Iran closes border to Iraq and flights stop amid violent unrest

Iraqi security forces fire tear gas on followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr protesting inside the government palace grounds, in Baghdad, Iraq (Hadi Mizban/AP)

Iran closed its land borders to Iraq as flights to the country halted on Tuesday amid violence in Baghdad following an influential Shiite cleric’s announcement he would resign from politics.

The death toll rose to 20 Iraqis on Tuesday after the unrest erupted the previous day, according to a senior medical official.