Saddam Hussein’s Executioner Returns With Protesters To Put Political Pressure On Iraqi Government

As the Iraqi government continues to force the Islamic State out of their strongholds, the terrorist group has increased their suicide bombing attacks in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, over the past few months, causing devastation and frustration among state officials.

The Iraqi government has been working to try and secure as much of the city as it could, discovering at some point that fake metal detectors were being used and getting rid of some people within the government who were complicit with the sale and the constant use of these devices.

One of the security measures has been to ban protests and the assembly of large groups in the city, but a well-known Shiite cleric from a prestigious line of Ayatollahs, has defied the ban once again and organized a mass demonstration of several thousand people to demand reform, and to protest government corruption on Friday in Tahrir Square.

Muqtada al-Sadr’s role in Iraq has fluctuated from extremist to moderate over the past 13 years, as he and his Mahdi militia were the first to organize attacks against American troops when the United States returned to Iraq in 2003, ousting Saddam Hussein.

Once the brutal leader was captured later that year, it would take three more years before Hussein would be executed, not by the Iraqi government put in place, but by one of many who had plotted revenge against him.

According to various reports compiled by DailyKOS, his execution was taken over by a Shiite militia which infiltrated the transition, led by Muqtada al-Sadr, who according to the article, executed the former president himself.

#OTD – November 6th 2006. Saddam Hussein sentenced to death by hanging. #nytimes pic.twitter.com/3Y9Jt37or6

— New York Times OTD (@OnThisDayNYT) November 6, 2015

Right before Saddam Hussein was executed in 2006, he was confronted with the fact that he had executed Mohammad Baqir al-Sadr, who was Muqtada al-Sadr’s father-in-law, killed in 1980, and was another Shiite cleric.

Since then, the Shiite cleric has become very active in his role in politics in Iraq, attempting to hold the Iraqi government to account where he maintains the loyalty of many officials.

As the presence of American troops in Iraq began to wane, al-Sadr began to adjust his demands from violence to more peaceful protests, for more political reasons, and even running for office himself at some point.

This year he returned “armed” with well-organized protests against the Iraqi government over corruption of many officials who have financial safe-havens in the country. Al-Sadr even made headlines in the Western press in May when he and his protesters broke into The Green Zone, which originally held American troops, to stage a sit-in.

During that time, and even with the recent assembly, Iraq’s Prime Minister Adabi says that these kinds of mass protests could “hamper” the war against the Islamic State.

Iraqi security forces have said recently that these demonstrations were “unauthorized.”

It’s been reported that security forces cut the internet during the protests, and made sure no one got out of hand, but for the most part, they were looking out for the Islamic State who could have taken advantage of the gathering for more attacks, being that the Sunni terrorist group has no qualms about killing Shiites in large numbers.

Prior to the mass protest on Thursday, the city held a parade for the anniversary of the country’s independence, which went off without a problem, as the area was surrounded by Iraqi forces, signaling that their increased security measures might be effective after all.

The people in Baghdad, whose communities have been hit by terrorist attacks, have greeted the prime minister by hurling stones and shoes when he’s come into those areas.

He recently said that if anyone in al-Sadr’s group of protesters came armed, they would be treated as terrorists.

Muqtada al-Sadr made his demands, calling for the resignation of the president, the prime minister, and the parliament speaker; those who promised to crack down on corruption within the Iraqi government.

[Photo by Karim Kadim/AP Photo]