The fifth elections since the 2003 US-led invasion of the country saw the lowest voter turnout (41%), amid growing discontent with the political system due to widespread corruption, inefficiency and government apathy

The elections are taking place one year ahead of schedule following popular protests that broke out in October 2019 against the failure of successive governments to address the rising economic and political problems in the country

The Iraqi Communist Party, which was part of the leading alliance in the last elections in 2018, announced in July that it will not participate in the upcoming national elections in October due to the lack of a conducive political atmosphere

The report of these deaths comes just days after a UN report accused Iraqi and Kurdistan regional government officials of torture and ill treatment of detainees on a large scale  

The opposition in Iraq has said the decision does not go far enough as the parliament had passed a resolution calling for the complete withdrawal of foreign troops from the country

There is increasing pressure on the Iraqi government to act on the presence of foreign troops in the country, particularly since the assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani by the US last year

The employees of defense contractor CACI have been accused by three Iraqi men of torture during their detention in the Abu Ghraib prison from which they were eventually released without charge

The protests in Baghdad are part of a wave of dissent that has swept the country since 2019. The protesters sought the arrest of those responsible for political assassinations, and also demanded that the economic crisis be addressed

After Joe Biden assumed office as the US president, close to 20 such attacks have taken place against US interests and facilities in Iraq as opposition to the presence of foreign troops continues to grow

US troops deployed in oil-rich Iraq following the NATO-led invasion in 2003 were withdrawn in 2011 but were re-deployed in 2014 following the rise of ISIS. Their presence has caused significant popular unrest in the country 

Protests against unemployment have been taking place for five days in a row in southern Iraq, causing massive fuel shortages in the region and adversely impacting oil production and refining at the Nasiriyah oil refinery

The country started vaccination only in March when it received over 50,000 doses of Chinese Sinopharm vaccine. It received 336,000 doses of Oxford AstraZeneca under COVAX initiative on March 25 after much delay