Al-Sadr appeals for solution to Iraq’s political crisis

BAGHDAD / AP

An influential Iraqi Shiite cleric has called on the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Countries to help find a solution to the country’s simmering political crisis “even through holding early elections.”
In a handwritten statement issued on Wednesday, cleric Muqtada Al Sadr, ordered Sadrist lawmakers to withdraw from a parliament sit-in that demands the country’s top leadership — parliament speaker, prime minister and president — step down.
But Al Sadr called on his followers to continue rallying in Bagdad’s Tahrir Square to pressure the parliament to vote on a new government after a recent Cabinet reshuffle.
The statement came a day after lawmakers failed to hold a session to vote on whether to keep or oust the parliament speaker, threatening to prolong Iraq’s paralyzing political crisis.
Over 200 arrested in Zambia amid anti-Rwandan attacks
LUSAKA, Zambia (AP) — Police in Zambia arrested over 200 people for allegedly attacking Rwandan nationals and looting their shops in the capital.