As Iraq confronts the longest post-election deadlock, hundreds of supporters of the populist Shi’ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr broke into Iraq’s parliament on Wednesday. Iraqis protesting corruption, bad governance broke into the parliament building chanting slogans against Iran-aligned groups. Several videos surfaces on social media:
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Infighting among Shi`ite and Kurdish groups in particular has prevented the formation of a government in the country. The impasse has hindered the much-needed reforms for a country struggling to recover from decades of conflict.
The country has now been for a record 290 days without a head of state or cabinet with lawmakers unable to come to consensus nine months after election back in October 2021. The current impasse broke the 2010 record of 289 days.
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Amid the political paralysis, Iraq has been left without a budget for 2022. This has held up spending on much-needed infrastructure projects and economic reform.
"There’s no government, so there’s no budget, streets remain potholed, power and water are scarce and there’s poor healthcare and education," said Mohammed Mohammed, a 68-year-old retired civil servant from the southern city of Nassiriya.
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(With inputs from Reuters)
