Iraq oil exports unaffected by political turmoil - sources

But protesters are expected to leave these areas shortly after Sadr told supporters to withdraw from violent clashes, one of the sources said.

Iraq's oil exports are unaffected by the current political turmoil in the country, three sources told Reuters on Tuesday. Baghdad is seeing its worst fighting for years as clashes between Shi'ite Muslim groups spill into a second day.

Supporters of Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, a former anti-U.S. insurgent leader, have surrounded the Majnoon oil field in Basra since Monday evening as well as the 210,000 barrel per day (bpd) Basrah refinery, according to two sources. But protesters are expected to leave these areas shortly after Sadr told supporters to withdraw from violent clashes, one of the sources said.