HILLA (Iraq): The governor of a third Iraqi province resigned on Sunday after nationwide demonstrations in recent weeks over poor public services and rampant corruption.

"I have decided to resign because of weak public services and technical problems that have prevented us from completing projects like the construction of roads and bridges," said Salman Al Zargani, governor of Babil province, south of Baghdad.

"There is also a lack of harmony between myself and the provincial council," Zargani said at a news conference in provincial capital Hilla.

Provincial councillors in Babil have been calling for six months for Zargani, who was elected to his post in January 2009, to step down, pointing to a lack of progress in fighting corruption and improving infrastructure.

He is the third governor to resign this month, after the heads of the southern provinces of Kut and Basra stepped down.

All three are members of Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki's State of Law coalition.

Protests in Iraq in recent weeks have railed against poor basic services such as electricity and water, as well as high levels of corruption and unemployment, nearly eight years after the US-led invasion.
Agence France-Presse