Followers of the anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr on Mar 19 demanded better living conditions in Iraq on the ninth anniversary of the US-led invasion of their country. Iraqis have struggled with high unemployment, corruption and an infrastructure degraded by years of sanctions, war and economic neglect. As the violence across the country has abated, economic development has become a key concern for many Iraqis. Sheik Assad Al-Nasiri said that Sadrists want the government to step up with better-paying jobs, public services and to fight corruption now that the US troops have left Iraq.
Al-Nasiri credited the Sadrists with liberating Iraq from the troops he described as occupiers.
“We fought for Iraq and liberated it from the American occupation,” Al-Nasiri told thousands of Al-Sadr’s followers who turned out for a rally in the southern province of Basra, located about 340 miles (550 kilometers) southeast of Baghdad. “The government must meet our demands to live a better life,” Al-Nasiri added.