Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr announces retirement from politics

Influential Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has announced his retirement from politics (Anmar Khalil/AP)

An influential Shiite cleric whose followers have been staging a sit-in outside Iraq’s parliament has announced his resignation from politics and the closure of his party offices.

It is unclear how Muqtada al-Sadr’s latest announcement will affect an ongoing sit-in by his supporters outside Iraq’s parliament building that has paralysed Iraqi politics for more than four weeks.