Heeding a call by Shiite cleric Muqtada al Sadr, hundreds of Iraqi protesters gathered in Baghdad's Tahrir Square and in southern Iraqi cities Friday to press for action to improve the living conditions of the Iraqi people.

They also called for applying reforms at state institutions, punishing corrupt employees, restoring looted money and speeding up the formation of a new government of technocrats.

Meanwhile, Iraqi security forces ramped up their presence across Baghdad on Friday, blocking most major roads and bridges to keep followers of al Sadr from reaching the government district they had stormed a week earlier.

Source: MENA