Iraqi authorities shut down key port Umm Qasr over Basra protests

The Iraqi authorities on Friday shut the strategic Umm Qasr seaport in Iraq’s southern Basra province amid ongoing popular demonstrations in Basra city.

Located on the western edge of the Al-Faw Peninsula, where Iraq’s Shatt al-Arab waterway enters the Persian Gulf, Umm Qasr -- Iraq’s only deep-water port -- port is located some 60 kilometers south of Basra city.

Since July 9, Iraq’s Shia-majority central and southern provinces -- especially Basra -- have been rocked by demonstrations, which at one point spread to capital Baghdad.

Demonstrators demand improved public utilities, more job opportunities and an end to perceived government corruption.

Since the protests began, at least 26 demonstrators have been killed in clashes with security forces, according to Iraq’s state-run human rights commission.

For years, Basra residents have complained that foreign nationals, rather than locals, were being employed by the domestic energy sector.

Roughly 80 percent of Iraq’s total crude oil exports originate from oilfields in Basra province.