ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Saturday said that his movement had made a proposal to the United Nations (UN) for a live-streamed dialogue and debate session with all the political forces to address the political situation in Iraq, but added that they did not receive a “tangible response” from the blocs.
“Their [political groups] answer did not include anything about reform, the demands of the revolutionaries, nor what the people are suffering from" said Sadr in a tweet.
Iraqi and Kurdish leaders of political parties attended a "national dialogue" chaired by Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi on Wednesday and attended by UN Assistance Mission to Iraq (UNAMI) head Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.
The session was boycotted by the Sadrist Movement, who refused to clarify a reason for their absence.
“I have made a lot of compromises for the people and civil peace, and we wait what they [political groups] have up their sleeves,” said Sadr, adding that he will not “sit with the corrupt.”
Earlier this month, Sadr called on the Iraqi judiciary to dissolve the parliament and task the president with setting early elections, a request which was disregarded by the judiciary who said it lacks the authority to dissolve parliament.
Iraq has failed to form a government over ten months after it held early elections in October, largely due to disagreements between Sadr and the pro-Iran Coordination Framework. There are ongoing sit-ins in Baghdad by supporters of both sides.
Sadr recently announced the indefinite postponing of a "million-man" demonstration by his supporters in Baghdad which was set to take place on Saturday, August 20 "out of love and infatuation for its [Iraq's] people and sanctities."
Sadr emerged victorious from the October elections winning the most seats in the parliament but ordered his 73 MPs to resign from the legislature due to the continued obstruction of his attempts to form a national majority government by the Coordination Framework, who instead vied for a government based on political consensus.
CORRECTION: Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr said in a tweet that he had not received a "tangible response" from political parties to the call for national dialogue, and not from the United Nations as previously stated.
