Adil Abdul Mahdi says he will step down in response to a call for a change of leadership by the country's top cleric Ayatollah Ali al Sistani, even as more protesters are shot dead in southern Nasiriyah city.
Protesters continue to demonstrate in capital Baghdad's iconic Tahrir Square as new clashes with the security forces, mainly on the nearby Ahrar Bridge, cause fatalities.
Protesters retook control of half of Ahrar Bridge, which leads to the other side of the Tigris River near the heavily fortified Green Zone, the seat of Iraq’s government.
Iraq's ruling elite fear the unity of the Iraqi people because it directly undermines their divisive rule.
Police and medics say Iraqi forces shot dead three anti-government protesters, adding to the hundreds killed in weeks of unrest, as a rights group warned a deadly crackdown could spiral into a "bloodbath."
Iraqi authorities reportedly cut off Internet access for nearly all of Baghdad and the southern part of the country on Tuesday as the latest wave of protests resulted in casualties.
Anti-government protesters continue to shut down roads and government offices in the Iraqi capital, escalating a month-long string of rallies demanding political change.
Tens of thousands of Iraqis have been protesting, mostly in Baghdad and southern regions, since last month, demanding sweeping change to the political system established after the 2003 US-led invasion.
More than 4,000 people have also been injured since the protests against chronic unemployment, poor public services and widespread corruption erupted in the capital on Tuesday.
Iraq's political system will continue to fail its citizens unless it undergoes deep reforms, or is overhauled completely.
The PM's decision came after nine people were killed and dozens others injured as anti-government protests that erupted in the capital Baghdad spread to other city's in the country's south.
Security forces use tear gas, water cannon and live fire to disperse demonstrations over unemployment, corruption and poor public services in capital Baghdad and other provinces.
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