Media Watchdog Condemns Ex-Prime Minister's 'Offensive' Remarks on Tishreen Protests

Shafaq News/ The Palm "al-Nakheel" Center for Rights and Freedoms, a leading human rights and press freedom watchdog, vehemently condemned the disparaging remarks made by former Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi concerning the Tishreen protests on Sunday.

The center labeled the ex-Prime Minister's assertions as a provocative affront to the sentiments of Iraqis and a disregard for the loss of life.

In a recent interview, Abdul Mahdi stoked controversy by attributing the Tishreen demonstrations to a plot by the US and Israel to weaken Iraq.

These comments, according to the Center, epitomize a disdainful disregard and an unabashed provocation towards millions of Iraqis, particularly the families of the martyrs and the wounded.

A statement from al-Nakheel suggested that Abdul Mahdi's comments were not only disrespectful but also served to justify the violent targeting of demonstrators, journalists, and media institutions supportive of the movement.

"We are astounded by the persistence of some politicians in labeling a popular movement, widely participated in by a broad spectrum of Iraqis and supported by religious and spiritual authorities, with such derogatory descriptors," the statement read.

It emphasized that the protest movement had faced various forms of suppression and violence, a fact corroborated by governmental investigations.

The statement went further to critique the former premier's failure to acknowledge his shortcomings during the sorrowful events Iraq witnessed during his term and suggested an apology was due to the afflicted families who lost loved ones, some of whom remain missing or with unknown fates.

The Palm Center reminded incumbent Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani of his unfulfilled promise to reveal the murderers of the protestors and make the information public.

"Despite more than seven months since his government's formation, nothing has materialized," the center lamented.