Iraq's Sadr: from outlaw to top politician

FILE PHOTO: A poster of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr in the Sadr City district of Baghdad, Iraq June 21, 2021. The text at the top left of the poster reads 'The Solid Structure'. The text at the bottom right of the poster reads 'Saraya al-Salam, operation command of holy Samarra'. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Populist Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, once a mercurial outlaw wanted dead or alive during the U.S. occupation, rose to become a political kingmaker and Iraq's most powerful figure.

But even with his unmatched influence, Sadr could not end a prolonged stalemate over forming a government, prompting him to tell his Sadrist bloc in parliament to resign in June.