BAGHDAD: Tens of thousands of people held Friday prayers in Baghdad’s Green Zone as Iraqi cleric Moqtada Sadr launched a new power move after his opponents conditionally accepted his push for early elections.
Sadr, a long-standing political and religious figure in Iraq, has been locked in a political deadlock with a competing Shia alliance sponsored by Iran for months.
Worshippers gathered in a large square inside the traditionally protected Green Zone, which is home to administrative and diplomatic facilities, including the parliament, which his supporters occupied on July 30.
During the prayers, Sadr’s supporters chanted, “Yes, yes to reform.” “No to corruption!”Following the rituals, hundreds of protestors marched to Parliament Square, where they’ll be taking the aerosol corridors and tiled floors since last Saturday.
They continued their sit-in within the complex’s grounds, despite the fact that the doors were shut and the building was unoccupied, in response to a query from their movement. On Tuesday, the Sadr camp sent mixed signals about clearing the inside of parliament.
Sadr’s enormous prayer demonstration follows his call for early elections, which the rival coalition claims it is “conditionally open to,” despite the fact that the last national elections were only roughly ten months ago.
Post-election talks between Sadr’s group, the largest in parliament, or other factions have failed to deliver a new government, prime minister, or president.
