FALLUJAH, (AFP)- Four anti-government protesters were killed and 19 wounded when the Iraqi army opened fire on Friday, apparently to disperse demonstrators, in a mostly Sunni town west of Baghdad, officials said.

The rally had been moving to an area in east Fallujah but was blocked off by soldiers, an army captain said. Protesters began throwing bottles of water at the troops who then opened fire, the officer said.

A doctor at the main hospital in Fallujah, 60 kilometres (35 miles) west of Baghdad, confirmed the toll.

It was not immediately clear whether the soldiers fired directly into the crowd, or into the air.

The deaths were the first at the hands of Iraq’s security forces since demonstrations erupted more than a month ago, railing against alleged targeting of the country’s minority Sunnis at the hands of the Shiite-led authorities.

The protests, all of which have taken place in majority-Sunni areas of Iraq, have hardened opposition against Shiite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and come amid a political crisis less than three months ahead of key provincial elections.

Demonstrators began by criticising the alleged exploitation of anti-terror laws to detain Sunnis wrongfully, but have since moved on to calling for Maliki to quit.

They were sparked by the December 20 arrest of at least nine of the guards of Finance Minister Rafa al-Essawi, a top Sunni politician.

The government has sought to curb the rallies by claiming to have released nearly 900 prisoners in recent weeks, with a senior minister publicly apologising for holding detainees without charge.