BAGHDAD: Two protesters were killed and Iraq declared a nationwide curfew after supporters of Moqtada Sadr stormed the government palace in Baghdad’s Green Zone on Monday following the leader’s declaration that he was quitting politics.
Shots were fired in the fortified area which houses government buildings as well as diplomatic missions, a correspondent said, as tensions soared amid an escalating political crisis that has left Iraq without a new government, prime minister or president for months.
The army announced a nationwide curfew from 7 pm, after earlier declaring a Baghdad curfew that demonstrators ignored.
Medics said that two Sadr supporters were killed and 22 others wounded after clashes broke out in the Green Zone.
The army has announced a Baghdad-wide curfew to start from 3:30 pm. “A full curfew in the capital Baghdad affects all vehicles and citizens,” the Joint Operations Command said in a statement.
Hours earlier, Sadr announced he was quitting politics, after a nearly year-long political stalemate that has left the country without a new government.
“I’ve decided not to meddle in political affairs.
I therefore announce now my definitive retirement,” said Sadr, a longtime player in the war-torn country’s political scene, though he himself has never held a government post.
He made the announcement on Twitter, where he added that “all the institutions” linked to his Sadrist movement will be closed, except the mausoleum of his father, assassinated in 1999, and other heritage facilities.
His latest statement came two days after he said “all parties” including his own should give up government positions in order to help resolve the months-long political impasse.
Since legislative elections in October last year, political deadlock has left the country without a new government, prime minister or president, due to disagreement between factions over forming a coalition.
His bloc emerged from last year’s election as the biggest, with 73 seats, but short of a majority.
In June, his lawmakers quit in a bid to break the logjam, which led to a rival bloc, the pro-Iran Coordination Framework, becoming the largest in the legislature. — AFP
