Baghdad declares state of emergency, city's gates closed

Supporters of Shi'ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr stormed Iraq’s parliament on Saturday, bursting into the capital’s fortified Green Zone, where other key buildings are located, the Washington Post reports.

A state of emergency has been declared in Baghdad and the city's gates closed. It comes after lawmakers failed to convene for a vote on overhauling the government.

The Baghdad Operations Command said all traffic attempting to enter the capital through the city's main checkpoints was halted after the breach, and additional police and military units have been deployed to the Green Zone, closing the checkpoints on the compound's outer perimeter and blocking internal roads.