Al-Ahmadi was shot dead shortly before the Journalistic Freedoms Observatory's office was ransacked on 24 February by Iraqi soldiers and before the "Day of Rage" protests in Iraq.[1] The nationwide protests in Iraq on 25 February were inspired by the Arab Spring uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt. Protests also took place in major Iraqi cities Mosul, where Al-Ahmadi was attacked. The protests centered on corruption and lack of services that Al-Ahmadi had written about.[9] Journalistic Freedoms Observatory estimated that 160 journalists had been detained after Al-Ahmadi's death and around the protests.[6] For example, Hadi al-Mahdi was among the journalists who were either arrested or detained during those days.[3] Reporters Without Borders called this time “one of the blackest days for media freedom” in Iraq.[7]