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

By Ali Jawad
BAGHDAD (AA) – 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 Oct. 10 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 Oct. 10 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 Dec. 4, 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.

Writing by Ahmed Asmar in Ankara