More than 1,000 protesters
in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul have been demonstrating to demand
an end to the U.S. occupation of their country. The protests, which
have continued for more than two weeks, have drawn the support of
tribal leaders and members of the provincial council who have joined
in the demonstrations, vowing that protests will continue until the
U.S. completely withdraws. The response of security forces has been
brutal, with live ammunition fired into the peaceful crowd killing
one person and injuring 44 on April 22.
Tens of thousands of U.S.
troops and private mercenaries remain in the country, and the U.S.
Embassy in Baghdad is the largest in the world. The protests reflect
growing anger at statements by U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates,
Admiral Mike Mullen, chair of the U.S. military’s Joint Chiefs of
Staff, and others suggesting that the U.S. occupation forces may stay
beyond the scheduled departure at the end of this year.
