Moqtada al-Sadr Moves His Political Bloc Outside Iraq's Usual Balance

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Moqtada al-Sadr drew attention in Iraqi politics with steps that moved beyond the country’s usual power balance. In the 2021 elections, the Sadrist bloc won 73 seats, but Sadr ordered his lawmakers to resign en masse in the summer of 2022 and withdrew from parliament. His supporters later entered the Green Zone and the Iraqi parliament building. The text said Sadr most recently announced that Saraya al-Salam would be fully separated from the political line and placed under the Iraqi army. The move was described as creating political pressure on other armed groups and aligning with state rhetoric calling for weapons to be concentrated under a single authority.