Sadr: No Dialogue with the Corrupt, Expect our Next Move

Sadr's supporters protest outside the Iraqi parliament (Getty Images)
Sadr's supporters protest outside the Iraqi parliament (Getty Images)
TT

Sadr: No Dialogue with the Corrupt, Expect our Next Move

Sadr's supporters protest outside the Iraqi parliament (Getty Images)
Sadr's supporters protest outside the Iraqi parliament (Getty Images)

The leader of the Sadrist movement in Iraq, Muqtada al-Sadr, has said he would not hold talks with the corrupt, adding that he is preparing for the next move.

Tensions in Iraq have escalated over the inability of political factions to agree on the formation of a government, 10 months after parliamentary elections.

Some of Sadr’s followers stormed the parliament late last month and began a sit-in, first inside the building and then on its grounds where thousands remain.

Sadr submitted a proposal to the UN to hold a public live-streamed dialogue session with the political parties. However, he said there was no tangible response.

"Their answer did not address anything about reform, the protesters' demands, people's suffering. [..] We ask everyone to wait for our next move regarding the policy of ignoring what has happened to Iraq and its people due to corruption."

Sadr indicated that there would be no secret dialogue, asserting: "I do not hide anything from my people, and I will not associate with the corrupt and those who want to kill me."

Observers saw his statement about who wanted to harm or kill him as an expression of the severe tension among Shiite parties, divided between Sadr's movement and the Coordination Framework.

Sadr activists assert that they are ordered to maintain self-restraint and continue their protests in Baghdad and other cities.

The Sadrist movement did not attend the dialogue session called by caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa Kadhimi. The talks aimed to find a solution for the ongoing political crisis.

The meeting was attended by President Barham Salih, Speaker Mohammad al-Halbousi, the head of the Supreme Judicial Council, Baeq Zeidan, UN special representative Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, and other political leaders.

Politicians both inside and outside Iraq have called for calm and dialogue between the parties as the only way to resolve the crisis amid fears that the country would slip into chaos.

The Coordination Framework insists on forming a "majority" transitional government headed by its candidate, Mohammad Shia al-Sudani, before holding new elections, while the Sadrist movement insists on dissolving parliament and holding early polls.



Dozens Die of Mysterious Illness in Besieged Sudan Town

FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people, displaced from Jezira state due to RSF violence, sit under a tree in New Halfa, Kassala state, Sudan, November 3, 2024. REUTERS/El Tayeb Siddig/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people, displaced from Jezira state due to RSF violence, sit under a tree in New Halfa, Kassala state, Sudan, November 3, 2024. REUTERS/El Tayeb Siddig/File Photo
TT

Dozens Die of Mysterious Illness in Besieged Sudan Town

FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people, displaced from Jezira state due to RSF violence, sit under a tree in New Halfa, Kassala state, Sudan, November 3, 2024. REUTERS/El Tayeb Siddig/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people, displaced from Jezira state due to RSF violence, sit under a tree in New Halfa, Kassala state, Sudan, November 3, 2024. REUTERS/El Tayeb Siddig/File Photo

At least 73 people have died of mysterious causes in the Sudanese town of al-Hilaliya, besieged by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, the Sudanese Doctors Union said late on Wednesday.
It is one of dozens of villages that have come under attack in eastern El Jezira state since the defection of a top RSF commander to the army, which prompted revenge attacks that have displaced more than 135,000 people.
The war between the two forces has created the world's largest humanitarian crisis, displacing more than 11 million and plunging more into hunger while drawing in foreign powers and prompting fears of state collapse, Reuters said.
While high death tolls in other parts of Jezira came as a result of RSF shelling and gunfire, in Hilaliya people have fallen ill with diarrhea, overwhelming a local hospital according to the union and three people from the area.
A network blackout enforced by the RSF has made it difficult to determine the exact cause.
One man who spoke to Reuters said three of his family members had died of the same illness, but he only found out days later when others escaped to an area with internet access.
Those who wish to leave must pay high sums at RSF checkpoints, said another man.
According to pro-democracy activists, the siege began on Oct. 29 when the RSF raided the town, killing five and surrounding residents inside three mosques.
Hilaliya is home to the family of defected commander Abuagla Keikal, which locals say may explain the siege of a previously stable trade hub that had housed 50,000 people, including many displaced from other areas.
The town's markets and warehouses were looted, witnesses said.
Satellite imagery from a Yale Humanitarian Lab report showed rapid increase in cemeteries in several Jezira towns since the latest revenge attacks began in late October. It also showed evidence of the burning of agricultural fields in the village of Azrag.