BAGHDAD (AP) — The Iraqi Prime Minister is dismissing plans to build a wall around the Iraqi capital, according to a statement released by his office Saturday night.
The plan for the wall was originally drafted by the Interior Ministry as an effort to prevent Islamic State group attacks inside Baghdad.
"Baghdad is the capital for all Iraqis and it's not possible for a wall or a fence to isolate the city," Haider al-Abadi said in the statement.
The Interior Ministry's spokesman, police Brig Gen Saad Maan, told The Associated Press last week that work had begun on the wall and that it would reduce the number of checkpoints inside the city.
Bombings and attacks are still a near daily occurrence in Baghdad, mainly targeting security forces and the country's Shiite majority.