Iraq, Baghdad: Today, tens of thousands of Iraqi Shiites have held a protest against corruption in a rally in downtown Baghdad called by influential cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The rally in Baghdad’s Tahrir Square appeared in part to be an attempt by al-Sadr to show his strength.
Weekly, many protests have been held frequently against corruption, but usually only a few hundred people attended, until al-Sadr this week called on his followers to join. “No, no, to corruption,” and “The people are all with you, Sayed Muqtada,” and the flag waving crowd chanted as al-Sadr gave a speech to the gathering.