Sadr announces hunger strike as 20 killed in Baghdad clashes
Clashes between rival Shiite groups, the Sadrists and the Popular Mobilization Units, have left more than 20 dead and hundreds injured.
Hundreds of supporters of Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr stormed the government palace early Monday morning. This is the third building they have stormed in the past month, after similar incidents at the parliament and the judiciary headquarters.
This happened after Ayatollah Sayyed Kadhim al-Haeri, a religious authority close to the Shiite militias that are rivals to the Sadrists, condemned protests by Sadr's followers and criticized their leader, saying he was not qualified to be a leader for the Sadrists.
The government palace is the main government building where weekly Cabinet sessions take place and is located in Baghdad's Green Zone.
Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi immediately reacted to the event, suspending Cabinet sessions until further notice and calling upon the protesters to evacuate the palace and the Green Zone in general.
