Iraq Shiite cleric's supporters demand assembly be dissolved

BAGHDAD (AP) — Dozens of supporters of an influential Shiite cleric in Iraq rallied on Tuesday in Baghdad’s heavily-fortified Green Zone, demanding the dissolution of parliament and early elections.

The demonstration outside the Supreme Judicial Council and parliament buildings in the Iraqi capital underscored how intractable Iraq's latest political crisis has become.

The followers of the cleric, Muqtada al-Sadr and his political rivals, the Iran-backed Shiite groups, have been at odds since after last year’s parliamentary elections.

Al-Sadr won the largest share of seats in the October vote but failed to form a majority government, leading to what has become one of the worst political crises in Iraq in decades. His supporters in late July stormed the parliament and have held frequent protests there.

Caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi last week called a meeting of senior political leaders and party representatives to find a solution — but al-Sadr’s party did not attend.

The firebrand cleric’s supporters pitched tents outside of the Supreme Judicial Council and carried banners calling for the authorities to dissolve parliament, schedule early parliamentary elections, and combat corruption . They decried what they say is the politicization of the judiciary.

The Supreme Judicial Council and Federal Supreme Court in a statement said they have suspended court sessions after receiving “threats over the phone” to pressure them to dissolve parliament. That step would leave Iraq with both a paralyzed parliament and judiciary, and a caretaker government that can only perform some of its duties.

Al-Sadr last Wednesday gave the judiciary a week to dissolve parliament, to which it responded saying it has no authority to do so. His supporters stormed parliament in late July .

On Saturday, he called on his followers to be ready to hold massive protests all over Iraq but then indefinitely postponed them after Iran-backed groups called for similar rallies the same day, saying he wants to preserve peace and that “Iraqi blood is invaluable” to him.

Al-Sadr’s Shiite rivals from the Coordination Framework, an alliance of Iran-backed parties, have said that parliament would have to convene to dissolve itself.