Kuwait’s embassy in Baghdad has advised its citizens in Iraq to leave the country as violent protests erupted in the capital after powerful Shiite cleric Moqtada Al-Sadr resigned from government, the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported on Monday.
“The Kuwaiti embassy in Baghdad has advised nationals who are currently in Iraq to leave soon and those who were planning to travel to Iraq to adjourn their trips due to the unfolding situation there,” the statement on KUNA said.
Iraq’s Civil Aviation Authority issued a statement on Monday confirming that flights at Baghdad International Airport remained ongoing.
“Flights did not stop,” the Director of the Authority Media, Jihad Al-Diwan, said.
Meanwhile Jordan’s foreign ministry also called on Jordanians in Iraq to avoid gatherings and exercise caution amid escalating tensions.
Dubai’s long-haul carrier Emirates announced that it had stopped flights to Baghdad on Tuesday over the ongoing unrest, adding that it was “monitoring the situation closely.”
It did not say whether flights would resume for Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Iran closed its land borders to Iraq as flights to the country halted Tuesday.
Iranian state television cited “unrests” and “curfew” in Iraqi cities for the reason for the border closures. It urged Iranians avoid any travel to Iraq while urging Iran’s Shiite pilgrims in Iraq to avoid further travel between cities.
The decision came as millions of Iranians were preparing to visit Iraq for annual pilgrimage to Shiite sites.
At least 23 protesters were killed, and 270 others were wounded in Iraq after pro-Sadr demonstrators stormed the government palace in Baghdad’s Green Zone on Monday following his resignation.
The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Hissein Ibrahim Taha called on all parties in Iraq to exercise self-restraint and end the ongoing violence, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reportedon Tuesday.
“OIC confirmed standing by the side of the government and people of Iraq in whatever aims at preserving the security and stability of the country,” SPA cited an official statement from OIC as saying.
(With AP)
