“I have decided not to interfere in political affairs, and now I am announcing my final retirement and the closure of all institutions except the holy shrine, the museum and the al-Sadr Heritage Authority,” Al-Sadr said in a statement.

In the statement, he also criticized Iraqi political leaders for failing to heed his calls for reform.

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— مقتدى السيد محمد الصدر (@Mu_AlSadr) August 29, 2022

Muqtada al-Sadr belongs to the prominent Sadr family that hails from Jabal Amel in Lebanon, before later settling in Najaf. Sadr is the son of Mohammad Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr, an Iraqi religious figure and politician who stood against Saddam Hussein.

Muqtada al-Sadr gained popularity in Iraq following the toppling of the Saddam government by the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. (ILKHA)