IRAQI SHIA LEADER AL-SADR STEPS DOWN FROM IRAQI POLITICS AFTER MONTHS OF TENSION

M0n 29 August 2022:

In a move that could exacerbate tensions in the country, Muqtada al-Sadr, the head of the Shia religious movement in Iraq, has declared his withdrawal from politics and the closure of his political offices.

“I hereby announce my final withdrawal,” al-Sadr said on Monday.

The statement, published on Twitter, comes amid months of protests by his supporters backing his call for the dissolution of the Iraqi parliament.

In his statement, al-Sadr attacked his political opponents, and said that had not listened to his calls for reform.

Many of al-Sadr’s supporters have been participating in a sit-in outside the Iraqi parliament since the end of July, when they stormed the building and stopped al-Sadr’s rivals from appointing a new prime minister.

Reacting to their leader’s statement, many of those supporters at the sit-in reacted by attempting to bring down security barriers and converge on a rival sit-in.

Despite having the most seats after the legislative elections in October, Al-supporters Sadr’s were unable to form a government.

In June, he gave the order for his parliamentary bloc to unanimously quit, which they duly did. However, this gave his Iran-backed Shia opponents, the Coordination Framework Alliance, the upper hand in parliament.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Federal Court of Iraq will convene to decide whether to dissolve the parliament.

Al-Sadr has previously declared his intention to leave politics only to change his mind.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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