A protester holds a poster depicting Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on a bridge leading towards the Green Zone area in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, July 30, 2022 — days after hundreds breached Baghdad's parliament Wednesday chanting anti-Iran curses in a demonstration against a nominee for prime minister by Iran-backed parties. Iraq’s political crisis shows no signs of abating weeks after followers of an influential cleric stormed parliament. That’s despite rising public anger over a debilitating gridlock that has further weakened the country’s caretaker government and its ability to provide basic services. (AP Photo/Anmar Khalil, File)
Moqtada Sadr’s movement announced on Saturday, its refusal to join a new government being formed by prime minister-designate Mohammad Shia Al-Sudani.
“We stress our firm and clear refusal for any of our affiliates to participate… in this government formation led by the current candidate,” Mohammed Saleh Al-Iraqi, a close associate of Sadr’s, said in a statement posted on Twitter.
