Iraq's top Shi'ite cleric says security forces must keep peace

Iraq's top Shi'ite Muslim cleric urged security forces on Friday to av...

BAGHDAD - Iraq’s top Shi’ite Muslim cleric urged security forces on Friday to avoid using excessive force to quell weeks of anti-government unrest as authorities grapple with the country’s biggest crisis in years.

Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who only speaks on politics in times of crisis and wields enormous influence over public opinion in Shi’ite-majority Iraq, held security forces accountable for any violent escalation and urged the government to respond as quickly as possible to demonstrators’ demands. The violent response from authorities has fueled public anger. Snipers from Iran-backed militias that have participated in the crackdown were deployed last month, Reuters reported.Live fire is still being used and even tear gas canisters, fired directly at protesters’ bodies instead of being lobbed into crowds, have killed at least 16 people, New York-based Human Rights Watch said on Friday.

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