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Subscriptions help us deliver original coverage of the region's most important issues.The story: A top Iraqi court has deemed the mass resignations of Sadrist Movement MPs lawful, putting an end to speculations of their possible return to the parliament. The ruling has coincided with lawmakers rejecting the resignation of Speaker Mohammed Al-Halbousi in the first session of the legislature since late July. This comes as Iraq is set to mark the anniversary of the eruption of anti-establishment protests in Oct. 2019.
The coverage: Sadrist Movement leader Muqtada Al-Sadr in June ordered his bloc’s 73 MPs to withdraw from the 329-member parliament. The move followed months of deadlock over the formation of Iraq’s next government in the aftermath of the Oct. 2021 parliamentary elections.
Two days earlier, on Sept. 26, Halbousi cast his resignation against the backdrop of the ongoing political impasse, which has seen Iraq left without a new government for almost a year after its parliamentary elections.
The Shiite Coordination Framework on Sept. 28 welcomed the resumption of parliamentary sessions, urging the “continuation of talks within the State Administration Alliance…on the formation of a new government.”
Meanwhile, Baghdad’s Green Zone was hit by rockets as lawmakers convened, reportedly injuring at least 7 security personnel.
The context/analysis: The Sadrists became the single largest bloc in the Oct. 2021 parliamentary elections, with MPs renewing Halbousi’s speakership in the first session after the polls.
However, when the Coordination Framework moved to push through its prime minister-designate on July 30, the session was preempted by Sadrists who stormed the parliament, demanding the dissolution of the legislature, new elections, and constitutional reforms.
Days later, on Sept. 8, Sadr called on his Kurdish and Sunni allies as well as independent MPs to resign from the parliament, a move he said would strip the legislature of its legitimacy. He also said the return of Sadrist lawmakers to the parliament was “strictly prohibited.”
The future: Parties associated with the Oct. 2019 protest movement will on Oct. 1 mark the anniversary of the eruption of anti-establishment demonstrations. Most observers expect the Sadrists to join them, particularly as the movement’s armed wing—Saraya Al-Salam—roamed the streets of Baghdad and Basra late on Sept. 30.