US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an unexpected visit to Baghdad on Sunday after his trip to the occupied West Bank. He met with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani to discuss the escalating war between Israel and Hamas. The visit was not announced in advance for security reasons.
During the meeting, Blinken emphasized that attacks or threats from Iran-aligned militias are completely unacceptable. He assured Sudani that necessary measures would be taken to protect American personnel. The US has accused Iran of involvement in the attacks targeting military bases hosting US forces in Iraq and American troops in Syria. The majority of these attacks have been claimed by a group called the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq”, which has close ties to Tehran.
Iraq, which does not recognize Israel as a state and is aligned with Iran, has repeatedly called for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. The country’s prime minister described Israel’s military operation as a “genocide” against the Palestinian people. Sudani reiterated the urgency of containing the crisis and preventing its spread during the meeting with Blinken.
In response to Blinken’s visit, thousands of supporters of Shiite cleric Moqtada Sadr gathered in Baghdad’s Tahrir Square, waving Iraqi and Palestinian flags. Some protesters burned Israeli and US flags, following a call from Sadr’s movement to protest peacefully against Blinken’s visit.
Blinken’s visit to Iraq is part of his whirlwind tour of the Middle East, which also included stops in Israel, Jordan, the occupied West Bank, and Cyprus. In Israel, he held talks with Israeli officials, and in Jordan, he met with King Abdullah II and attended ministerial meetings with Arab counterparts.
(Note: This news article is published from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by NDTV staff.)
