By — Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin By — National Affairs National Affairs Leave a comment 0comments Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/iraqi-prime-minister-to-resign-after-months-of-bloody-protest Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Audio The growing protest movement in Iraq has claimed dozens more casualties. Acceding to public demands, Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi said he will resign. But in the streets, the killing goes on, with security forces shooting down scores more of the protesters rallying against 15 years of failed governance, unemployment and corruption. Nick Schifrin reports on the “unprecedented” situation. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. Judy Woodruff: The growing protest movement in Iraq has claimed dozens more new casualties today. The prime minister says that he will step down, giving in to public demands.But, in the streets, the killing goes on, security forces shooting down scores more protesters.Foreign affairs correspondent Nick Schifrin reports on this critical day. Nick Schifrin: On the streets of Baghdad, protesters today declared victory. They have demonstrated for two months, and many gave their lives. They warned that sacrifice would be worth it only if today sparked fundamental change. Man (through translator): We consider this as the first step. We demand the resignation of all lawmakers. Nick Schifrin: Adil Abdul-Mahdi was a consensus candidate who struggled to deliver promised reforms. In early October, leaderless demonstrations rallied against 15 years of failed governance, unemployment, and corruption, and called for the entire political class' ouster.They also criticized Iran's influence. Today, they burned the Iranian flag, and Wednesday night torched the Iranian Consulate in Najaf. In response, security services have used deadly force. More than 400 protesters have been killed.The violence spread to Iraq's south, threatening to destabilize the country.That's why, today, the spokesman for Iraq's most powerful Shiite religious leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, spoke to followers and strongly suggested the government step aside. Ahmed Al-Safi (through translator): We call upon the House of Representatives, from which this current government has emerged, to reconsider its options. Nick Schifrin: A few hours later, Abdul-Mahdi's office released a statement saying he would step down, so Iraq could — quote — "avoid slipping into a cycle of violence, chaos, and devastation." Feisal Istrabadi: The initial response of some security forces or militias to begin to engage the demonstrators with violence really caused things to spiral out of his hands very quickly.And so his remaining in office seemed to have no particular logic to it. It seemed to be a situation where he could not control the streets anymore. Nick Schifrin: Feisal Istrabadi is an academic and former Iraqi diplomat. He says Abdul-Mahdi's resignation is unprecedented, and will spark difficult horse-trading in a deeply divided Parliament. Feisal Istrabadi: You have the same political parties who have been at an impasse for the last year and a half having to form another government. We are in a state of deadlock probably for some time to come. Nick Schifrin: Protesters will be watching to ensure today was the beginning, not the end, of the reforms they demand.For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Nick Schifrin. Listen to this Segment Watch Watch the Full Episode PBS NewsHour from Nov 29, 2019 By — Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin Nick Schifrin is PBS NewsHour’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Correspondent. He leads NewsHour’s daily foreign coverage, including multiple trips to Ukraine since the full-scale invasion, and has created weeklong series for the NewsHour from nearly a dozen countries. The PBS NewsHour series “Inside Putin’s Russia” won a 2017 Peabody Award and the National Press Club’s Edwin M. Hood Award for Diplomatic Correspondence. In 2020 Schifrin received the American Academy of Diplomacy’s Arthur Ross Media Award for Distinguished Reporting and Analysis of Foreign Affairs. He was a member of the NewsHour teams awarded a 2021 Peabody for coverage of COVID-19, and a 2023 duPont Columbia Award for coverage of Afghanistan and Ukraine. Prior to PBS NewsHour, Schifrin was Al Jazeera America's Middle East correspondent. He led the channel’s coverage of the 2014 war in Gaza; reported on the Syrian war from Syria's Turkish, Lebanese and Jordanian borders; and covered the annexation of Crimea. He won an Overseas Press Club award for his Gaza coverage and a National Headliners Award for his Ukraine coverage. From 2008-2012, Schifrin served as the ABC News correspondent in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In 2011 he was one of the first journalists to arrive in Abbottabad, Pakistan, after Osama bin Laden’s death and delivered one of the year’s biggest exclusives: the first video from inside bin Laden’s compound. His reporting helped ABC News win an Edward R. Murrow award for its bin Laden coverage. Schifrin is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a board member of the Overseas Press Club Foundation. He has a Bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and a Master of International Public Policy degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). @nickschifrin By — National Affairs National Affairs