The leader of the Sadr movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, called for the resignation of the Iraqi government to inject blood, in conjunction with the announcement of the deaths and dozens of wounded during the renewed protests Friday in Iraq.
Sadr called for early parliamentary elections under the supervision of the United Nations as a way out of the crisis in the country.
Muqtada al-Sadr added that the disregard for Iraqi blood cannot be tolerated.
Mohammed Reza al-Haider, head of the Security and Defense Committee in the "Saeron" bloc backed by Sadr's leader Muqtada al-Sadr, revealed that the decision to suspend the bloc in the Iraqi parliament, in support of the legitimate rights of peaceful demonstrators.
Al-Haider told a news conference that this suspension will continue until Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi presents a national program that satisfies the demonstrators and saves the situation by withdrawing his expression.
In turn, former Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi called for early parliamentary elections in Iraq "to avoid government failure and block the horizon of the political process."
Six protesters were killed and others wounded in renewed protests in the Iraqi capital on Friday, while a demonstrator was killed in the southern city of Diwaniya.
The Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights announced the killing of six demonstrators and wounding others in the shooting of Iraqi forces on protesters in the center of the capital.
| Moqtada al-Sadr called for early elections under UN supervision (Reuters) |
The Iraqi medical sources announced on Friday morning that the death toll of the demonstrators during the previous days reached 65 people, with hundreds injured.
For the first time, security forces accused "unidentified snipers" of shooting at demonstrators and security personnel in Baghdad, and rejected accusations of excessive use of force by human rights organizations.
According to the security media cell, "the martyrdom of two members of the security forces and two citizens" in central Baghdad, "by unidentified sniper fire."
Since Tuesday, the authorities have accused Mandens of infiltrating the demonstrations and causing deaths.
Reform
Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi called on the legislative and judicial authorities to work together to implement the required plans to achieve reform. He also called on major political blocs to cooperate with the government to provide all conditions for reform.
"The government commits itself to presenting its scientific programs and doing its best to alleviate the suffering of citizens, improve services and provide job opportunities," Mahdi said in a statement.
The speaker of the Iraqi parliament, Mohammed Halbousi, on Friday, to listen to the demands of the people, calling for an investigation into the attack on the demonstrators.
"We must deal with the demonstrators in a different way," Halbousi said in a televised speech broadcast from the Iraqi parliament.
At the same time, he called on demonstrators to stand by the state in holding accountable and prosecuting the corrupt. "The Iraqi people have suffered from terrorism and corruption, and the engineers should not be allowed to exploit the demonstrations," he said.
The conquest, which includes the majority of armed Shiite factions, gave the government 10 days to meet the demands of the demonstrators.
The coalition, which has 48 seats in parliament out of 329 seats, said in a statement: "We stand with the legitimate demands of the demonstrators, and we adopt the guidance and recommendations of the religious authority, and we call on the government to launch a package of realistic and bold reforms at specific times that meet the requirements of the masses."
On Friday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on security forces to show restraint and respect for freedom of expression during demonstrations in the world, including Iraq.
"It is very concerned that these demonstrations have resulted in deaths and injuries. Freedom of expression and peaceful assembly are fundamental rights that must be respected," it said.