Kurdish interior minister Karim Sinjari was being questioned before the regional assembly late Tuesday over two months of protests in the region's second city of Sulaimaniyah that have left at least three demonstrators dead and dozens wounded.

Lawmakers for the opposition Goran (Change) bloc began shouting and banging their fists in anger after their attempt to ask follow-up questions was blocked by the house speaker, Kamal Kirkuki, a member of the ruling Kurdistania alliance.

Goran member Bushro Tawfeeq then hurled two bottles of water at Kirkuki in anger.

In a news conference after the meeting, Kirkuki threatened unspecified "legal action" against Tawfeeq, saying the MP's reaction was "contrary to democratic systems."

During questioning, Sinjari had justified a ban on protests in Sulaimaniyah province, arguing "not giving authorisation to hold demonstrations is better to prevent bloodshed."

More than 100 people have been wounded since Sunday in protests in Sulaimaniyah, with rallies ongoing in the city since mid-February.

Demonstrations have sprouted in Iraq this year after uprisings toppled entrenched regimes in Tunisia and Egypt and spread in the Arab world.

But protesters in Iraq have only been demanding reforms and better living conditions, rather than regime change.

Earlier this month, Amnesty International urged Iraqi authorities to stop intimidation and the use of lethal force against peaceful protesters demanding reforms, jobs, better services and an end to corruption.