BAGHDAD (AP) – An influential Shiite cleric announced Monday that he would resign from Iraqi politics, prompting hundreds of his angry followers to storm the government palace and sparking clashes with security forces that left at least 10 dead. protesters
Protesters loyal to cleric Muqtada al-Sadr tore down cement barriers outside the government palace with ropes and broke down the palace gates. Many rushed into the palace’s lavish halls and marble halls, a key meeting place for Iraqi heads of state and foreign dignitaries.
The Iraqi army announced a nationwide curfew and the interim prime minister suspended cabinet meetings in response to the violence. Medical officials said at least 15 protesters were wounded by gunfire and a dozen others were injured by tear gas and physical altercations with riot police.
Iraq’s government has been deadlocked since al-Sadr’s party won the majority of seats in parliamentary elections in October, but not enough to secure a majority government. Its refusal to negotiate with its Iran-backed Shiite rivals and subsequent exit from talks has catapulted the country into political uncertainty and volatility amid intensifying Shiite strife.
The majority Muslim population of Iraq is divided into two sects, Shiites and Sunnis. Under Saddam Hussein, Shiites were oppressed until the US-led invasion overturned the political order. Now the Shias are fighting each other, with the dispute centered on power and state resources, but also on influence over the Shia street.
To advance his political interests, al-Sadr has wrapped his rhetoric in a nationalist and reformist agenda that resonates powerfully with his broad base of supporters who come from the poorest sectors of Iraq’s society and have historically been excluded from political system
Many were early followers of their father, a revered figure in Shia Islam. They are calling for the dissolution of parliament and early elections without the participation of Iran-backed Shiite groups, which they hold responsible for the status quo.
During Monday’s clashes, Saraya Salam, a militia aligned with al-Sadr, gathered in the capital’s Tahrir Square to “protect” protesters, one of its commanders said.
An Associated Press photographer heard shots being fired in the capital and saw several protesters bleeding and being carried away. It was not immediately known who fired the shots.
A senior medical official confirmed that at least 10 protesters were shot dead. The number was also confirmed by the Sadrist media office, which provided a list of 10 names.
Iraq’s interim prime minister said he would open an investigation into the shootings and said the use of live ammunition against protesters was prohibited.
Protests also broke out in the Shiite-majority southern provinces, with al-Sadr supporters burning tires and blocking roads in the oil-rich province of Basra and hundreds demonstrating outside the governorate building in Missan.
Iran views Shiite disharmony as a threat to its influence in Iraq and has repeatedly tried to broker dialogue with al-Sadr.
In July, al-Sadr’s supporters stormed parliament to dissuade his rivals from the Coordination Framework, an alliance of mostly Iran-aligned Shiite parties, from forming a government. For more than four weeks, hundreds of people have been sitting outside the building. His block has also resigned from parliament. The framework is led by al-Sadr’s main enemy, former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki.
It is not the first time al-Sadr, who has called for early elections and the dissolution of parliament, has announced his retirement from politics, and many dismissed Monday’s decision as another bluff to gain more influence against his rivals in the middle of a worsening of stagnation. The cleric has used the tactic on previous occasions when the political evolution did not go his way.
But many worry it’s a risky gamble and worry about how it will affect Iraq’s fragile political climate. By leaving the political process, al-Sadr is giving his followers, most of them disenfranchised from the political system, the green light to act as they see fit.
Al-Sadr also commands a militia and maintains a large degree of influence within Iraq’s state institutions through appointments to key official positions. Its Iranian-backed rivals also have militia groups.
The Iraqi military quickly announced a nationwide curfew from 7 p.m. He called on the cleric’s supporters to withdraw immediately from the heavily fortified government zone and to exercise self-restraint “to avoid clashes or the shedding of Iraqi blood,” according to a statement.
“The security forces affirm their responsibility to protect government institutions, international missions, public and private properties,” the statement said.
Iraq’s interim prime minister, Mustafa al-Kadhimi, also demanded that al-Sadr call on his followers to withdraw from government institutions.
The UN mission in Iraq said Monday’s protests were an “extremely dangerous escalation” and called on protesters to leave all government buildings to allow the interim government to continue running the state.
He urged everyone to remain peaceful and “refrain from acts that could lead to an unstoppable chain of events.”
“The very survival of the state is at stake,” the statement said.
Al-Sadr announced his retirement from politics in a tweet and ordered the closure of his party’s offices. Religious and cultural institutions will remain open, he said.
The real motivations behind al-Sadr’s announcement appeared to be a reaction to the retirement of Shiite spiritual leader Ayatollah Kadhim al-Haeri, who counts many of al-Sadr’s supporters among his followers.
In a surprise announcement on Sunday, al-Haeri said he would step down as a religious authority for health reasons and called on his followers to shift their allegiance to Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, rather than the Shiite spiritual center in the holy city of Najaf in Iraq.
The move was a blow to al-Sadr, who despite having ambitions to be a religious authority lacks the scholarly credentials to be an ayatollah. Al-Haeri, who resides in the Iranian holy city of Qom, once provided him with the legitimacy he lacked by appointing al-Sadr as his representative in Iraq. He soon cut ties with the clergy, but continued to enjoy the support of his followers.
By calling on his followers to side with Khamenei, al-Haeri provoked a crisis of legitimacy for al-Sadr.
In his tweet, al-Sadr said al-Haeri’s resignation “was not of his own volition.”