Iraq could face another summer of bloodshed

Iraq could face another summer of bloodshed

Hundreds of protesters converged on the streets of the southern Iraqi city of Basra last week. Demonstrators across the province are calling for structural change to fix rampant corruption, a stagnant economy, high unemployment and underfunded public utilities. Protests in Iraq are common, but last summer's demonstrations saw an escalation into violence. Hundreds were wounded and killed, and many thousands more were arrested after clashes with police forces. Government buildings were set on fire, and the province was on the edge of revolt. Despite the violence, little has changed. The government still suffers from mismanagement and fraud. The country's elite have done little to improve conditions for the lower classes. As temperatures creep closer to 50°C and the struggling electrical grid and fresh water supply are strained, many question whether the protests will spiral into similar violence. On this week's episode of Beyond the Headlines, host Campbell MacDiarmid speaks with Dr Renad Mansour, a research fellow in the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House, and Belkis Wille, the senior Iraq researcher in the Middle East and North Africa division of Human Rights Watch. Read more on our website:

Episoder(477)

Journey through the ISIS badlands

Journey through the ISIS badlands

ISIS has dominated headlines for nearly a decade. Even as the groups power has waned the fear it instils has remained. In 2019 ISIS saw its last pocket of territory wiped from the map, ripped from its...

10 Des 201915min

Is overpopulation our biggest climate challenge?

Is overpopulation our biggest climate challenge?

In the last century, the global population has exploded. Today, there are 7.7 billion people on the planet and that number is rising at the pace of another billion every 12 to 15 years. Scientists say...

5 Des 201923min

A look at national service on National Day

A look at national service on National Day

Every year on December 2nd, millions across the seven emirates mark the day the UAE became a country. This week, we are doing something a bit different.  Regular listeners will know that on Beyond ...

28 Nov 201932min

Who’s really running Iraq?

Who’s really running Iraq?

The true extent of Iranian infiltration of Iraq has been revealed. 700 pages from Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security were released to western outlets, The New York Times and The Intercept. T...

21 Nov 201914min

India's fight against death by breath

India's fight against death by breath

For the past two weeks, air pollution in the Indian capital of Delhi has been off the scale. A toxic mix of dust, soot from farmers burning paddy field stubble, car fumes and construction all combined...

14 Nov 201916min

Is Iraq ready for the new Syrian refugees?

Is Iraq ready for the new Syrian refugees?

On October 9 after months of warning, Turkey launched an offensive across their southeast border into Syria. The move came after US President Donald Trump pulled his forces back from the border, effec...

7 Nov 201929min

Noura Al Kaabi on UAE's effort to re-build Al Nuri Mosque

Noura Al Kaabi on UAE's effort to re-build Al Nuri Mosque

The Iraqi city of Mosul lays in ruins. A three year campaign by the Iraqi army and international forces managed to push ISIS out of the country they tried to take over in 2014. But it came at a huge c...

31 Okt 201932min

Songs of Revolution

Songs of Revolution

A Beyond the Headlines extra. The Lebanese people have joined together with a single message, to stand against the government that they see as corrupt, inept and self serving. The clashes gave way by ...

25 Okt 20198min

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