ADDS US STATE DEPT. REACTION
By Zeynep Tufekci
BAGHDAD (AA) – Security forces in Iraq’s central Babil province on Monday dispersed supporters of firebrand Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr who attempted to demonstrate in solidarity with recent protests in Baghdad.
Ihsan Khalid, a police officer in Babil, told Anadolu Agency that security forces fired shots in the air to disperse al-Sadr supporters who had converged outside the provincial governor’s office with a view to holding an “unauthorized” demonstration.
The U.S. State Department said these incidents have not affected counter-Daesh operations in Iraq.
“The U.S. and our coalition partners conducted another 59 airstrikes and six artillery strikes against Daesh targets in north Iraq and Anbar province just over this weekend,” according to a spokesman.
He added the U.S. continues to support the Iraqi government and the Iraqi Security Forces in the region.
The incident comes one day after thousands of al-Sadr supporters forced their way into Baghdad’s Green Zone, where they stormed the parliament building to demand the formation of a “technocrat” government untainted by corruption or sectarian affiliations.
The Iraqi army responded to the escalations in Baghdad by declaring a state of high alert across the capital and sealing the city’s exits and entrances.
On Sunday evening, Sadrist demonstrators vacated the parliament building and withdrew from the Green Zone, citing the beginning of a major Shia holiday.
Baghdad’s heavily-fortified Green Zone houses a number of vital government institutions, including parliament and foreign diplomatic missions.
