US: No plans to evacuate embassy in Baghdad, monitoring clashes

White House official calls for calm in Iraq following Muqtada al-Sadr's resignation from politics.

AL-MONITOR Staff
AL-MONITOR Staff
A supporter of Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr carries bullet casings and a spent shotgun shell.
A supporter of Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr carries bullet casings and a spent shotgun shell in Baghdad, on Aug. 29, 2022. Dozens of angry supporters of the powerful cleric stormed the Republican Palace, a ceremonial building in the fortified Green Zone, a security source said, shortly after Sadr said he was quitting politics. — AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images

The Biden administration sought to dispel rumors that the United States had evacuated its embassy in Baghdad after protesters stormed Iraq’s parliament building and presidential palace on Monday.

Spokesperson for the White House’s National Security Council John Kirby called the violence in Baghdad “disturbing” and called on both security forces and demonstrators for calm.

“We join the call by parties across Iraq to remain calm and abstain from violence,” Kirby told reporters on Monday afternoon.

“There’s no evacuation ongoing at the embassy, [and] no indications that that’s going to be required at this time,” Kirby added.

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