Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi of Iraq announced on Friday that he would submit his resignation to Parliament, following weeks of nationwide antigovernment protests that have left hundreds dead. The announcement prompted jubilant celebrations at the main protest site, Tahrir Square in Baghdad, the capital, The New York Times reports.

In the statement, Abdul Mahdi said he would submit a resignation request to parliament “to consider its options, with the knowledge that those near and far are aware that I had already made this decision known.”He called on Iraq’s government to “act in the interests of Iraq; to preserve the blood of its people; and to avoid slipping into a cycle of violence, chaos and devastation.”

The prime minister’s decision came as the death toll in Iraq from weeks of anti-government unrest rose on Friday to more than 400 people, mostly unarmed protesters, a Reuters count based on police and medical sources showed.

Cover pic @ Eng. Bilal Izaddin / Shutterstock.com