In pictures: 'We want a new Iraq' says Baghdad mural maker

The underpass leading off from Saadoun Street underneath Baghdad's central Tahrir Square has become the site of a cornucopia of political paintings, created by activists since the relaunch of anti-government protests on 25 October (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

The murals focus on a range of subjects, not least anger at the UN for what many activists see as equivocation over violence against protesters and an over-willingness to accept the government's accounts of the protests (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Haider Salman, right, takes responsibility for kicking off the underpass artwork campaign. He told MEE that he worked every day from 5am to midday in order to plaster the walls of the transport route with politically charged material (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Haider, who posts on Instagram under the username 'HAID8R', said the paintings display the dreams of a younger generation of Iraqis sick of living with corruption, unemployment and poor services. “We want a new Iraq - to change everything," he said (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

The artwork draws on a range of sources, pastiching pop art, minimalism, Islamic and abstract art (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

More than 320 people have been killed since the beginning of October, as the security services reacted harshly to the groundswell of popular dissent. “Army and police don’t like us - I don’t know [why] but they really don't like us," said Haider. "They don’t want us to paint anything here" (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Much of Haider's work focuses on graffiti art, espousing simple positive messages. "This one says, 'live your dream'," he said, referring to the above artwork (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Unlike in many previous demonstrations, the October uprising in Iraq has seen a massive participation by women. A number of murals in Baghdad focus on the empowerment of women and their importance to the movement, with one pastiching the famous 'Rosy the Riveter' poster (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

All around Tahrir Square are posters and paintings calling for the international community to intervene and prevent the continued killing of protesters by security forces (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

When the government hasn't been slowing or blocking the internet, Iraqi activists have circulated gruesome videos and photos of protesters with gas canisters embedded in their heads, and with bludgeoned and mutilated heads and limbs (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

"This one is like Grendizer," said Haider, referring to the popular Japanese anime character. “This is the army and the Iraqi people - the army shoots people” (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Protests which began on 1 October paused for the religious holiday of Arbaeen before exploding again on 25 October, a date which has gone down in legend for protesters (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Despite the antagonism of the police, Haider said they had never interfered with his painting. “I never had trouble - the police don’t come here," he explained. The power balance in much of Tahrir Square still lies very much with the protesters. (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Pepsi bottles have become another symbol as the soft drink has been used to help counteract the effects of tear gas (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Haider fears that once the protests are over, the paintings will be removed from the underpass, because "the government doesn’t like this” and the paintings could stand as a reminder of public defiance (MEE/Alex MacDonald)

Another recurring motif is anger against Iran, which many protesters blame for looting and dominating Iraq. While some of the artwork uses creative metaphors to depict the anger, other graffiti in Tahrir Square merely reads "Fuck Iran" (Alex MacDonald)

“We want to change the government, they stole money from the Iraqi people. They stole everything," said Haider. “No jobs, no services. Everyone here has a brother or mother or friend who was killed" (MEE/Alex MacDonald)