Crowds gather outside Wasit Police Command in Kut after detained electricity protesters were released Saturday. Photo by 964media.
Wasit police free more than 30 held after electricity protest clashes
WASIT — Wasit police released more than 30 protesters Saturday evening who had been detained after clashes during electricity demonstrations in Kut the previous night.
The releases came after Wasit Governor Ali Salimoun and representatives of the protesters met the governorate’s police chief to resolve the dispute and address legal complaints filed by several security personnel injured in the confrontations. The meeting resulted in the release of all detainees.
The arrests followed clashes Friday between security forces and hundreds of demonstrators outside the Wasit Provincial Council building, where protesters sought to shut it down after saying local authorities had failed to obtain a written guarantee from Baghdad confirming the governorate’s electricity allocation at 1,500 megawatts. The confrontations left people injured on both sides, and security forces pursued protesters through intersections near the council square.
The demonstrations are part of a weekslong campaign over electricity shortages in Wasit. Protesters have demanded an official document guaranteeing the allocation at 1,500 megawatts and pledged to keep demonstrating until their demands are met, arguing that Wasit hosts major power plants but receives only a limited share of the electricity it produces.
The releases follow an earlier round of detentions. On June 28, the National Security Service announced the release of 22 detainees from Wasit after judicial procedures were completed, saying agency chief Bassem al-Badri had personally guaranteed bail for those unable to provide a guarantor.