Iraq’s Muqtada al-Sadr calls his supporters to stop fighting amid fighting between Sadr’s shia loyalists and Iran’s shia partisans. Clashes leave 380 injured, 30 dead in Iraq’s Green Zone.
Tension between Iraqi based shia parties and Iranian back parties, who view Iran’s influence in Iraq as invasive and unwelcome, has led to a shut down of parliament, the storming of the presidential palace and outbreaks of violence between Sadr’s militias and those of the Iraqi security forces and Iranian backed militias.
UN Assistance Mission (UNAMI) to Iraq, has urged all sides to “refrain from acts that could lead to an unstoppable chain of events” and considers the situation “extremely dangerous.”
