Alwaght-Hundreds of Iraqi demonstrators Friday gathered in the capital Baghdad to protest "the US involvement in the government formation process."
Demonstrators carrying banners and chanting slogans in condemnation of Washington's interference in Iraq's internal issues amid political uncertainty over the makeup of a new government.
Another protest was held on Wednesday come after US Special Presidential Envoy Brett McGurk held meeting with Iraqi politicians. The protesters held banners with slogans like: "Those who sit with [US President] Donald Trump's messenger betray the martyr's blood." Iraqi protestors stated that interference with the government formation was "unacceptable."
"The people went to the [ballot] boxes and voted. The rest should be determined by a legal and constitutional process. From now on, no country, particularly the U.S., should be involved," he said.
McGurk has recently held frequent meetings with different sections of Iraqi politics, reportedly to "expedite the process of drawing up a new government," according to an Iraqi Foreign Ministry source. On Tuesday, McGurk met with Nechirvan Barzani, the prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), to discuss the formation of the new government and recent developments in Iraq. After a court approved the May 12 general election results amid considerable tension, Iraqi President Fuad Masum called on the Iraqi parliament to hold a session on Sept. 3.
The US, backed by the UK, invaded Iraq in 2003 under the pretext that the former regime of Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons, however, were ever found in the country.
More than one million Iraqis were killed as a result of the US-led invasion and the subsequent occupation of the country, according to the California-based investigative organization Project Censored.
The invasion plunged Iraq into chaos and led to the rise of terrorist groups.
The US and a coalition of its allies further launched a military campaign against purported ISIS targets in Iraq in 2014, but their operations in many instances have led to civilian deaths.
Last December, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared the end of the anti-ISIS campaign in Iraq. The group’s remnants, though, still keep staging sporadic attacks across the country.
Iraq's parliamentary elections were held on May 12 and predominately Shia blocs won most seats at the legislature. However, political parties are still embroiled in negotiations over forming the largest bloc at the parliament.
