men on motorbikes, in an ambush caught on surveillance cameras. His death was confirmed by security forces and activists.
Wazni narrowly escaped death in December 2019, when men on motorbikes used silenced weapons to kill fellow activist Fahem al-Tai as he was dropping him range in Karbala, where pro-Tehran armed groups are legion.
Both were key figures during a national protest movement that erupted against government corruption and incompetence in Iraq in October 2019.
Around 600 people were killed as a results of their association thereupon movement — many on the streets during rallies, others targeted on their doorsteps faraway from the rallies.
Protests broke call at Karbala, Nassiriya, and Diwaniya in southern Iraq in reaction to Wazni’s killing, as people involved an end to the bloodshed and to rampant corruption.
In a video within the morgue where his body was initially held, a fellow activist made it clear who he and colleagues blamed for the killing.
“It is that the Iranian militias who killed Ihab,” said the unnamed activist. “They are getting to kill all of us! They threaten us and therefore the government remains silent.”
Police in Karbala said they “will spare no effort” to seek out “the terrorists” behind Wazni’s killing.
Politicians, including Shiite leader Ammar al-Haki, deplored the killing and involved justice.
Around 30 activists have died in targeted killings and dozens of others abducted, some detained briefly, since October 2019.
Such targeted killings are normally administered within the dead of night by men on motorbikes, and no-one claims responsibility.
Activists and therefore the UN repeatedly blame “militias”.
Authorities have consistently did not identify the perpetrators of those political killings.
Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhemi took office a year ago, vowing to rein in rogue factions, fight corruption and roll out long-awaited reforms after years of war and insurgency.
Pro-Iran groups view the premier as being too near Washington and protesters believe he has did not deliver on his promises.
“Such crimes against activists in Iraq raise again the question about the important steps of the govt regarding accountability for… (those) liable for crimes” targeting protesters, Ali Bayati, a member of Iraq’s Human Rights Commission, tweeted Sunday.
Wazni had himself challenged Kadhemi during a Facebook post in February, asking rhetorically: “Do you recognize what’s going on? you recognize that they kidnap and kill — otherwise you sleep in another country?”
