Al-Sadr supporters march toward the Green Zone amid heavy security deployment in Baghdad 

Shafaq News/ The supporters of the powerful Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr are gearing up to storm the Green Zone, an ultra-secure area that houses government headquarters and diplomatic missions downtown Baghdad, amid heavy security deployment in the Iraqi capital.

"The protestors have gone past the first-line concrete barriers the Iraqi security forces placed on al-Jumhuriyah bridge in an attempt to reach the Green Zone," a source told Shafaq News Agency.

"They kicked down some of the barriers, but the security forces maintained self-restraint," the source added.

"The bridges of al-Jumhuriyah, al-Sanak, al-Ahrar, and al-Shohada are closed. All the roads leading to al-Tahrir square and the Green Zone are also closed," the source continued.

The traffic on the main roads and squares in this part of Baghdad is either completely or partially blocked.

Last Wednesday, hundreds of al-Sadr supporters stormed Baghdad's empty parliament, chanting slogans against his Shiite political rivals just days after they indicated agreement on a potential prime minister.

Since yesterday evening, demonstrators, most of them supporters of the Sadrist movement, have been flocking to Al-Tahrir square in the middle of the Iraqi capital.

They oppose the candidacy of Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, a former minister and ex-governor, who is the Shiite Coordination Framework's pick for premier.