As Iraqi Lawmakers Prepare To Elect President, 9 Rockets Hit Baghdad’s Green Zone

An unspecified number of security personnel and civilians were injured Thursday in Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone when a barrage of rockets was fired at the zone ahead of a parliament session to elect a new Iraqi president, the Joint Operations Command said in a statement. Nine Katyusha rockets landed in the zone, which houses government buildings, including the convention center where the Iraqi parliament, the Council of Representatives, meets; the residences of top Iraqi officials; and foreign embassies. A new president must be elected as the first step in the appointment of a prime minister and the formation of a new government. Iraq held parliamentary elections more than a year ago but its electoral politics have been stuck in a deadlock ever since, due to internal conflicts, particularly between rival Shiite parties. Unidentified assailants also fired rockets on the Green Zone on September 28, when parliament met and rejected the resignation of Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi.