OREANDA-NEWS. At least 18 people were killed during the Iraqi security forces dispersal of the participants in a sit-in in Karbala in the central part of the country. This was announced on Tuesday by the Iraqi television channel with reference to medical sources. According to them, law enforcement officers, trying to disperse protesters who opposed corruption and economic problems in the country, used firearms. Official confirmation of this information hasn't been reported yet.

On Monday, the news portal Mavazin News, citing data from the Iraqi High Commission on Human Rights, said that since the end of last week, at least 82 people have died as a result of the unrest in the country.

On October 1, anti-government protests began in several regions of Iraq. People in Baghdad, as well as the southern and northern provinces, demanded the resignation of the government. Peaceful rallies quickly escalated into violent clashes with police and military personnel. At the beginning of this month, according to official authorities, 157 people were killed in the protests, and nearly 3.5 thousand were injured. After a brief lull last week, demonstrations and riots resumed in the capital as well as in some provinces in the central and southern parts of the country.