Shafaq News / The first deputy speaker of the Iraqi Parliament, Hakem al-Zameli, visited Shafaq News agency's reporter, Haidar al-Sheikh, who was injured during the clashes that took place in the Green Zone last month.

Al-Zameli, who is visiting all the journalists who were wounded while covering the recent events, said that Shafaq News agency is a "free, professional" media outlet, wishing al-Sheikh a speedy recovery. 

The Deputy Speaker of parliament chatted with al-Sheikh about his mission and the circumstances he and his colleagues were working under. 

Multiple suffocation cases have been reported among media persons covering the protests inside Baghdad's ultra-secure Green Zone as security forces attempt to disperse the protestors using gas.

Al-Sadr announced he is walking out of politics in a statement he shared on Twitter earlier today. The influential leader seized the opportunity to take an aim toward a senior Najaf clergyman, Ayatollah al-Haeri, and fellow Shiite politicians who opposed his calls for reform.

In the aftermath, followers of al-Sadr rallied outside the presidential palace and stormed the government headquarters, prompting caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi to suspend cabinet meetings until further notice.

Heavy clashes erupted in Baghdad, killing and injuring dozens of civilians and members of the Security forces.

As night fell, machine-gun fire and explosions rang out, with tracer fire rising into the sky above the Green Zone that houses government headquarters and foreign embassies, in the worst fighting the Iraqi capital has seen in years.