ERBIL - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held a phone call with Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi and "deplored" the death toll of the demonstrations among the protesters.

State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement on Tuesday that Pompeo also urged Abdul Mahdi to take immediate steps to meet the demonstrators' demands, as reported by Reuters.

"The Secretary deplored the death toll among the protesters as a result of the Government of Iraq’s crackdown and use of lethal force, as well as the reports of kidnapped protesters," Ortagus said.

Tens of thousands of Iraqi people have been taking to the streets since early October against the poor public services, corruption, and unemployment, as a result of which over 320 people have so far been killed, while another 15,000 were injured.

"Secretary Pompeo emphasized that peaceful public demonstrations are a fundamental element of all democracies," Ortagus said, noting that the US top diplomat further called on the Iraqi premier to address the protesters' grievances by enacting the planned reforms and tackling corruption.