This was the second attempt in a month by protesters to burn the Iranian consulate in Najaf. In the first attempt, Molotov cocktails were thrown over the consulate walls but the flames were put out and the damage was limited. The Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the most senior Shiite cleric in Iraq, has faced intense pressure to resolve the standoff between the protesters and the government. In a number of places, protesters have set fire to the headquarters of political parties, damaged government buildings and engaged in revenge killings. Several analysts predicted that Iran would pressure the Iraqi government to have a tough response to the Najaf attack.

Source: New York Times November 27, 2019 20:15 UTC