MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th September, 2018) Iraqi parliament will hold an extraordinary meeting on Saturday to discuss the situation in the city of Basra, which has been shaken by violent riots since the beginning of the week, media reported on Friday citing a parliamentary statement.
Muqtada al-Sadr, Iraq's most influential Shiite politician, on Thursday called on the parliament to convene an emergency session before Sunday to address the situation in Basra.
"On the basis of the request from 54 lawmakers to hold a special meeting to discuss the situation in Basra, the oldest member of parliament, Muhammad Ali Zeyni, has gone to the meeting to discuss problems, their decisions and the recent events. The head of the Council of Ministers and relevant ministers will attend the meeting," the statement said as quoted by Al-Ghad Press.
According to the statement, the meeting will start at 01:00 p.m. local time (10:00 GMT).
On Friday, protesters in Basra city set the local Iranian consulate on fire after torching political party and militia buildings the day before. The Foreign Ministries of Iran and Bahrain have already urged their citizens to leave Iraq.
The previous wave of protests in Basra broke out in June before spreading to other areas of southern Iraq. Discontent was sparked by problems with electricity and water supplies that were exacerbated by scorching heat this summer. The government had formed a special commission to deal with the demands, pledging to allocate some $17 million to fixing electricity and water supplies. The promise resulted in protests subsiding before reigniting on Monday.
