Shafaq News- Wasit
Dozens of protesters took to the streets in Kut, the capital of Iraq’sWasit province, demanding improved electricity services and the release ofdetainees arrested during earlier demonstrations, Shafaq News learned onSaturday.
The crowd carried banners calling for a stable power supply and therestoration of Wasit’s share of output from a local thermal power station.
The rally followed days after another bout of unrest in the city, wheredemonstrators shut down the Provincial Council building before security forcesdispersed the crowds using tear gas. A security source also told Shafaq Newsthat Iraqi security forces raided the homes of those involved, detaining morethan 10 individuals.
The Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights later urged Prime Minister AliAl-Zaidi to halt the arrest campaign, warning that the operations mirror the“violations” linked to Iraq’s 2019 civil movement.
Iraq has witnessed a sharp rise in rally activity in recent months. According to the Verisk Maplecroft Civil Unrest Index, the country recorded thefastest relative increase among emerging markets, with protest events surging671% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026.
: Iraq’s protests: A system that learned how to contain the street