Basra protests surge 8 killed, scores injured in clashes; security forces on high alert

Protesters blocked the entrance to Iraq’s Umm Qasr Commodities Port yesterday to demand better services, port employees and local government officials said, raising the stakes in some of the worst unrest in southern cities in months.

The move came hours after stone-throwing protesters set fire to the main provincial government building in the oil hub of Basra, Iraq’s second largest city.

The highway from Basra to Baghdad was cut off by demonstrators. “Protesters have blocked the main entrance to the port. Trucks that carry supplies can’t enter or leave the facility,” said one of the officials.