Iran to help Iraq settle political differences

Tehran, May 2 (IANS) Tehran is ready to facilitate a dialogue among Iraq's different political groups, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said on Monday.

Foreign ministry spokesman Hossein Jaber Ansari said Iran stood for tranquility in Iraq and it would help all political factions solve their differences through dialogue.

To tackle the problems in Iraq, the political groups should concentrate on the fight against terrorism and corruption in the country, Ansari said.

Thousands of followers of Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr on Saturday stormed the heavily fortified Green Zone in central Baghdad and took control of the Parliament building and surrounding areas, while dozens of lawmakers, officials and employees tried to escape the district.

The incident happened minutes after al-Sadr delivered a televised speech from the holy Shia city of Najaf, in which he rejected the latest approval of five cabinet members presented by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.

A series of failed reform measures have paralysed Iraq's Parliament and the government as the country struggles to fight the Islamic State (IS) group which holds swathes of territories in northern and western Iraq.