Supporters of Iraqi cleric end protest in Baghdad

Baghdad: Supporters of Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr have ended their day-long protest outside the compound of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) in Baghdad demanding the dissolution of Parliament.
A statement by al-Sadr’s aide Mohammed Salih al-Iraqi said that Tuesday’s sit-in was to “encourage the SJC to hold the corrupt accountable, but to avoid bringing harm to the people, we advise the protesters to withdraw”, reports Xinhua news agency.
As the protesters withdrew from their sit-in site, the SJC said in a statement that it would resume its activities on Wednesday morning.
Earlier on Tuesday, hundreds of al-Sadr supporters set up dozens of tents to begin a sit-in protest in front of the SJC compound and sent threatening messages to the council in an attempt to pressure the federal court into dissolving Parliament to hold new parliamentary elections.
The suspension of the SJC prompted caretaker Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi to cut short his trip to Egypt for a five-way Arab summit.
Al-Kadhimi, also commander-in-chief of the Iraqi forces, returned to Baghdad to directly supervise the security forces protecting judicial institutions, according to a statement issued by his media office.