Iraqi soldier killed, others wounded in Green Zone clashes
Iraqi security forces in the Green Zone in Baghdad. Photo: AFP
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – An Iraqi security source revealed on Monday that at least one Iraqi soldier was killed and others were wounded as a result of mortar shelling that took place in the Green Zone in central Baghdad.
Footage posted by activists on social media showed a dead Iraqi soldier after a bullet penetrated his chest, amid attempts by his colleagues to revive him.
On the other hand, the death toll among supporters of the Shiite leader, Muqtada Al-Sadr, and supporters of his political rivals in Baghdad and other governorates rose to 20 people, in addition to more than 300 were wounded.
The Green Zone in central Baghdad witnessed a huge fire and smoke billows following strong explosions caused by mortar shells from an unknown source. Clashes escalated and footage showed armed men using RPGs and heavy machine guns.
The Iraqi government imposed a curfew in all governorates starting from Monday until further notice, and the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers decided to suspend official working hours on Tuesday in all governorates.
The decision of Iraqi government was made after supporters of the Iraqi Sadrist movement’s leader, Muqtada Al-Sadr, broke into the Green Zone in the capital, Baghdad, after he announced he is quitting politics.
Muqtada Al-Sadr announced an open-ended hunger strike until the violence stops, according to the head of the Sadrist parliamentary bloc in Iraq, Hassan Al-Adhari.
Al-Sadr’s announcement took place after the expiration of the 72-hour deadline which he gave, last Friday, to the Supreme Court to dissolve the parliament.