Baghdad, Jan 26 (IANS): Hundreds of protesters rallied near the Central Bank of Iraq in downtown Baghdad against the recent devaluation of the local currency and demand the government take action to stabilise it.

The demonstrators gathered outside the bank complex on al-Rasheed Street amid a heavy security presence as riot police cordoned off the area, a source with the Interior Ministry said.

Many demonstrators carried flags and banners, some of which read, "Enough with promises. Devalue the dollar", and another read, "High prices are killing us".

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani said that "the government continues its support for the Central Bank of Iraq to restore the dollar exchange rate to the official rate".

We have taken several strong decisions to support and stabilize the Iraqi dinar, and we warn those who try to exploit the crisis.

"The dollar did not rise as a result of a government decision, but because of the presence of those who took advantage of the temporary conditions and turmoil in the markets," al-Sudani added.

On Monday, the Prime Minister accepted the resignation of the Central Bank governor Mustafa Ghalib Mukheef following the recent devaluation of the Iraqi dinar.

Mukheef, who had been in the post since 2020, was replaced by Muhsen al-Allaq as the acting governor.

Recently, the value of $1 rose to more than 1,600 Iraqi dinars on the local markets, while its official value in the CBI is 1,450 Iraqi dinars.

The dollar inflation led to an increase in the prices of commodities, including foodstuffs.