President Barham Saleh says early legislative elections would be in line with the aspirations of the Iraqi people and would guarantee political and social stability.
President Saleh spoke in Baghdad hours after supporters of al Sadr withdrew from Baghdad's Green Zone following nearly 24 hours of clashes.
(AFP PHOTO / HO / IRAQI PRESIDENCY)
Iraqi President Barham Saleh has encouraged early legislative elections to settle a political crisis that escalated into deadly clashes this week, killing dozens and wounding hundreds more.
"Holding new, early elections in accordance with a national consensus represents an exit from the stifling crisis," Saleh said in a speech on Tuesday.
"It guarantees political and social stability and responds to the aspirations of the Iraqi people".
Early elections, less than a year after the last polls, have been a key demand of Shia Muslim cleric Muqtada al Sadr, whose supporters battled state security forces and Shia factions backed by neighbouring Iran in violence that started on Monday.
Thirty Sadr supporters were shot dead and at least 570 others were injured after protesters stormed the government palace following their leader's announcement that he was quitting politics.
President Saleh spoke hours after supporters of Sadr withdrew from Baghdad's Green Zone following the nearly 24 hours of clashes.
READ MORE: Iraq's cleric Muqtada al Sadr quits politics
Iraq has been in political deadlock since parliamentary elections in October. Here's an explainer on two main Shia groups who are competing for power: pic.twitter.com/WbsuHvZjFA
Months of political paralysis
Sadr and his supporters have spearheaded calls for the dissolution of parliament and new legislative elections following months of political paralysis.
Under the constitution, parliament can only be dissolved by an absolute majority vote in the house, following a request by one-third of deputies or by the prime minister with the approval of the president.
Sadr's bloc emerged from last October's election as the biggest in the legislature, with 73 seats, but far short of a majority.
Since then, the country has been mired in political deadlock due to disagreement between Shia factions over forming a coalition.
In June, his lawmakers quit in a bid to break the gridlock.
Sadr's supporters had for weeks been staging a sit-in outside Iraq's parliament, after storming the legislature's interior on July 30.
READ MORE:Situation tense in Iraq as death toll from violent clashes mounts
Source: AFP
LONDON: Former Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has filed an application in the Supreme Court requesting for an early hearing of the appeal which has been pending before the court since 2018.
Senator-elect Dar has filed the application through his lawyers. He had originally filed an appeal in 2018 against his declaration as a proclaimed offender by accountability court.
The latest application in the Supreme Court of Pakistan is requesting intervention by the apex court to consider his case on merit.
According to his lawyers, Senator-elect Dar was first "blacklisted" by the Directorate General of Immigration and Passports without any basis or justification on July 24,2018.
That step practically banned the passport authorities in Pakistan and the Pakistani missions overseas from issuing a passport to Dar.
Dar’s valid passport was then cancelled by Imran Khan's government on September 06, 2018. The action was taken despite Dar's written request for issuance of a requisite passport, being a necessity and a fundamental right for the purposes of travelling.
He maintained that it was a draconian step which violated his basic human rights.
The factum of cancellation of the passport came into Dar’s knowledge through media reporting on September 09, 2018, during his medical treatment in the United Kingdom.
"The cancellation of Dar’s passport was a violation of law and human rights by Imran Khan government as a result of which the Senator was stranded in the UK from September 2018 onwards, which made it impossible for Dar to travel to Pakistan even if his health condition had improved," Senator-elect Dar’s legal teams said.
In May 2022, Dar received his new passport in London which had been issued by Passport Authorities in Islamabad on April 26, 2022.
Tension escalated in Iraq following nomination of new prime minister by groups close to Iran