Iraqi Government Steps Up Investigation into Killings of Protesters, Journalists 

CAIRO - Iraqi media are reporting on stepped up efforts to find whoever killed a protester Sunday night and attempted to kill a journalist. Crowds of mostly young men set fire to the perimeter of the Iranian consulate in Karbala after the attacks, as Prime Minister Mustafa al-Khadhimi vows to find and arrest the perpetrators.

The assassination of a protester in the Iraqi Shi'ite shrine town of Karbala Sunday night, along with the attempted assassination of a journalist in Diwaniya, led protesters to set fires outside the Iranian consulate, prompting an outcry from Tehran. Protesters set fire to the same consulate in November 2019.  Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Khadhimi, himself a former journalist, vowed to uncover and prosecute those who were behind the latest attacks, as well as previous killings of protesters.  He told journalists that an investigative committee has been set up, including a group of retired judges with experience, to investigate and question witnesses to determine what happened and eventually reach a conclusion.