Sadrist Movement calls on supporters to leave parliament building

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The Sadrist Movement on Tuesday called on supporters who are staging a sit-in at the parliament to leave the legislature building but continue their activities in front of and around it. This follows calls from Iraqi and Kurdish leaders to end the current political deadlock in the country.

Supporters of the influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr stormed the parliament for the second time in less than a week on Saturday, beginning an open-ended sit-in inside the building of the legislature. This followed their days of protests in the capital city of Baghdad against the nomination of a politician by a pro-Iran group of political parties for the position of the prime minister. However, the Sadrist Movement, on Tuesday called on supporters to leave the parliament building.

“Leave the parliament building and move the demonstration to in front of and around the parliament in 72 hours,” read a tweet from Salih Mohammed al-Iraqi, who acts like a spokesperson for the movement but is introduced as a “minister for the leader.”

The official also said that they will expand their protests by holding congregational prayers in Baghdad, Babil, Kut, Karbala and Najaf “at the end of this week.”

Iraq held snap parliamentary elections in October but the political parties have failed to elect a president and a prime minister for the country due to disagreements. Sadr, whose movement became the main winner of the vote by gaining 73 seats, ordered all his parliamentarians last month to resign from the parliament. They were later replaced by winning candidates from other political parties.

Sadr’s withdrawal from the legislature made the pro-Iran Coordination Framework the largest coalition. The latter announced Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, Iraq’s former minister of labour and social affairs, as their candidate for the country’s prime minister position late last month.

Sadrists claim that Sudani is a “corrupt” politician and reject his nomination. They have held small and large protests and attacked the offices of the political parties which are part of the Coordination Framework in recent days.

Sadrist officials have claimed that the role of the current parliament has ended, using the word “liberation” for their take-over of the legislature building.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani and some key figures from the Coordination Framework, have called for an end to the political deadlock, with Kadhimi warning that it could cause “dire consequences.”

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday expressed support for Kadhimi’s call, saying he is “very concerned about the situation in Iraq.”

The United Nations and the United States expressed concerns over the unrest last week, urging peaceful and inclusive talks to form the government. Iran said on Sunday that differences have always existed between the Iraqi political parties, adding that Tehran always respects the voice of the Iraqi people.