Iraqi premier moves out of Green Zone

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s new prime minister began moving his offices out of Baghdad’s highly secure Green Zone on the first day of his term Thursday, saying he wanted to take his government closer to the people.

Adel Abdul-Mahdi held his first news conference in a rehabilitated government compound opposite Baghdad’s iconic central railway station, near the city center.

He said he wanted to provide security, water and electricity for all Iraqis during his term.

“We want to consider all of Iraq a Green Zone,” said Abdul-Mahdi.

The U.S. established the Green Zone in 2003 to secure its embassy and Iraqi government institutions. But the zone has become a symbol of the country’s aggressive inequality and fueled the perception among Iraqis that their government is out of touch.

The new location, approximately 2 miles from the Green Zone, used to contain the offices of Parliament under the late dictator Saddam Hussein. Access is tightly controlled by security forces, who guard the main gate with armored vehicles. Abdul-Mahdi begins his tenure facing a raft of challenges including high unemployment, widespread corruption, dilapidated public services and poor security.

Frustration over chronic power cuts and water pollution sparked riots in Iraq’s southern provinces in the summer.