Iran closed its air and ground borders after fighting in Iraq

The armed clashes came after Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr resigned from the political stage. Iran closed its land border to Iraq and Iranian flights to the country were halted. As violence escalates, there is no visible resolution to Iraq's political crisis as quoted from France24.

The Iraqi government has been deadlocked since Sadr's party won a majority of seats in Iraq's parliamentary elections last October but not enough to secure a majority government.

His refusal to negotiate with his Iranian-backed rival group and then exit the talks has catapulted the country into political uncertainty and volatility amid escalating intra-Shia disputes.

To advance his political interests, Sadr has wrapped his rhetoric in a nationalist and reform agenda that resonates strongly among his broad base of supporters at the grassroots.

They called for the dissolution of parliament and preliminary elections without the participation of Iranian-backed Shiite groups, which they consider responsible for the status quo.

Sadr's latest announcement comes as millions of Iranians are preparing to visit Iraq for an annual pilgrimage to Shiite sites.

Meanwhile, Kuwait has urged its citizens to leave Iraq. Kuwait's news agency, KUNA, also encouraged those hoping to travel to Iraq to postpone their plans after the outbreak of street clashes between rival Shiite groups in the country.

Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) airline, Emirates, suspended flights to Baghdad due to ongoing unrest in Iraq. The airline said it was closely monitoring the situation.

There was no mention of whether flights would resume the next day.

Tensions are rising in Iraq amid a political crisis that has left the country without a new government, prime minister or president for months. The crisis escalated sharply after Sadr's supporters on Monday stormed the government palace following the Shiite cleric's announcement that he was quitting politics.

The violence has left Sadr's supporters battling rival Shiite factions backed by Iran.