Iraq's top cleric condemns use of force against protest camps, calls for early election

Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq’s leading Shi’ite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, on Friday condemned the use of force to disperse protest camps across the country, and renewed calls for early elections to be held in a free and fair manner.

Sistani, who delivered his message through a representative at Friday prayers in the holy city of Kerbala, also “heavily condemned” U.S. President Donald Trump’s Middle East peace plan.