Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhimi urged all political factions to make “sacrifices” to break the deadlock blocking the formation of a new government as protesters continued a sit-in at Parliament on Friday.
Security forces began closing some entrances to Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone in anticipation of large protests on Friday.
Supporters of influential cleric Moqtada Al Sadr occupied the Parliament building after storming barricades around the zone on July 31.
“I am willing to hand over power to any elected government,” Mr Al Kadhimi said in a statement issued by his office.
His remarks came after a call by Mr Al Sadr's senior aide, Saleh Muhammad Al Iraqi, for supporters to prepare for “mass gatherings” across the country.
“Reformists should prepare by gathering in their governorates at 5 o'clock tomorrow, Friday,” Mr Al Iraqi said.
Mr Al Sadr has called on the judiciary to dissolve parliament by the end of the coming week, while asking his supporters to continue their sit-in outside the legislature.
Mr Al Kadhimi, who has been serving as caretaker prime minister since a general election last October, is pressing for political factions to meet and discuss difference that have delayed the formation of a new government.
“A thousand years of dialogue is better than a single moment in which there are clashes between Iraqis,” he said.
Iraq now has “a chance and is standing at a crossroads”, said Mr Al Kadhimi, after 17 years of underperforming elected governments since the US-led 2003 invasion ended the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein.
“The challenges we face are reflected in the performance of government and all state institutions,” he said.
He said his administration “stands in the middle but, at the same time, is distant from all other political factions. I hope they will support this government to accomplish its mission”.
Mr Al Kadhimi said on Twitter: "Political leaders are required to make sacrifices for the sake of the homeland, and for the sake of our children."
The sit-in has made it impossible for politicians to convene and proceed with the formation of a new government.
Mr Al Sadr’s rivals, the Co-ordination Framework (CF) comprising mostly of Iran-backed militias and political parties, nominated a prime minister last month after the cleric told members of parliament from his political bloc to resign.
Mr Al Sadr said their nominee, Mohammed Al Sudani, was a “shadow” of his rival, former prime minister Nouri Al Maliki, one of the senior CF leaders.
The rivalry between Mr Al Sadr and Mr Al Maliki has been one of the key reasons behind parliament's failure to install a new government for more than 10 months.
Mr Al Kadhimi, who took office in May 2020, said his caretaker government was facing a huge challenge in dealing with the crises facing the country.
“This government has spent only 28 months in power and has only had a budget for six months, so how can the state function in the absence of a budget?”
