Supporters of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr swim in a fountain during their sit-in inside Baghdad’s highly fortified Green Zone Sunday, May 1, 2016.
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Thousands of protesters were inside Baghdad’s Green Zone today after breaking into the fortified area and storming parliament, as Iraq’s premier called for rioters to be pursued and punished. He later declared a state of emergency.
Earlier in the day, the demonstrators had picnicked and chanted against politicians they deemed corrupt, while also enjoying what was for some their first sight of Baghdad’s most iconic landmarks.
The Green Zone has also served as a symbolic division between the wealthy and powerful, and the disenfranchised.
In his statement, Sadr demanded that Parliament meet soon and approve a new Cabinet. “If this demand is not met, the people would then use all legitimate means, that begins with storming the headquarters of the three executive branches, or civil disobedience and going on strike”, said spokeswoman for protesters. “The lawmakers are sitting here eating chocolates and mocking our pain”.
As dusk fell Saturday, protesters set up camp outside parliament. Sadr, the representative of a powerful Shia clerical and political family, is firmly bound to sections of Iraq’s political establishment. They railed at their leaders, many in power since the earliest days of the U.S. occupation. He described Saturday’s episode as the beginning of a “revolution”.
Iraq has endured months of wrangling prompted by Mr Abadi’s attempt to replace party-affiliated ministers with technocrats as part of an anti-corruption drive.
Abadi came to power in 2014 on promises to stamp out corruption. “We want to get rid of them [i.e., sectarian forces] and leave the final word to the people”. Under that system, cabinet positions are divvied up proportionally to the country’s various sects.
A politician who attended the talks said Abadi had faced accusations of mishandling the crisis.
The breach of the Green Zone, which houses Iraq’s ministries and the U.S. Embassy, is “unprecedented”, Reuters says.
The protesters eventually left the parliament Saturday night and rallied at a nearby square.
No incidents have been reported between security personnel and those camping outside parliament.
Weeks earlier, Biden spoke with Abadi and Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Masoud Barzani about remaining focused on battling ISIS.
The attacks killed at least 37 people and wounded almost 90, according to police officials and the provincial governor’s office.
Yesterday’s blasts, claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group, occurred in the centre of the southern city of Samawa.
“Two vehicle bombs went off in town”.
Such attacks are rare in Iraq’s deep south, which is overwhelmingly Shiite and has been largely spared the chaos that has plagued Iraq for years.
Local security and medical officials put the death toll at 33 and said at least 50 other people were wounded.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but it bore the hallmarks of the Islamic State group.
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A auto bombing in Baghdad has killed at least 18 Shiite pilgrims commemorating the anniversary of the death of a revered Shiite imam, Iraqi officials say. The attack was reportedly aimed at Shiite pilgrims.
