Protesters broke the parliament twice in one week, as the anti-government movement continues
A large crowd of protesters stormed Baghdad’s heavily-guarded Green Zone and broke into the Iraqi parliament again on Saturday. Demonstrators were protesting against the government. “the corrupt political class”A candidate for the post of prime minister, whose nomination was made ten months after the federal election that triggered a political crisis.
The scene captured footage of protesters using ropes and concrete blocks to remove large slabs from the Green Zone. This district houses government buildings as well as foreign missions.
Although the Iraqi security forces used water cannons, stun guns, and tear gas canisters to try and repel the crowds, they were unable to stop the demonstrators from flooding into the Parliament building.
“All the people are with you Sayyid Muqtada,”Crowds were heard shouting out Muqtada, the Shia popular cleric. Protesters carried portraits of the cleric and Iraqi flags.
“We came today to remove the corrupt political class and prevent them from holding a parliament session, and to prevent the Framework from forming a government,”A protester said to AP that he was referring the Coordination Framework (a political alliance) which has recently appointed Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, a former minister and governor, as prime minister.
Unlike the Framework alliance, which is composed of parties closely aligned with Iran, al-Sadr’s movement has long opposed any foreign influence in the country, including from both Iran and the US.
While the cleric has distanced himself from politics, he remains influential and his faction took a large share of Iraq’s 329-seat parliament during federal elections last October. After ten months in political uncertainty, the group quit government formation talks and gave the Framework alliance majority support to select a prime minister.
Saturday’s break-in was the second in a row within a span of just one week. On Wednesday, scores of al-Sadr’s followers stormed the Green Zone and entered the parliament building to protest the same issues of an allegedly “corrupt”Political class and controversial PM candidate
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