Influential Iraqi cleric backs US campus protests

"We call for a halt to the crackdown on voices advocating for peace and freedom," Sadr said in a statement. "The voice of American universities demanding an end to Zionist terrorism is our voice." Sadr once led a militia fighting American forces following the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein. He retains a devoted following of millions among the country's majority Shiite Muslim population, and wields great influence over Iraqi politics. Protests and encampments have taken place at campuses across the United States...