Iraqi high school pupil Amir Khadem watched in horror as a man toppled from his motorbike on to the ground, surrounded by a cloud of tear gas.
Blood spurted from the man’s head, drenching the ground as protesters took cover around him.
“This just happened,” said Amir, 17, showing a video of the moment immediately after the man was hit in the head with a tear gas canister.
“They did this on purpose. I saw this, it was on purpose. He died.”
Protesters in Baghdad and beyond claim security troops have aimed at protesters with tear gas canisters.
While the first round of Iraq’s protests were marked by live bullets, in the most recent there has been a large number of deaths from canisters striking those on the streets.
Eight protesters were killed when struck in the head by the canisters the day the protests resumed on October 25, the Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights said.
“The main marked difference we saw in protests in Baghdad as opposed to ones earlier in the month is that clearly an order was given not to open live fire on the crowds,” said Belkis Wille, a senior Iraq researcher for Human Rights Watch.
“Seemingly they have replaced live fire with tear gas canisters. What I cannot tell is the extent to which them firing gas canisters at people instead of above them is purposeful or incompetence."
Protesters and medics said they had seen severe injuries and in some cases deaths caused by the canisters and stun grenades.
One protester, Mohamed Al Khafajy, his hands still covered in another person's blood, told The National he had seen a protester killed in front of him with a tear gas canister.
“The blood came from one who fell, who was targeted by the security forces," Mr Al Khafajy said. "They kill the Iraqi people. They now are hitting people with tear gas."
Mayad Hasan, 30, held up a bandaged hand.
“I was hit here on my hand by a stun grenade,” Mr Hasan said. “They are targeting us. I was near the concrete barriers on the bridge.”
Ms Wille said the many stories from those protesters hit by canisters and stun grenades were cause for concern.
"Given the amount of people in the past few days who’ve had tear gas canisters hit them in the head, I find it hard to believe that all of those instances are simply bad trainingm given that what we saw in the beginning of the month was that people were being shot at in the head,” she said.
“What I worry is that there a chance security forces are actually purposefully shooting at people in the head with tear gas canisters, essentially using them in lieu of live fire.
"So they’re not trying to use tear gas as a method of dispersal, they’re trying to use it instead as something akin to a bullet.”
Most injuries and deaths have occurred on Baghdad’s Jumhuriya bridge, which leads from Tahrir Square to the Green Zone.
There the security forces have erected concrete T-Walls to prevent protesters from storming the area, which is home to the Iraqi Parliament.
Protesters say that troops shelter behind the walls while aiming indiscriminately at those who try to approach.
Ms Wille says she believes that the forces guarding the bridge may be a mix of anti-riot police and troops commissioned to protect the Green Zone.
“They are behind the T-Walls on the bridge, they stay behind the walls and aim at the protesters,” said Akeel Hani, 27, who usually works as a medic in the Baghdad Children’s Hospital, but left to work to volunteer at the protests.
"They don’t where it lands. It could land on the tent, on the people, they don’t know. What’s important to them is that they hit the protesters."
In the first days of the protests, Mr Hani went to the bridge to try to treat the wounded. Since then, he and a group of volunteer doctors have set up a tent in Tahrir Square.
“There are injuries to the head, the back and the legs," he said. "I had to give stitches to two people on their heads. Yesterday there were two in one day."
Soran Khatib, a doctor volunteering with Mr Hani, said most injuries came from tear gas inhalation
“There have been injuries from stun grenades and from tear canisters," Dr Khatib said.
"With tear gas, they should aim it far away. When they aim it close you get direct injuries. Yesterday we had four cases where tear gas canisters struck the bodies of the injured.
“We’ve seen serious and deep injuries on the legs and the backs of protesters."
Protester Farhan Mohamed, 24, held up a handful of tear gas canisters.
"We want human rights,” he said. “This is shameful. They are hitting our mothers and our sisters here in the protests.
"Why are you attacking people? Why?”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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BRIEF SCORES:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
LA LIGA: Sporting Gijon, 13 points in 1997-98.
BUNDESLIGA: Tasmania Berlin, 10 points in 1965-66
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ELIO
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Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
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Bournemouth 0
Manchester United 2
Smalling (28'), Lukaku (70')
How to increase your savings
- Have a plan for your savings.
- Decide on your emergency fund target and once that's achieved, assign your savings to another financial goal such as saving for a house or investing for retirement.
- Decide on a financial goal that is important to you and put your savings to work for you.
- It's important to have a purpose for your savings as it helps to keep you motivated to continue while also reducing the temptation to spend your savings.
- Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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