Iraq protest toll reaches 157 as military uses excessive force

A total of 157 people were killed during week-long anti-government protests in Iraqi capital and other cities.

Baghdad accounted for 111 of the dead, nearly all of whom were protesters, the inquiry found.

Around 70 percent of the deaths were caused by bullet wounds "to the head or chest", according to the findings, published as Iraq braces for fresh protests on Friday.

State television on Tuesday cited the committee's official report which found that 149 civilians and eight members of the security forces were killed since the demonstrations erupted on October 1.

Later unrest in the capital culminated in the Shiite stronghold of Sadr City, which faced a bloody night of violence.

Authorities formed a high commission of inquiry to investigate, after initially only acknowledging security forces used excessive force in just a few instances.

Human rights groups and Iraqis able to post on social media -- inaccessible without a virtual private network (VPN) application -- accuse security forces of responsibility for protester deaths: either by firing themselves or by failing to protect demonstrators from snipers.

The mostly leaderless demonstrations were the biggest challenge yet to the year-old government of Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi.

Abdul Mahdi had insisted security forces had been acting "within international standards" in dealing with the demonstrators, but Iraq's military later admitted it had used "excessive force".