Thousands of followers of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr demonstrated Friday against an agreement that would extend the U.S. military presence in Iraq, shouting "The rally was held in Firdaus Square, where U.S. soldiers toppled a statue of President Saddam Hussein in an iconic moment after the 2003 invasion. Friday's demonstration followed two days of boisterous protests by Sadr's loyalists in parliament, which is scheduled to vote next week on the agreement.
The Sadrists do not appear to have the strength to derail the bilateral accord, which would allow American troops to stay in Iraq for three more years. The group has only 30 seats in the 275-seat parliament. Friday's protest drew at least 10,000 people but was smaller than a massive demonstration held by Sadr loyalists in the same central Baghdad plaza in 2005.
Still, the Sadr group could make the government pay a stiff political price for passing the agreement. Many Iraqis resent the U.S. presence, and the issue could be a potent one in provincial elections scheduled in late January. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government bargained hard in the months of negotiations on the accord, pressing the Bush administration to agree to a pullout date of Dec. 31, 2011.