By Xinhua
Baghdad : Anti-U.S. Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr called on Iraqis on Thursday to demonstrate in millions next week to protest the U.S. occupation of Iraq.
In a statement issued by Sadr office in the holy Shiite city of Najaf, Sadr called on Iraqi Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds to march to Najaf, some 160 km south of Baghdad, on April 9 marking the fifth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad.
“Time has come to express your rejection and raise your voices loud against the unjust occupier, the enemy of the peoples and humanity and against the horrible massacres which have been committed against our people,” Sadr said in the statement.
He called on demonstrators to carry national flags to show their unity and demand the independence of their country, Sadr said.
In 2004, Sadr led his Mahdi Army militia in two uprisings against U.S. forces, before taking part in Iraq’s political process.
Last week, Sadr militia fought fierce battles in southern Iraqi city of Basra with U.S.-backed Iraqi security forces, as Iraqi security forces launched a massive offensive, dubbed “Operation Cavalry Assault” aimed at restoring order in the city where instability was spreading.