BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi protesters stormed and set fire to a provincial government building in the southern city of Basra, despite a curfew imposed by authorities Thursday to try and quell demonstrations against poor public services and unemployment that have turned violent.

Three protesters were shot dead by security forces, according to a medical and a security official. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release information.

Iraq's popular Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr called for an urgent parliamentary session to discuss the situation in Basra, Iraq's sec...