Iraq PM Adel Abdul Mahdi offers resignation amid anti-govt protests

Iraq's Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi offered his resignation to the parliament amid growing discontent among people against his government's policies. Since early October, the protestors in the capital, and certain parts of the country have been demonstrating against the government.

"I will submit to the Council of Representatives (parliament) an official letter requesting the resignation from the Prime Minister post so that the council can reconsider its options," Abdul Mahdi said in a statement.

According to Al Jazeera, the decision was taken by him after an emergency cabinet session on Saturday in which the ministers accepted the resignation of his key staffers.

On Friday, he said that he would step down. The Shiite religious leaders also urged him to do the same. 

Since October, protestors hit the streets of Iran demanding that the Prime Minister step down from his post. The protestors expressed their anger towards the government on various issues like state corruption, growing unemployment, poor social services, etc.

The protests started out at Liberation square in Baghdad and then spread through the southern provinces of the country. It took the form of marches, sit-ins and civil disobedience.

Iraq's security forces clamped down heavily on the protests since it started out, using tear gas, live wire, and sound bombs to disperse crowds. Since the protests commenced, 400 people were killed in Iraq.