(28 Jul 2022)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sadr City, Baghdad – 28 July 2022
1. Various of cars driving in Sadr city
2. Large poster of Mohammed al Sadr, influential cleric and father of Muqtada al-Sadr, in middle of Sadr City
3. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Saif Majid, resident of Sadr City in Baghdad:
"The masses' (protesters) entry into the Green Zone and the parliament was done by the Sadr bloc, because people are rejecting Mohammed Shiaa al-Sudani (candidate for Prime Minister). He is being rejected because, as you know, it has been 20 years and we don't have the services or infrastructure, nothing at all. We experienced them (the previous government) and they should not be experienced again. This was just a warning, and there might be more if he (al-Sudani) nominated himself, God forbidden."
4. Various of people selling Shia flags, posters, and knives
5. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Hazem Muhy, street vendor:
"Most of the youth are unemployed. We want job opportunities for the youth. All people here are unemployed, students, engineers, etc. I mean students when they graduate, they can't get a job. They have to work as labours and even that is not available. There are three of us and we work on this one vendor here. There are no jobs. We have to wait for Muharram or Ramadan (religious ceremonies) to make some money, and these all are because of the government."
6. Various of poster
7. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Seyyed Hussein, local resident:
"Yesterday's entry was a message. A message to the government and the parliament members that the nation is able to do anything to them, and this was just a message for them, and we shouldn't choose them (government) again. They gave us hard times and they harmed us."
8. Various of traffic
STORYLINE.
Residents in Sadr City, a suburb of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, reacted on Thursday to the storming of the country's parliament and heavily fortified Green Zone by protesters.
Hundreds breached Baghdad’s parliament Wednesday chanting anti-Iran curses in a demonstration against a nominee for prime minister by Iran-backed parties.
The majority of the protesters were followers of influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and were demonstrating against the recent selection of Mohammed al-Sudani as the official nominee of the Coordination Framework bloc, a coalition led by Iran-backed Shiite parties and their allies.
"This was just a warning, and there might be more if he nominated himself," said Saif Majid, a resident of Sadr City, as he reacted to the demonstrations.
Another resident, Seyyed Hussein, echoed the sentiments, saying the protest was a "message to the government and the parliament members".
"This was just a message for them, and we shouldn't choose them again," Hussein said.
Sadr City is a stronghold area of al-Sadr.
It is highly populated and has a high unemployment rate.
No lawmakers were present during the storming of the parliament building.
Only security forces were inside and they appeared to allow the protesters in with relative ease.
It was the largest protest since federal elections were held in October, and the second time al-Sadr has used his ability to mobilize masses to send a message to his political rivals this month.
Al-Sadr recently stepped down from the political process despite having won the most seats in the October federal election.
He exited government formation talks after he was not able to corral enough lawmakers to get the majority required to elect Iraq’s next president.
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