Iran urges dialogue amid Iraq turmoil
Iranian authorities have called on Iraqi factions to seek political solutions as Baghdad streets saw deadly clashes between members of the Shiite Sadrist movement and their Tehran-backed rivals.
Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi said constitution-based dialogue among political blocs was the only path toward stability and security in Iraq, where the resignation from politics by leading Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has sparked a fresh wave of violence.
At a meeting with Iraqi Foreign Minister Foad Hussain in Tehran, Raisi also highlighted the "very important role played by Shiite clerical leadership" in deciding Iraq's political fate.
The meeting was held late Monday only hours after Baghdad turned into a deadly battleground for Sadr supporters and Iraqi security forces. The Sadr loyalists also engaged in clashes with their main Shiite rivals, the Tehran-backed Hashd al-Shaabi, or the Popular Mobilization Units. The chaos was the latest from Iraq's troubled political scene, and a months-long deadlock due to the failure of rival Shiite camps to reach consensus over the formation of a new government in Baghdad.
Earlier, the Iraqi top diplomat also sat down with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who according to official media reports stressed the need for "national unity and respecting legal institutions" as well as "protecting the authority of the Iraqi state."
