Elites backed by Iran are clinging to power in Iraq

THE TOMB of a dead Shia cleric might seem an odd target for Iraqi protesters angry about corruption, poor governance and a lack of jobs. Muhammad Baqr al-Hakim resisted Saddam Hussein, Iraq’s old dictator, and helped to create the modern state. But he also had close ties to Iran, which has assisted the Iraqi government in trying to subdue the protesters. Such meddling enrages Iraqis, who threw petrol bombs at Hakim’s shrine—and the Iranian-backed militiamen guarding it—earlier this month in Najaf. They also torched the nearby Iranian consulate.