ERBIL — The Iraqis will not surrender to the corrupts and the corrupts cannot rule the country, Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said on Tuesday.
Sadr made the remarks in a short statement published on his official Twitter account to mark Ashura, the remembrance day of Muslim’s Imam Hussein when the Shias gather to mourn his death anniversary.
The statement came only a few hours after Sadr’s rival Nouri al-Maliki, leader of the State of Law Coalition, said in a televised statement that the calls for the dissolution of the parliament and holding an early election were not acceptable.
Sadr insists on holding an early election after its supporters stormed the parliament and, since then, they have staged a sit-in protest outside the legislature’s building to support their leader’s demands.
Most of the influential political leaders have expressed support for Sadr’s call provided that the sides reach an agreement on the early elections through a national dialogue.
Maliki, however, said in his latest statement that the decision can only be made by the current parliament after it is allowed to resume sessions.