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Summary of New Year’s Day’s events: Protesters withdraw from US embassy perimeter - Iraqi military
[Jpost] "All protesters have withdrawn, tents dismantled, and other forms of demonstrating that accompanied these protests have ended," the Iraqi military said.

All members of paramilitary groups and their supporters who have been protesting against US air strikes in Iraq have withdrawn from the perimeter of the US Embassy in Baghdad on Wednesday, the Iraqi military said."All protesters have withdrawn, tents dismantled, and other forms of demonstrating that accompanied these protests have ended and the Iraqi security forces have completely secured the embassy perimeter," it said in a statement.The protests, led by Iranian-backed militias, mark a new turn in the shadow war between Washington and Tehran playing out across the Middle East.US President Donald Trump
...dictatorial for repealing some (but not all) of the diktats of his predecessor, misogynistic because he likes pretty girls, homophobic because he doesn't think gender bending should be mandatory, truly a man for all seasons......
, who faces re-election in 2020, on Tuesday threatened to retaliate against Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan, the abbreviation IRGC is a cognate form of Stürmabteilung (or SA), the term Supreme Guide is a cognate form of either Shah or Führer or maybe both, and they hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
but said later he did not want to go to war.

The protests also cast uncertainty over the continued presence of US troops in Iraq.

Crowds had rallied on Tuesday to protest against deadly US air strikes on militia bases, setting fires, throwing rocks and smashing surveillance cameras. They did not breach the huge embassy's main compound, however.

Overnight, demonstrators pitched tents and camped outside the embassy walls. On Wednesday morning, they were bringing in food supplies, cooking equipment and mattresses, Rooters witnesses said, suggesting they intended to stay for a long time.

Senior Iraqi army officers had negotiated with those gathered outside the embassy in an attempt to convince them to leave but failed to do so. Washington is putting pressure on Iraqi leaders to ensure the security of its staff.

The incident marked a sharp escalation of the proxy conflict between Washington and Tehran - both influential players in Iraq - while mass protests are challenging Iraq's own political system nearly 17 years after the US invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.

The protests followed US air strikes on Sunday on bases operated by the Iranian-backed militia Kataib Hezbollah inside Iraq which killed at least 25 fighters and maimed 55. The strikes were retaliation for the killing of a US civilian contractor in a rocket attack on an Iraqi military base, which Washington blamed on Kataib Hezbollah.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
...the actual dictator of Iran, successor to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini...
 on Wednesday condemned the US attacks.

"The Iranian government, nation and I strongly condemn the attacks," Iranina state TV quoted Khamenei as saying.

Trump accused Iran of orchestrating the violence at the US Embassy and said Tehran would be held responsible. Iran rejected the accusation.

More US troops were being sent to the embassy, US officials said. The 750 troops would initially be based out of Kuwait. The officials said that as many as 4,000 troops could be sent to the region in the coming days if needed.

More than 5,000 US troops are stationed in Iraq supporting local forces. The air strikes have galvanized calls inside Iraq to expel US forces, not just from Iran-backed militias but also their political rivals.
The Times of Israel posted the following report at midday:
For weeks, the anti-government protesters have been trying to enter the Green Zone housing the government and the US Embassy, but have been beaten back by security forces, who have killed hundreds of demonstrators.

The militiamen and their supporters, however, were able to quickly enter the Green Zone and mass in front of the embassy, with little if any resistance from authorities.

By Wednesday morning, they had set up a small sit-in of their own, with around 50 tents set up between two main gates about 500 meters (yards) apart. Demonstrators set up a makeshift clinic and cooks with aprons reading “Popular Mobilization Forces logistical support” served meals out of giant pots. Mobile toilets were also set up in the area.

Vehicles belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces, with government plates, were parked nearby, and the militiamen manned checkpoints where they searched all those arriving at the site of the demonstration.

Outside one of the gates, a Shiite cleric recited verses from the Muslim holy book, the Quran, through a loudspeaker. Another cleric led the protesters in midday prayers.

Demonstrators could be seen hurling rocks over the walls of the embassy compound, where US troops responded by firing tear gas from the roofs of buildings. Iraqi security forces deployed nearby watched the standoff unfold without intervening.
And from the Jerusalem Post:
The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad said on Wednesday that all public consular operations were suspended, a day after Iran-backed militias and their supporters stormed its outer perimeter, setting fires, throwing rocks and smashing surveillance cameras.

"Due to militia attacks at the U.S. Embassy compound, all public consular operations are suspended until further notice. All future appointments are canceled. U.S. citizens are advised to not approach the embassy," it said in a statement.
Posted by: trailing wife 2020-01-02
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=560035