Baghdad, January 30: Hundreds of thousands of Shiites were heading Friday towards the holy Iraqi Shiite city of Karbala to take part in the annual Imam Hussein religious ritual set for February 5.
Pilgrims clad in black and carrying red, black and green flags were going to the shrine of Imam Hussein, the Prophet Mohammed’s grandson, to celebrate “the Arbaine of the Imam Hussein.”
“Arbaine,” or “40” in Arabic, marks the 40th day after the Shiite holy day of Ashura, marking the death of Hussein in the Battle of Karbala in the year 680.
“I started travelling on foot a week ago from al-Nasiriyah town,” said Halim al-Zamli, adding that he is happy he has now nearly reached the shrine.
“Security measures are tight and they made us feel safe while walking, especially at night, near the empty desert roads,” added the 41-year-old civil servant.
Safeguarding pilgrims during major Shiite festivals remains a challenge for security forces. A December 24 bomb blast in Hilla killed at least 14 pilgrims and injured 70 more during the holiday of Ashura.
Iraqi authorities have deployed around 30,000 military and police officers on the roads leading to Karbala, in both fixed and mobile patrols.
Tourist agencies in Karbala expect the arrival of 500,000 visitors from outside Iraq to take part in the rituals, besides the thousands coming from the different provinces of the war-torn country.
Pilgrims from Saudi Arabia, Iran, Bahrain, Kuwait, India and Pakistan are expected to fill the 320 hotels in the city.
“My job is to provide pilgrims with rest, food and warmth. I feel I have to help all the visitors of Imam Hussein be comfortable,” said Abu-Murtdada, the owner of one of the rest houses set up to provide pilgrims with food, drinks as well as medical help, if needed.
Celebrating Shiite events has become normal since the US-led invasion in 2003, as they were forbidden during the regime of Saddam Hussein, which suppressed any public display of worship rituals by Iraq’s Shiite majority.
Now, Iraqis go to Karbala, Najaf, Samarra and al-Kadhimiya every year to revive their sacred religious events, accompanied by many coming from outside the country.
–Agencies