Referring to Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi’s resignation amidst nationwide protests, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo remarked that “he did so because the people were demanding freedom and the security forces had killed dozens and dozens of people. That’s due in large part to Iranian influence there. Pompeo further argued that “the Iraqi leaders [are] trying to push back against these Iranian militias who are denying sovereignty for the Iraqi people. All they really want is to have a free, independent, sovereign Iraq, and yet you’ve got Iranian arms and Iranian military driving inside of that country”.