Iraq’s top Shiite cleric on Sunday threw his support behind the prime minister’s announcement to hold parliamentary elections ahead of schedule next year, saying the timing should not serve the interests of political groups.
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani’s comments came in a statement released by his office after a meeting with UN envoy to Iraq, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert. A photo released by al-Sistani’s office showed the black-turbaned cleric meeting with the UN envoy and an interpreter.
Sunday’s meeting was the first public face-to-face between al-Sistani and a foreign official since the spread of coronavirus in Iraq earlier this year. The country is one of the hardest-hit by the virus in the region, with nearly 300,000 confirmed cases and more than 7,900 deaths. It is also the first such meeting since al-Sistani, 90, underwent surgery for a fractured bone in January.
In August, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi said parliamentary elections would be held in June, nearly a year before they had been scheduled to take place.
Early elections have been a key demand of protesters, who have been holding mass demonstrations since October demanding change in the country where corruption is widespread.
A new government will be formed by the politician who secures the most support from parliamentary blocs after the elections. “Parliamentary elections scheduled for next year are very important,” the Iran-born al-Sistani, who enjoys wide influence in Iraq and among Shiite Muslims worldwide, said.