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US troops deployed in oil-rich Iraq following the NATO-led invasion in 2003 were withdrawn in 2011 but were re-deployed in 2014 following the rise of ISIS.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

US president Joe Biden authorized the airstrikes as a response to the recent attacks on US military bases in Iraq. The move is being criticized by anti-war and progressive sections as a sign of continuation of Trump-era policies in the region  

Protesters, activists and human rights groups have urged successive Iraqi governments to investigate the targeted killings of protesters, opposition activists and critics since the anti-government protests began in the country in October 2019

Protests in capital Baghdad saw thousands mobilize outside the prime minister’s office even as the Iraqi parliament continues to debate the 2021 budget for over a month. Protesters in the oil-rich southern region also forcefully shut down an oil field

Deputy head of the Iraqi Hashd al-Shaabi militia, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis was killed in a drone strike by the US inside Iraq last year, along with top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani. Iran has also issued a similar warrant against Trump and 47 other Americans 

Thousands of protesters gathered at Tahrir square in Baghdad after marching to the highway leading to the airport where Soleimani and Muhandis were killed last year. They demanded the withdrawal of US troops from Iraq

After increasing its military presence in the region in the last few weeks the US flew two of its B-52 bombers above the Persian Gulf on Tuesday

The four guards belonging to private militia company Blackwater, which was hired by the US army during its invasion of Iraq, were originally convicted in 2014 for the murder of 14 innocent Iraqi civilians in 2007