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AFP
Since October, a wave of anti-government protests has swept across Iraq. The protesters represent a cross-section of society and, unusually for a traditionally patriarchal country, women have taken a leading role.
Their prominence is celebrated in murals which have sprung up across the capital, Baghdad.
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AFP
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AFP
Baghdad’s Tahrir Square, epicentre of the protests, has been transformed into a hub of creative defiance.
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AFP
Murals paying tribute to the spirit and strength of Iraqi women have become an iconic visual representation of the protests.
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AFP
Often produced by women, the artwork highlights their increasingly active role in seeking to shape their future.
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AFP
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AFP
The demonstrations and the murals have enabled women to create a collective community, reclaim their national identity and re-write their history.
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Reuters
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AFP
Despite facing disapproval from parents and husbands over fears for their safety – more than 400 people have been killed by security forces – women continue to join the demonstrations, sometimes secretly.
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AFP
For women, who have in the past been neglected by political movements, the absence of any political agenda behind the protests has spurred them to take part.
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AFP
And in a society where men and women have seldom protested side by side, the fact that they are working together in the interest of reaching a shared goal is a significant social achievement.
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Reuters
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