Shafaq News – Najaf

Videos circulating on social media showed residents of Baghdad’s al-Azamiyyah district, a predominantly Sunni area, declaring their intention to boycott Iraq’s upcoming parliamentary elections — a move aligned with the Patriotic Shiite Movement (PSM) leader Muqtada al-Sadr’s call for abstention.

The campaign quickly gained traction online, with users describing it as a symbolic act of “national solidarity” that transcends sectarian lines.

“God bless the people of al-Azamiyyah,” al-Sadr said in a statement released by his office. “They have always shown brave national positions. My greetings to them.”

The al-Azamiyyah district, located in northern Baghdad, is one of ten administrative districts in the capital and covers an area of 25.36 square kilometers. It has long been known for its historic Sunni-majority neighborhoods, which form part of Baghdad’s broader social and sectarian mosaic.

Zafir al-Ani, a parliamentary candidate who grew up in al-Azamiyyah, expressed surprise at the district’s alignment with al-Sadr’s call, calling it “a strange stance” given that Sunni communities “have often been the ones most affected by electoral boycotts, being a minority compared to the Shiite majority in Baghdad.”

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