Al-Sadr pulls out of October elections: Iraq on its last breath

Shafaq News/ On Thursday, Muqtada al-Sadr, leader of the Patriotic Shiite Movement (PSM), announced his boycott of the upcoming parliamentary elections in October, citing the presence of "corrupt individuals."

"As long as corruption exists, I will not participate in any flawed electoral process, one driven solely by sectarian and partisan interests, unconcerned with the people's suffering and the regional disasters, which were primarily caused by dragging Iraq and its people into conflicts they had no part in," al-Sadr emphasized.

Al-Sadr further called on his supporters to neither vote nor run in the upcoming elections. “What benefit is there in the participation of corrupt individuals and Baathists while Iraq is on its last breath, with foreign influence and deep-state forces controlling every aspect of its affairs?” he asked.

The PSM leader decided in June 2022 to withdraw from the political process in Iraq and refrain from participating in any upcoming elections, so as not to engage with what he described as "corrupt" politicians, after calling for the resignation of all 73 of his MPs in parliament.

Speculation about al-Sadr's return to the political process has persisted for months, including his potential participation in the elections, especially after he urged his supporters to update their electoral records.