(VOVworld) – On Thursday, Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi appealed to the Iraqi people to postpone the weekly protests in the capital city of Baghdad so that security forces can focus on a counter-offensive to retake the city of Fallujah in western Anbar province from IS.

Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi appealed to the Iraqi people to postpone the weekly protests in the capital city of Baghdad (Photo: Reuters)

During a visit to the Fallujah Operation Command, Prime Minister al-Abadi called on youths to stay home to aid the Fallujah push. Earlier, anti-government protesters, mainly followers of influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, announced they would protest on Friday in the Green Zone,where the government is based.