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The UN’s most senior official in Iraq, visited protesters in central Baghdad on Wednesday, calling for “a national dialogue to identify prompt, meaningful responses to break the vicious cycle of violence” which has roiled the country during the past five days.

On Monday Iraq's military admitted to using "excessive force outside the rules of engagement" to counter the protests from the day before. It was the first time since protests began on October 2 that the security forces acknowledged the severity of their response to the protests. Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi ordered police to replace the army in Sadr City, the Shiite-dominated neighborhood east of the Iraqi capital.

The United Nations has called for an end to the "senseless loss of life" in Iraq as the death toll from anti-government protests nears 100. Demonstrators say they are taking a stand against unemployment, poor public services and corruption in the country. Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, head of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq, said: "Five days of deaths and injuries: this must stop."

Iraq's security and paramilitary forces began Sunday a military operation along the border with Syria aimed at clearing the area of Islamic State group militants, the military said in a statement.

Iraq’s democratic transition – weighed down by political infighting, weak institutions, corruption, and the constant threat of ISIL – needs more international support, “lots of time and lots of hard work,” the top United Nations official in the country said on Tuesday.

Acting U.S. defence chief Patrick Shanahan told Iraqi leaders that Washington understood its forces were in Iraq at Baghdad’s invitation, aiming to steady relations after President Donald Trump said U.S. troops were needed to keep an eye on Iran.