Head of Iraq's Sadrist movement, cleric Moqtada al-Sadr surprised his partners and rivals alike when he telephoned former Prime Minister and head of the State of Law coalition Nuri al-Maliki in an effort to ease the political impasse in the country.
Sadr had been adamant about refusing to work with Maliki even before he formed his alliance with the Sunni and Kurdish blocs after his parliamentary elections victory in October 2021. The former PM came second in the polls.
