Thousands of Iraqi people demonstrated in Baghdad on Friday in support of the Bahraini people and to condemn the presence of the Saudi troops in Bahrain.

Iraqi protesters were gathering in response to Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s call to show solidarity with their brothers in Bahrain and to condemn the Saudi interference in Bahrain’s internal affairs.

The protest which was organized by the Sadr movement was attended by many Iraqi officials, tribal leaders, clerics and ordinary people under strict security measures.

Iraqi officials while stressing on the suffering that people in Bahrain are facing said the Iraqi government shares the sentiments of it’s people. Iraqi protesters are asking their government to include the crisis in Bahrain in the agenda of next Arab League summit meeting in Baghdad and not to allow the Bahraini King to attend the summit.

According to Iraqi officials, the Iraqi government is considering to include the crisis of Bahrain in the agenda of the Arab League summit which is planned to be held in Baghdad late this month.

In March 2011, Saudi forces invaded the Bahraini soil under the pretext of supporting the Bahraini regime in suppressing the uprisings in Bahrain.