Sadr quits politics, supporters storm complex, Two killed

• The nation’s capital, awash in weapons, is rocked by gunfire.
• Iraq’s recovery is in doubt as long as politics remain stagnant.
• The religious leader has called for the dissolution of parliament and the holding of new elections.

Moqtada al-Sadr announced he was leaving politics on Monday, his supporters stormed a luxurious government building in Baghdad, sparking violence between those who backed different ethnic and religious minorities.

Two people were killed in the ensuing chaos.

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As a result, young men loyal to Sadr stormed the government offices in Baghdad’s protected Green Zone, once a palace of tyrant Saddam Hussein, and then moved to the streets outside the area to engage in street fighting with supporters of rival Tehran-backed parties.

Witnesses told Reuters that as gunshots rang out over the capital, some people could be seen firing firearms towards the ranks of Sadr supporters, while others fired into the air. This was a nation saturated with weapons after years of violence and upheaval. Fans of competing factions also threw pebbles at one another.

This conflict erupted after months of political gridlock that prevented a new cabinet from being formed. The military imposed a curfew abruptly.

Police and medical personnel said that in addition to the two fatalities, dozens more people were hurt.

“I hereby announce my final withdrawal,” Sadr had announced earlier on Twitter, criticising fellow political leaders for failing to heed his calls for reform.

pic.twitter.com/XKAzl1O3OP

— مقتدى السيد محمد الصدر (@Mu_AlSadr) August 29, 2022

The clashes erupted hours after his proclamation, forcing his followers to march and storm the major cabinet buildings.

Iraq’s military imposed a curfew and asked demonstrators to leave the Green Zone.

Sadr has galvanized his supporters during the standoff over forming a new government, putting Iraq’s efforts to recover from decades of violence and sanctions and to combat sectarian unrest and pervasive corruption into chaos. Sadr, who opposes US and Iranian influence in Iraqi politics, won the most votes in October but withdrew all his legislators from parliament in June after failing to create a cabinet that excluded his competitors, primarily Tehran-backed minority parties. Sadr wants early elections and parliament’s dissolution. Since the US invasion in 2003, no politician can hold office, he claims.

Impasse

Sadr announced Monday he would close his offices, but stated cultural and religious organizations would remain open.

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Sadr has withdrawn from politics and dismantled his militias. He has wide influence over state institutions and a 5,000-member paramilitary outfit.

After such statements, he has repeatedly returned to politics, but the current standoff in Iraq seems harder to resolve.

Iraq’s longest government less period is due to Sadr and minority rivals

In July, the cleric’s supporters stormed the Green Zone. Since then, they’ve taken parliament, stopping the presidential and prime ministerial elections.

After Sadrist protestors seized the government headquarters on Monday, caretaker PM Mustafa al-Kadhimi cancelled cabinet meetings.

Iraq has failed to rebuild since Daesh’s fall in 2017 because political groups have fought for power and Iraq’s massive oil resources.