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Protesters close Baghdad's Green Zone ahead of verdict on vote results

December 27, 2021 at 11:15 am

Members of security forces from the Hashed al-Shaabi former paramilitary force stand guard as Hashed supporters continue a sit-in at an entrance of the Green Zone in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, on December 10, 2021 [AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images]

Hundreds of Iraqi protesters closed entrances to Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone on Monday in protest of the results of the country’s parliamentary elections, according to a local security official.

The protest came hours before an expected verdict by Iraq’s Federal Court in a lawsuit contesting the results of the 10 October polls.

The security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said additional security and military forces were dispatched to the area to prevent protesters from storming the zone.

The Green Zone hosts most foreign diplomatic missions, including the US Embassy.

Monday’s verdict by the Federal Court will be final and cannot be appealed.

A bloc led by Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr won the October polls, snatching 73 seats in the 329-member parliament. Pro-Iranian factions, however, saw their seats decrease from 48 in the 2018 elections to only 17.

On 4 December, Hadi al-Ameri, the head of the Fatah coalition, filed a lawsuit with the Federal Court to contest the vote results, citing technical and legal violations.

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