Supporters of the Iraqi Shia religious leader Muqtada al-Sadr have rallied in front of the country’s Supreme Judicial Council, expanding a sit-in that initially began in front of the parliament building, and escalating their calls for parliament to be dissolved.
In response, the Supreme Judicial Council, along with the Federal Supreme Court, said that they had received threats, and had suspended court sessions.
Al-Sadr warned last Wednesday that he was giving the judiciary a week to dissolve parliament, but the Supreme Judicial Council has stated that it does not have the authority to do so.
Supporters of the Shia religious leader, who has been a growing force in Iraqi politics over the last decade, emerged as the biggest party in parliament after elections in October.
However, they were unable to form a government, and al-Sadr ordered his parliamentary bloc to resign from their seats en-masse in June, which they promptly did.
Al-Sadr’s supporters have taken to the streets ever since and stormed parliament in July.
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