Thousands of Iraqis protest in Basra

BASRA, Iraq (AFP) - Thousands of Iraqis protested on Monday in the unruly southern oil city of Basra to demand the resignation of a provincial governor whom they accuse of corruption.

A large crowd of men, women and children gathered in front of the Grand Basra mosque in the heart of Iraq's second largest city under the banner of a new movement called Jamahir al-Basra (People of Basra).

Governor Mohammed al-Waeli accuses the group of being a front for his political foes -- including radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army militia -- and the protest movement has raised tension in the city.

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