Iraq Declares Baghdad Curfew in Quest to Quell Protests

Iraqi state television says a top security authority for Baghdad declared an open-ended curfew on Monday, reporting that it would take effect nightly from midnight to 6 a.m. The move came during the fourth straight day of renewed protests against the government over the standard of living and perceived corruption, with demonstrators standing fast in Baghdad’s Tahrir Square despite police efforts to disperse them with teargas and rubber bullets. At least one report said that two protesters had been killed, with demonstrators making repeated attempts to cross into a zone where some of the city’s government buildings and foreign embassies are located. Each time, they have been met by phalanxes of security forces. More than 70 people were reported killed during the unrest on Friday and Saturday, with more than 230 having died since the protests initially erupted at the beginning of the month.