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Iraqi Prime Minister Adel-Abdel Mahdi on Sunday called for life to return to normal after days of massive anti-government protests that have paralysed the country.
His call comes as protesters have blocked roads in several parts of Iraq and forced the closure of a major port in the southern province of Basra.

“Threatening oil interests and blocking some roads leading to ports cause huge losses,” Abdel-Mahdi said in a statement, according to Iraq's official news agency INNA.
“This delays the delivery of goods and hikes up prices, curbs the creation of jobs and hampers economic growth,” he added.
Street protests have roiled Iraq in two waves since early October, which marked one year since Abdel Mahdi took office. Demonstrators have decried corruption, lack of jobs and poor access to electricity and clean water in the oil-wealthy country.
The demonstrators have also demanded the resignation of the government, the dissolution of parliament and an overhaul of the country's political system that has been in place since the 2003-led invasion of Iraq.
On Sunday, schools closed in several areas of Iraq as part of mounting pressure on the government to step down.

The closures occurred in response to a call for a five-day strike by the country's independent Teachers' Union despite a warning from the Education Ministry.
At least 260 people, mostly demonstrators, were killed and 11,000 others injured in Iraq’s turmoil last month, according to the independent Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights.
Violence in Baghdad as Iraqi protesters and security forces clash
Abdel-Mahdi on Sunday blamed the violence on groups he branded as outlaws.
“These groups have no relation to demonstrations. Rather they use them [protesters] as covers and as human shields to commit acts of road blockage, arson, looting and clashes with security forces,” he added.
“What matters is to isolate the saboteurs from your peaceful movement,” Abdel-Mahdi added, addressing protesters.
The premier said he had assigned an investigation committee to look into the equipment used by security forces on the streets.
This week, the rights watchdog Amnesty International accused Iraqi security forces of using previously unseen types of tear gas grenade to kill rather than disperse protesters.
Iraq using ‘skull-piercing’ tear gas grenades on protesters, Amnesty says
Abdel-Mahdi said that security forces are under strict orders not to use live ammunition, or other lethal weapons against protesters.
The protests are the country's largest since December 2017, when Iraq declared the liberation of all territory previously under Islamic State militants' control.


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Iraq

Iraqi prime minister  appeals for calm amid continued widespread protests, as demonstrators block major roads

Iraq's Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi. Photo: AFP

TOPSHOT - Iraqi students pose for selfies with a member of the security forces during ongoing anti-government protests in the central city of Diwaniyah on October 31, 2019. - Iraq's leaders scrambled to produce a solution to mounting protests demanding the ouster of Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi that have so far left more than 250 dead. Demonstrations first erupted on October 1 over corruption and unemployment and have since ballooned, with protesters now insisting on a government overhaul. (Photo by Haidar HAMDANI / AFP)

Iraqis take part in ongoing anti-government protests in the central city of Karabala on October 31, 2019. - Iraq's leaders scrambled to produce a solution to mounting protests demanding the ouster of Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi that have so far left more than 250 dead. Demonstrations first erupted on October 1 over corruption and unemployment and have since ballooned, with protesters now insisting on a government overhaul. (Photo by Mohammed SAWAF / AFP)

Embattled Lebanon President Michel Aoun pledges reforms as rival protests grip capital

A protester holds a flare as other chant slogans against the Lebanese government in Beirut. Photo: AP Photo

Anti-government protesters chant slogans against the Lebanese government, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2019. President Michel Aoun and his son-in-law, Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, have been among the main targets of mass protests that aim to sweep from power Lebanon's entire sectarian and political elite. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

Violence continues in Baghdad as Iraqi anti-government protesters and security forces clash

Iraqi women take part at an anti-government protest in the holy city of Najaf. Photo: Reuters

An Iraqi protester sits with his dog during ongoing anti-government demonstrations in the Shiite shrine city of Karbala, south of Iraq's capital Baghdad, on November 2, 2019. - Iraqi security forces clashed with anti-government protesters near the capital's Tahrir Square today as anti-government rallies which have rocked Baghdad for a month cost more lives. (Photo by Mohammed SAWAF / AFP)

Iraqis take part in an anti-government protest in the southern city of Basra on November 1, 2019. - Iraq's top cleric warned foreign actors today against interfering in his country's anti-government protests as they entered a second month despite pledges of reform and violence that has left over 250 dead (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP)

Iraq using ‘skull-piercing’ tear gas grenades to kill rather than disperse protesters, Amnesty International says

A man holds used tear gas canisters during an anti-government demonstration in Baghdad on Wednesday. Photo: dpa

Anti-government protesters gather in Tahrir Square during ongoing protests in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2019. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

Iraq's President Barham Salih delivers a televised speech to people in Baghdad, Iraq October 31, 2019. The Presidency of the Republic of Iraq Office/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY.

Tear gas is fired during clashes between anti-government protesters and Iraqi security forces near Tahrir Square in Baghdad on Thursday. Photo: dpa

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Street protests have roiled Iraq in two waves since early October over corruption, lack of jobs and poor access to electricity and clean water in the oil-wealthy country



Street protests have roiled Iraq in two waves since early October over corruption, lack of jobs and poor access to electricity and clean water in the oil-wealthy country.


Islamic State

Syrian conflict

Human rights