The Supreme Religious authority: The country is going into difficult situations and we call for restraint.

The representative of the supreme religious authority read during the sermon of the Friday prayer of the 7th Jumada Ula 1441 AH corresponding to January 3, 2020, held at the holy shrine of Imam al-Hussayn (peace be upon him) the text received from the office of the supreme religious authority in Najaf.

His Eminence Sheikh Abd al-Mahdi al-Karbala’i said: Dear brothers and sisters ... I read to you the text received from the office of his eminence Sayed al-Sistani in Najaf:

“In the name of Allah the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,

Events accelerate and crises aggravate and the country passes the most dangerous junctures; from the sinful aggression to which the Iraqi forces' sites were exposed in the city of al-Qa'em, and led to the death and injury of dozens of our fighters, to the unfortunate incidents that Baghdad witnessed during the past days, to the vicious attack on Baghdad international airport last night is an insolent breach of Iraqi sovereignty and international agreements. It led to the martyrdom of several heroes of the victorious battles against the ISIL terrorists.

These events and more indicate the country is heading towards very difficult times. We call on all concerned parties to behave with self restraints and act wisely.

We raise our hands with the supplication to the Almighty God to push away the evil of the wicked and the plight of the ungodly from Iraq and its people.

“O My God! Hearts are drawn to You, necks stretch (towards You), eyes are fixed (on You), steps are in motion (towards You) and bodies have turned lean. O My God! Hidden animosity has become manifest and the cauldrons of malice are boiling.

O My God! We complain to You of the absence of our Prophet, the numerousness of our enemy and the diffusion of our passions.”