Iraqi security forces fired live rounds Monday at anti-government protesters in Baghdad, hours after four demonstrators were shot dead outside the Iranian consulate in the holy city of Karbala.

It was the latest bloodshed in a wave of ongoing protests, road blocks and a campaign of civil disobedience waged by protesters accusing the Iraqi government of rampant corruption and clientelism.

Activists also hurled stones at security forces firing tear gas grenades in clashes on the capital's streets leading to the Iranian embassy, the seat of government and the foreign and justice ministries, an AFP photographer reported.

About 20 people were wounded in Baghdad, medical and security sources said, when security forces opened fire on protesters massing near the state television headquarters, according to witnesses.

It was the first time live ammunition was fired at Baghdad demonstrators since protests resumed on October 24, following a period in which riot police had switched to use tear gas amid accusations of "excessive force".

Some 270 people have lost their lives since the anti-government rallies broke out on October 1, according to an AFP count, but officials have stopped providing precise casualty numbers.

- 'Intent to kill' -

Overnight, a crowd of protesters had gathered in Karbala, about 100 kilometres (60 miles) south of Baghdad, at the consulate of neighbouring Iran, which they accuse of propping up the government they are trying to overthrow.

They scaled the blast walls and aimed fireworks at the building and, as the crowd grew, heavy gunfire and volleys of tear gas rang out.

"They intend to kill, not disperse," said one young protester about Iraqi forces guarding the mission.

The forensic medicine department later confirmed four protesters died after being shot.

"My son went out to protest with the rest of the young Iraqi men and got shot once in the shoulder and a second time in the head. He was 20," said Wissam Shaker.

Another relative of a casualty, who declined to give his name, said the protesters had been unarmed.

"If the governor comes out and says these protesters had grenades or weapons, he's lying! They had nothing but stones while security forces fired bullets," he said.

- Civil disobedience -

Iraq has close but complicated ties with its eastern neighbour Iran, with whom it fought a deadly war in the 1980s but which now has significant political and economic sway in Iraq.

Tehran has sought to reduce the protests next door, with sources reporting top commander Qassem Soleimani making several visits to "advise" Iraqi authorities on coping with the rallies.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has also slammed the protests in Iraq and Lebanon, labelling them conspiracies by the US and others.

Undeterred by the latest violence, protesters pushed on Monday with civil disobedience tactics they have increasingly adopted over the past week, including sit-ins, road closures and strikes.

The national teachers' syndicate shut down schools across the country, and other trade unions later joined in.

Government offices in more than a half-dozen southern cities have been either stormed or closed for lack of staff, with demonstrators hanging banners reading "Closed by order of the people" in front of the buildings.

Others have erected checkpoints to stop security forces or imposed curfews on officials and police, with roads cut in Samawa and protests in Nasiriyah and Hillah on Monday.

- PM's support frays -

Protesters have also shut the highway to the Umm Qasr port, one of the main conduits for food, medicine and other imports into Iraq.

The spreading non-violent actions defied a plea the previous evening by embattled premier Adel Abdel Mahdi for protesters to end their campaign.

"Now is the time for life to go back to normal," Abdel Mahdi, 77, said in a statement, insisting that many of the protesters' demands "have already been satisfied".

The UN's top representative in Iraq, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, condemned the violence while warning authorities not to underestimate the popular mood.

"Appalled by continued bloodshed in Iraq. People's high frustration not to be underestimated or misread," she tweeted. "It is high time for national dialogue."

Abdel Mahdi has announced hiring drives and increased social welfare, while President Barham Saleh has proposed early elections after a new voting law is agreed.

But protesters have demanded an overhaul of the entrenched political class and deep-rooted change to end rampant corruption they charge is holding the country back.

Despite Iraq being OPEC's second-largest crude producer, one in five Iraqis live below the poverty line and youth unemployment stands at 25 percent.

Iraq: more than a month of anti-regime protests
Baghdad (AFP) Nov 4, 2019 - Anti-government protests that started in Iraq on October 1 have escalated into countrywide deadly clashes and demands for the government to resign. Some 270 people have lost their lives.

Here is a recap:

- Spontaneous gatherings -

On October 1, more than 1,000 people take to the streets in Baghdad and cities in southern Iraq to protest corruption, unemployment and poor public services.

Heeding calls on social media, they gather in Tahrir Square in what seems to be a spontaneous movement.

Riot police disperse crowds with water cannons, tear gas and rubber bullets. They fire live ammunition when protesters regroup.

The first deaths are reported.

- Unrest spreads -

The next day protests multiply across southern Iraq and riot police fire live rounds in the capital and the cities of Najaf and Nasiriyah.

Influential firebrand Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr, whose bloc is the biggest in parliament, announces support for "peaceful protests".

On October 3, thousands defy a curfew in Baghdad and other cities, blocking streets and burning tyres.

Riot police and soldiers again fire live rounds.

Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi defends his year-old government on television, asking for more time to implement reforms.

- Sadr calls for polls -

On October 4, clashes intensify in Baghdad as security forces try to block access to Tahrir Square.

Several protesters are struck by bullets. Security forces blame "unidentified snipers".

In the evening, Sadr calls on the government to resign and for early elections under UN supervision.

- Death toll exceeds 150 -

On October 6, the cabinet announces reforms, including land distribution, boosted social welfare and the ousting of corrupt officials.

The powerful Hashed al-Shaabi, a network of mostly majority-Shiite paramilitary units, says on October 7 that it will back the government to prevent "a coup".

On October 22, an official inquiry announces that the death toll from the week of protests totalled 157, most killed in Baghdad.

- Deadly second wave -

Protests resume on October 24, after calls on social media for rallies on October 25, the anniversary of Abdel Mahdi's government taking office.

Rallies take a dangerous new turn as protesters torch dozens of provincial government buildings and offices tied to the powerful Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force.

At least 63 people are killed over just two days, according to the Iraqi Human Rights Commission.

- Sadr sit-in -

On October 26 lawmakers in Sadr's influential bloc, Saeroon, begin a sit-in at parliament.

They align themselves with the political opposition, having been a main sponsor of the government.

On October 27, students join protests in Baghdad, while four parliamentarians resign.

- Students, unions join -

On October 28, the protest movement swells as students, schoolchildren and professors take part in protests in Baghdad and cities in the south.

Trade unions representing teachers, lawyers and dentists declare strikes.

The next day the strikes and student rallies intensify after thousands defy an overnight curfew and stay on the streets.

The next day, the Iraqi Human Rights Commission says at least 100 people have died and more than 5,000 been injured since the demonstrations resumed on October 24.

On October 31 Saleh vows to hold early parliamentary elections once a new law is passed and says the country's embattled prime minister would resign if an alternative was found.

A day later Iraq's top cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, warns foreign actors against interfering in his country's anti-government protests.

- Live ammunition -

On November 3 a general strike shuts down streets, schools and government offices in Baghdad and the south.

Overnight four protesters are shot dead outside the Iranian consulate in the holy city of Karbala, as they aimed fireworks at the building.

On November 4 Iraqi security forces fire live rounds at protesters in the capital as they massed near the state television headquarters.

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Iraqi protesters, security forces clash in capital
Baghdad (AFP) Nov 2, 2019
Iraqi security forces clashed with anti-government protesters near the capital's Tahrir Square on Saturday as anti-government rallies which have rocked Baghdad for a month cost more lives. The violence in Baghdad has been centred on two bridges linking Tahrir to the Green Zone on the west bank of the Tigris River where most government buildings and foreign embassies are located. Riot police deployed along the bridges on Saturday fired tear gas to keep back protesters, who have dug in to their p ... read more