and by the frontline journalism fund, with major support from jon and jo ann hagler. and additional support from koo and patricia yuen. (sirens wailing) >> ramita navai: january 2020. for months, iraqis had been taking to the streets in nationwiderotests like this over the dire conditions in the country. (indistinct yelling) as the demonstrations grew, their anger turned to a new target. >> (chanting in arabic): >> navai: iranian-backed shia militia groups that were operating with increasing impunity throughout iraq. protesters set militia bases on fire, and the militias fought back. they were accused of unleashing a wave of assassinations against their critics. (car horn honking) ♪ ♪ i traveled into iraq in september 2020 to investigate the reports of growing violence by the shia militias, groups that had once fought heroically to defend the country from isis, but have since expanded into a powerful political and economic force. i headed to the north, where we'd made contact with a group of yng activists who'd gone in hiding after criticizing the militias during the

and by the frontne journalism fund, with major support from jon and jo ann hagler.itional support from suzanne and mark colodny & the ruggles family foundation. (bats chirping) >> ...first case here of a severe flu-like illness, which experts say is a worldwide threat to health. >> the pneumonia-type bug first appeared in guangdong province. officials there saying the outbreak is under control. >> ...world health organization has issued a global alert... >> ...virus behind a severe outbreak of pneumonia. >> narrator: the roots of china's response to covid-19 go back almost 20 years, to another deadly outbreak. >> the story does start with sa, and it began with the lack of transparency from china. >> narrator: in november 2002, an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, or sars, began in southern china. the virus is thought to have passed from a bat into a civet cat and into humans at a market. it then spread quickly through southern china's crowded factory cities. >> doctors identified there's something unusual happening. reported it to the local public healt