Muqtada al-Sadr, a fiery cleric who counts both Iran and the United States among his opponents, retired from politics on Monday out of frustration at his opponents’ maneuvers against him. The move prompted his followers to rampage through the streets and storm the heavily fortified Green Zone, home to government buildings and diplomatic missions. “Essentially, he gave his supporters 24 hours to do whatever they wanted,” said Sajad Jiyad, a Century Foundation grantee in New York, tEleni Giokos from old CNN on Tuesday. After at least 21 people were killed and 250 injured, al-Sadr called on his supporters to withdraw.
“It sends a message to his rivals that he is a key player in the country,” said Jiyad. “Also, he has the potential to use as much violence as any other side.”
Here’s what you need to know about the chaos in Iraq:
Who is Muqtada Al Sadr?
Al-Sadr, 48, is a cleric from a prominent Shia family who enjoys the support of millions across the country.
His father, Ayatollah Muhammad Sadiq al-Sadr, was an important Shia figure who openly opposed Saddam Hussein and his ruling Ba’ath Party. He was assassinated in 1999 in an operation believed to be the work of Saddam’s forces or those loyal to him. The younger al-Sadr later inherited his father’s popularity.
Al-Sadr’s ability to reinvent his role in Iraqi politics and tap into a potent streak of Shia protest has helped him survive and outmaneuver many rivals over the past two decades. His latest move cements his place as one of Iraq’s most influential figures.
What is his relationship with foreign powers?
Al-Sadr is best known in the US for his role as leader of the Mahdi Army, which he raised to fight US-led coalition forces during the 2003 US invasion of Iraq.
He fled to Iran during the US occupation of Iraq and returned to his country in 2011. Since then he has been one of the harshest critics of Tehran’s influence in Iraq and is trying to counteract it. He now presents himself as an Iraqi nationalist.
The cleric has good ties with Gulf Arab states like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which view Iran as a threat to regional security.
“The US and the Gulf indirectly supported al-Sadr because of his anti-Iran stance and ignored his historically strong ties to Iran and Iran’s ability to influence him,” said Marsin Alshamary, a research fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School for the Middle East initiative.
What triggered Monday’s events?
Iran-backed Shia blocs lost seats to Sadrists in October 2021 parliamentary elections. Despite his victory, al-Sadr failed to form a government amid opposition from Iran-backed rivals. So in June he withdrew his block from Parliament in protest. The Iran-backed blocs then attempted to form a government in July without his support, prompting the Sadrists to stage protests in front of Parliament.
However, al-Sadr’s announcement on Monday that he would permanently retire from politics came after his movement’s Iran-based spiritual leader, Grand Ayatollah Kadhim Al-Haeri, announced he would be stepping down as a Shia religious authority, and his followers too prompted a pledge of religious allegiance to Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Aside from being a leader of Iran, Khamenei is also a Shia religious authority with followers across its borders.
Al-Sadr said he did not believe al-Haeri resigned of his own volition, indicating he was pressured by Iran to weaken him.
Alshamary said the resignation was an “unprecedented step for an ayatollah.” “[Al-Haeri] also criticized Sadr for the instability in Iraq… I think [his] Statement released under pressure from Iran.”
What’s next?
Al-Sadr’s withdrawal from politics, if he is sincere, could result in the country’s politics being dominated by the remaining Shias, many of whom are supported by Iran.
“Public opinion in Iraq is strongly anti-Iranian, which means that any future elections — if they are free and fair and with a decent turnout — could produce new political parties that represent the Iraqi street,” Alshamary said.
Iraqi President Barham Salih said on Tuesday that while ending the violence is crucial to halting the bloodshed, it does not mean the political crisis is over. He suggested early elections as a way out of the impasse.
Jiyad said there wasn’t much hope for change. “If early elections have a negative impact, [the ruling elite] will postpone these elections and leave the situation as it is,” he said. “It’s about who’s willing to give in or compromise – neither side is willing to do that.
