Iraqi children play in the centre of their city on the first day of school in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul on October 21, 2019. (Photo by Zaid Al-Obeidi/AFP Photo)





Iraqi children play with a ball on a street blocked with burning tyres, amid a general strike in the southern city of Basra, on November 25, 2019. The demonstrations rocking the capital and Shiite-majority south since October 1 are the biggest grassroots movement the country has seen in decades. Sparked by outrage over rampant government corruption, poor services and lack of jobs, they have since gone straight to the source: calling out the ruling system as inherently flawed and in need of a total overhaul. (Photo by Hussein Faleh/AFP Photo)





In this Monday, December 16, 2019 photo, protesters stand on top of cement blocks separating them from Riot police at the commercial and historic al-Rasheed street, in the center of Baghdad, Iraq. With Iraq's leaderless uprising now in its third month, the protracted street hostilities, internet outages, blocked roads and a general atmosphere of unease are posing risks to Iraq's economy. In particular, the unrest has set back the most fragile segment of the country's economy, the private sector, where business owners have faced losses from damage to merchandise and disruptions of markets and from consumers reeling in their spending out of fear for the future. (Photo by Nasser Nasser/AP Photo)





Iraqi demonstrators are seen with their belongings as they stay overnight during anti-government protests continue in Baghdad, Iraq on November 20, 2019. (Photo by Murtadha Sudani/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)





Iraqi students take part in an anti-government demonstration in front of their university in the centre of the southern city of Basra on October 29, 2019. Swathes of Iraq have been engulfed by two waves of demonstrations this month over unemployment and corruption that have evolved into demands for regime change. (Photo by AFP Photo/Stringer)





A student of Basra University carries balloons as she takes part in an anti-government protest, in Basra, Iraq on December 8, 2019. (Photo by Essam al-Sudani/Reuters)





Tribesmen carry weapons and shout slogans during ongoing nationwide protests, on the outskirt of Kerbala, Iraq on December 9, 2019. (Photo by Abdullah Dhiaa al-Deen/Reuters)





Iraqi Christians gather around a fire as they attend a mass on Christmas Eve at the Grand Immaculate Church in al-Hamdaniya, near Mosul, Iraq, December 24, 2019. (Photo by Abdullah Rashid/Reuters)





Tattoo artist Maram, 16, inks a demonstrator's back with artwork symbolising the ongoing anti-government protests, in Baghdad, Iraq on December 24, 2019. (Photo by Khalid al Mousily/Reuters)





A member of Iraqi security forces is seen in a helicopter during military operations to search for Islamic State militants in Anbar province, Iraq on December 29, 2019. (Photo by Thaier Al-Sudani/Reuters)





Iraqi security forces chase anti-government protesters in Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, October 6, 2019. The protests began with demands for jobs and an end to corruption, and now include calls for justice for those killed in the protests. (Photo by Hadi Mizban/AP Photo)





Protesters read copies of “Tuk Tuk” newspapers, in Tahrir Square, Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, November 20, 2019. A small group of Iraqi volunteers is working in secrecy to produce the newspaper that aims to be the voice of the largest grassroots protest movement in the country’s modern history. Its editors say the newspaper is vital amid shutdowns of the internet, filling a void left by mainstream Iraqi journalists who either back the government or fear retaliation. (Photo by Hadi Mizban/AP Photo)





In this Monday, November 18, 2019 photo, a woman poses for a photo in front of graffiti at the Saadoun tunnel, in Baghdad, Iraq. The tunnel that passes under Baghdad’s landmark Tahrir Square has become an ad hoc museum for Iraq's revolution: Young artists draw images and murals that illustrate the country’s tortured past, and the Iraq they aspire to. Arabic reads, “those are our women”. (Photo by Khalid Mohammed/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, November 26, 2019 photo, a street vendor sells cakes on Rasheed Street in Baghdad, Iraq. Baghdad’s Rasheed Street was the scene of large marches by Iraqis against British occupiers nearly a century ago and now it’s a front line in a new revolt. (Photo by Hadi Mizban/AP Photo)





People pass by a Christmas tree with portraits of anti-government protesters who killed under fire from security forces in Tahrir Square during ongoing protests in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, December 12, 2019. (Photo by Khalid Mohammed/AP Photo)





In this photo taken Sunday, December 8, 2019, a volunteer chef prepares rice to be served to Iraqi protesters as part of a free meal, at the center of Baghdad, Iraq. In Baghdad’s Tahrir Square, there are the anti-government protesters demonstrating for a better future for Iraq, and there are the volunteers who feed them. From stuffed lamb and fish, to the giant pots of soups and rice to the plates of lentils and beans, there is no shortage of food to go around. Volunteers from the capital and southern provinces cook traditional dishes that reflect the country’s rich cuisine and bring protesters together. (Photo by Nasser Nasser/AP Photo)





In this photo taken Sunday, December 8, 2019, a volunteer chef prepares to serve free portions of the popular sweets of Awamah, fried dough balls, to protester in the center of Baghdad, Iraq. (Photo by Nasser Nasser/AP Photo)





In this photo taken Thursday, December 12, 2019, a volunteer chef serves free meals of the popular barbecue of Kabab, to Iraqi protesters at the center of Baghdad, Iraq. (Photo by Nasser Nasser/AP Photo)





In this photo taken Monday, December 9, 2019, a protester poses for a photo at the Tahrir square, in Baghdad, Iraq. (Photo by Nasser Nasser/AP Photo)





In this photo taken Monday, December 9, 2019, a volunteer chef serves free portions of the popular Arouk bread, wheat flour mixed with meat and onions, to protester in the center of Baghdad, Iraq. (Photo by Nasser Nasser/AP Photo)





In this photo taken Monday, December 9, 2019, a volunteer woman distributes free meals of the popular dish of Tepsy, a mix of vegetables in red souse served with rice, to protester in the center of Baghdad, Iraq. (Photo by Nasser Nasser/AP Photo)





Women light candles for protesters who have been killed in demonstrations during ongoing anti-government protests, in Najaf, Iraq, Tuesday, December 31, 2019. (Photo by Anmar Khalil/AP Photo)





An Iraqi anti-government demonstrator shows a basket full of empty bullet cartridges found in the Iraqi capital's Tahrir Square on December 11, 2019. Since October 1, Iraq's capital and its Shiite-majority south have been gripped by rallies against corruption, poor public services, a lack of jobs and Iran's perceived political interference. (Photo by Sabah Arar/AFP Photo)





Women sit by a wall with names of Anti-government protesters who have been killed in demonstrations in Tahrir Square during ongoing protests in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, December 12, 2019. A gunman shot dead several people, including four protesters, Thursday provoking some anti-government demonstrators to disarm and hang him in a central Baghdad square, security and health officials said. The incident was condemned by the wider protest movement based in Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the movement, who said the individuals who killed the gunman were not part of their peaceful demonstrations. (Photo by Khalid Mohammed/AP Photo)





A university student releases candle balloons during a student festival in Najaf, Iraq on December 28, 2019. (Photo by Alaa al-Marjani/Reuters)