Iraqi Sunnis May Postpone March on Baghdad
Protesters in Anbar province are considering calling off their planned protest in Baghdad, amid unprecedented security measures from Iraqi authorities in the capital, writes Ali Abel Sadah.
Iraqi Sunnis in Anbar province are considering reversing the decision to move their protest to Baghdad on Friday, Feb. 15. The move comes after the government implemented unprecedented security measures around the capital to prevent them from entering the city. Moreover, the government is preparing to declare a curfew on Thursday, with the return of assassinations and liquidations in Baghdad’s residential neighborhoods.
Demonstrators in Anbar announced last Friday [Feb. 8] a “peaceful march” to Baghdad to pray in the Abu Hanifa Mosque.
The mosque, which is located in the Sunni-dominated Adhamiya neighborhood, is an important religious site for Iraqi Sunnis in Baghdad and the provinces. It has authority over a large number of Sunni believers.
The decision to move the protest to Baghdad reflected a qualitative change in the demonstrators’ movement against the Nouri al-Maliki-led central government.
