Sadrists rally outside the presidential palace, authorities close the Green Zone entrances

Shafaq News/ Followers of the powerful Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr on Monday rallied outside the presidential palace inside Baghdad's ultra-secure Green Zone, with tension soaring after he announced political retirement.

Shafaq News Agency correspondent said that a group of protestors, mainly supporters of the Sadrist movement, cordoned the presidential palace and the security forces deployed water cannons to disperse them.

Multiple sources reported to Shafaq News Agency that the security authorities closed all the entrances leading to the Green Zone.

"Holders of security clearances are not an exception as things stand," a source said.

The Joint Operations Command (JOC) urged the protestors in an official statement to withdraw from the Green Zone immediately, laying emphasis on its commitment to "protecting the government departments, international missions, public and private properties."