Protesters are reclaiming symbols of Shi’ism and repurposing them in ways that are meaningful to them. As a result, they are also challenging the theme of the cross-national Shiite identity that marked and motivated historical protests, such as those in 1979 and in 1991. The anti-Iranian sentiment, particularly in the south, is a rejection of the Iranian brand of Shi’ism.
The most prominent aspect of this brand is the Iranian-supported parties and militias. These groups are largely seen as corrupt and implicated in extreme violence against Iraqi protesters. As a result, headquarters and offices of Iranian-affiliated Islamist parties and groups throughout the south have been attacked. Iran’s consulates in Najaf and Karbala — Shi’ism’s holiest sites — have been burned. Anti-Iranian chants and anti-Iranian slogans populate the protest spaces in Tahrir and the south.
Abdul Mahdi also condemned protesters for insulting Iraqi leaders and tearing down posters of them. Protesters have targeted photos of Hadi al-Amiri, a head of the Fatah Alliance and have also targeted photos of Iranian leaders. The protesters have burned an Iranian consulate.
In 2017, then-US secretary of state Rex Tillerson had said the militias should go home. Former Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said the militias were the hope for the future of Iraq. Abdul Mahdi has now indicated similar sentiments. The militias are a key part of the pro-Iranian influence in Iraq.
The writer is Iraqi. How does she write about Iranian brand of political Shiism and never mention Khomeini? It is Khomeinism.