While politicians bicker, Iraq’s more pressing problems, such as power outages, remain unresolved, Jiyad said. “You misunderstand the people’s patience for submission,” he said. “I think at some point protests will break out.”
The abstract
Saudi woman sentenced to 45 years in prison over tweets, rights group says
A Saudi court has sentenced Nourah bint Saeed al-Qahtani to 45 years in prison for social media posts criticizing the country’s rulers, Portal reported, citing rights group DAWN. The move comes just weeks after another Saudi woman, Salma al-Shehab, was sentenced to 34 years in prison for posting “false and biased rumors on Twitter.”
- Background: Al-Qahtani was convicted after the Saudi Special Criminal Court charged her with “using the internet to disrupt the [country’s] social fabric” and “violation of public order through use of social media” under the Counter-Terrorism Act and the Cybercrime Act, according to a court document obtained by Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN). The Saudi government’s media office did not respond to Portal’ request for comment.
- Why It Matters: Human rights organizations have repeatedly criticized counter-terrorism and cybercrime laws for allowing the government to oppress citizens. According to DAWN, both laws are vague to give Saudi authorities maximum discretion with little to no accountability for abuses. “In both the al-Shebab and al-Qahtani cases, the Saudi authorities used abusive laws to target and punish Saudi citizens for criticizing the government on Twitter,” said Abdullah al-Aoudh, research director for the Gulf region at DAWN.
US Navy thwarts Iranian attempt to capture American drone in Persian Gulf
The US Navy prevented an Iranian ship from catching an Iranian ship in the Persian Gulf overnight Monday to Tuesday local time in what a senior US commander called a “blatant” and “unjustified” incident. Iran’s newspaper Nour News, which is affiliated with the Supreme National Security Council, said: “These types of ships … can be the source of unpredictable accidents at sea due to the possibility of disruption in navigational communications.”
- Background: As US forces in the region traversed international waters on Monday, they saw a naval support vessel belonging to the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps towing a US-operated sea drone, also known as the Saildrone Explorer unmanned surface vessel, the US Naval Forces Central Command said . After the Iranians attached a tether to the drone, US forces communicated directly with the Iranians to say they wanted the drone back. When the US responded with a ship and a helicopter, the Iranian ship detached the tow line from the drone and left the area four hours later.
- Why It Matters: The incident comes at a critical juncture in Iran-US relations. Negotiations to revive Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal are at a tricky stage, and US officials had expressed optimism about the latest effort. However, they have stressed that gaps remain between the two sides.
Iran says it seeks stronger guarantees in nuclear deal
Iran needs stronger guarantees from Washington to revive a 2015 nuclear deal, its foreign minister said in Moscow on Wednesday, adding that the UN nuclear watchdog should end its “politically motivated investigations” into Tehran’s nuclear works, Portal reported.
- Background: After 16 months of indirect talks between Tehran and Washington, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on August 8 the EU had made a final offer to break a deadlock to revive the deal. This was Hossein Amir-Abdollahian’s third visit to Moscow as Foreign Minister. The semi-official Fars news agency reported that the main focus of the visit would be the Ukraine crisis.
- Why It Matters: Amir-Abdollahian’s comment came as Iran reviewed Washington’s response to a final text drafted by the European Union aimed at breaking an impasse in attempts to revive the 2015 nuclear pact.
What’s hot
Saudi Arabia: #Orphans_of_Khamis_Mushait
Footage of uniformed and civilian-clad men violently arresting and beating women at an alleged orphanage has gone viral in Saudi Arabia.
The hashtag #Orphans_of_Khamis_Mushait was the top trending Twitter in the kingdom on Wednesday, beating another hashtag celebrating Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s 37th birthday. The men can be seen slapping a woman’s feet together as she struggles to free herself. CNN has not verified the authenticity of the video.
The government of the southern region of Assir, where the town of Khamis Mushait is located, issued a statement saying a committee would be formed to look into the matter “regarding videos and images circulating on social media and show an incident” to investigate at a social service home in Khamis Mushait.