World

Iraq’s powerful Sadr says he quits politics, fuelling uncertainty

2022.08.29 14:13

Iraq's powerful Sadr says he quits politics, fuelling uncertainty
FILE PHOTO: Iraqi Shi’ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr attends a news conference in Najaf, Iraq, November 18, 2021 REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani/File Photo

BAGHDAD (Reuters) -Iraq’s powerful Shi’ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr said on Monday he was quitting politics and closing his institutions in response to an intractable political deadlock, a decision that could fuel instability.

“I hereby announce my final withdrawal,” Sadr said in a statement posted on Twitter (NYSE:TWTR), criticising fellow Shi’ite political leaders for failing to heed his calls for reform.

He did not elaborate on the closure of his offices, but said that cultural and religious institutions would remain open.

Sadr has previously announced withdrawals from politics or government and the disbanding of militias loyal to him but retains widespread control over state institutions and still has a paramilitary group with thousands of members.

He has often returned to political activity after similar announcements, although the current political deadlock in Iraq appears harder to resolve than previous periods of dysfunction.

The current impasse between Sadr and Shi’ite rivals has given Iraq its longest run without a government.

Sadr’s party the Sadrist Bloc came first in an October election, but he withdrew his lawmakers from parliament in June after he failed to form a government of his choosing – one where he threatened to exclude powerful Shi’ite rivals close to Iran.

Supporters of the mercurial cleric then stormed Baghdad’s central government zone. Since then, they have occupied parliament, halting the process to choose a new president and prime minister.

Sadr now insists on early elections and the dissolution of parliament. He says no politician who has been in power since the U.S. invasion in 2003 can hold office.

Sadr’s ally Mustafa al-Kadhimi remains caretaker prime minister.

Monday’s announcement raised fears that Sadr’s supporters might escalate their protests without their leader to closely control them, which could further destabilise Iraq.

The country has struggled to recover since the defeat of Islamic State in 2017 because political parties have squabbled over power and the vast oil wealth possessed by Iraq, OPEC’s second-largest producer.

(Reporting John Davison in Baghdad, Amina Ismail in Erbil, Iraq; Additional reporting by Alaa Swilam; Writing by Lina Najem; Editing by John Stonestreet and Edmund Blair)

Source

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Back to top button
bitcoin
Bitcoin (BTC) $ 69,646.66 0.20%
ethereum
Ethereum (ETH) $ 2,503.41 0.24%
tether
Tether (USDT) $ 0.99985 0.02%
bnb
BNB (BNB) $ 575.93 0.40%
solana
Solana (SOL) $ 166.88 0.07%
usd-coin
USDC (USDC) $ 1.00 0.05%
xrp
XRP (XRP) $ 0.512743 1.93%
staked-ether
Lido Staked Ether (STETH) $ 2,502.48 0.26%
dogecoin
Dogecoin (DOGE) $ 0.160108 1.00%
tron
TRON (TRX) $ 0.167457 0.10%
cardano
Cardano (ADA) $ 0.357936 3.07%
the-open-network
Toncoin (TON) $ 4.94 1.53%
wrapped-steth
Wrapped stETH (WSTETH) $ 2,958.73 0.08%
shiba-inu
Shiba Inu (SHIB) $ 0.000018 1.76%
wrapped-bitcoin
Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) $ 69,428.60 0.11%
avalanche-2
Avalanche (AVAX) $ 24.76 0.76%
weth
WETH (WETH) $ 2,502.56 0.31%
chainlink
Chainlink (LINK) $ 11.25 0.74%
bitcoin-cash
Bitcoin Cash (BCH) $ 348.44 0.11%
usds
USDS (USDS) $ 1.00 0.94%
leo-token
LEO Token (LEO) $ 6.08 0.43%
polkadot
Polkadot (DOT) $ 3.92 0.71%
sui
Sui (SUI) $ 1.94 0.34%
litecoin
Litecoin (LTC) $ 70.72 2.89%
near
NEAR Protocol (NEAR) $ 3.96 0.58%
aptos
Aptos (APT) $ 8.77 1.80%
wrapped-eeth
Wrapped eETH (WEETH) $ 2,630.66 0.34%
uniswap
Uniswap (UNI) $ 7.48 4.07%
pepe
Pepe (PEPE) $ 0.000009 1.12%
internet-computer
Internet Computer (ICP) $ 7.82 0.83%
bittensor
Bittensor (TAO) $ 456.79 1.44%
dai
Dai (DAI) $ 1.00 0.01%
fetch-ai
Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET) $ 1.21 3.56%
kaspa
Kaspa (KAS) $ 0.116231 1.54%
monero
Monero (XMR) $ 156.42 1.88%
stellar
Stellar (XLM) $ 0.092673 0.60%
ethena-usde
Ethena USDe (USDE) $ 1.00 0.03%
ethereum-classic
Ethereum Classic (ETC) $ 18.43 0.28%
whitebit
WhiteBIT Coin (WBT) $ 18.98 0.10%
first-digital-usd
First Digital USD (FDUSD) $ 0.998959 0.18%
polygon-ecosystem-token
POL (ex-MATIC) (POL) $ 0.317547 0.12%
blockstack
Stacks (STX) $ 1.60 0.01%
okb
OKB (OKB) $ 38.18 0.26%
dogwifcoin
dogwifhat (WIF) $ 2.21 3.98%
aave
Aave (AAVE) $ 141.92 0.87%
filecoin
Filecoin (FIL) $ 3.48 0.44%
arbitrum
Arbitrum (ARB) $ 0.519631 1.90%
crypto-com-chain
Cronos (CRO) $ 0.073212 0.16%
mantle
Mantle (MNT) $ 0.578185 0.70%
optimism
Optimism (OP) $ 1.51 5.70%