Thousands of people took to the streets of Baghdad and cities across southern Iraq on Friday in the latest protests against corruption, social ills and political leadership.

Surrounded by a cordon of anti-riot personnel equipped with electric batons, protestors in Baghdad's Tahrir Square accused leaders of being "thieves" and "corrupt", AFP journalists said.

Several hundred people shouted "No to corruption!" and "Iran out!".

Fourteen people have been killed in nearly three weeks of unrest as demonstrators have railed against power shortages, unemployment, a lack of clean water and state mismanagement.

Adding to tensions, the country still awaits the results of a partial recount of May 12 elections, while political factions jostle to cobble together a coalition under the watchful eyes of regional powers including Tehran.

In oil-rich Basra, the southern port city where the protests began on July 8, several thousand demonstrated in front of the governorate.

"We live in catastrophic conditions — we need food and water," said 33-year-old history graduate and labourer Hassan Hantuch, one of the protestors.

"No to corruption, yes to change!" proclaimed banners held up by protestors in Nasiriyah, southern Iraq, an AFP correspondent said.

Protests also took place Friday in Najaf and Maysan provinces, south of Baghdad.

A spokesman for Iraq's highest Shiite authority Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani called at midday on the outgoing government to meet protestors' demands.

He also called for the formation of a new government "as soon as possible with effective, competent and transparent people".

Iraq to try election officials over fraud: judiciary
Baghdad (AFP) July 28, 2018 –

Iraq will put on trial five election officials in connection with fraud, including vote buying, during the country's May legislative elections, a judicial official said on Saturday.

Judge Laith Hamza said the suspects were the heads of election offices in Salaheddin, Kirkuk and Anbar provinces as well as those who oversaw the voting in neighbouring Jordan and Turkey.

All five have been sacked "and will appear before the courts" in connection with allegations of fraud, Hamza said.

The decision to put them on trial has been taken following recommendations made by a ministerial committee, which issued a 28-page report after reviewing a series of complaints.

Hamza said the committee recommended they be tried after coming across "(election) violations, fraud and corruption" in the districts which the five suspects headed.

According to the ministerial report, a copy of which has been seen by AFP, some of the alleged fraud involved "vote buying" on behalf of the Minister of Commerce Salman Ali and his brother Issam.

Iraq's May election were marred by allegations of fraud which prompted the supreme court to order a manual recount in several districts, including in the northern multi-ethnic city of Kirkuk.

The election was won by populist Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr's joint list with communists, as long-time political figures were pushed out by voters seeking change in a country mired in conflict and corruption.

The results were contested mainly by the old guard.

The supreme court also ratified a decision by the outgoing parliament to dismiss Iraq's nine-member electoral commission and replace them with judges.

The ministerial committee additionally recommended in its report that a new law be passed to ensure that in the future independent judges — rather that an electoral commission — oversee elections.