Shafaq News- Baghdad
Muqtada Al-Sadr, leader of Iraq's Patriotic ShiiteMovement (PSM/Sadrist), urged Iraqis on Friday to rally behind Prime MinisterAli Falih Al-Zaidi's anti-corruption drive, arguing that the government'srecent crackdown had unnerved corrupt figures.
During a unified Friday sermon in Baghdad and otherprovinces, Al-Sadr called for peaceful gatherings in support of the reformeffort and “the soldier of reform,” Ali Al-Zaidi, calling on participants tobolster his campaign against “corrupt figures who are trying to influence himafter the raids that have terrified many inside and outside the country.”
“We have always been advocates of reform, and we sharenothing with the corrupt, not even the love of Imam Hussein [the third ShiaImam and grandson of the Prophet Muhammad],” Al-Sadr declared, blaming those heidentified as “the corrupt” for any harm that might befall Al-Zaidi or “allthose working to restore the dignity of the nation.”
Supporters gathered in Baghdad and several otherprovinces after the sermon, chanting slogans endorsing the government'scrackdown and urging authorities to continue pursuing corruption andreinforcing state institutions.
Iraqi authorities launched the “Dawn Crackdown” onJune 28 under the direction of Al-Zaidi. A source familiar with the operationpreviously told Shafaq News that authorities detained 67 people during the first 24 hours, whileanother source said the first phase targets more than 200 figures within 72hours, as part of a wider six-month track to fight corruption and recoverpublic money.
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