More than a million Shia pilgrims thronged the holy Iraqi city of Karbala on Tuesday for annual mourning rituals, with security forces keeping a tight watch following a spate of deadly attacks. Worshippers continued to pour into the city south of Baghdad for the climax of Arbaeen, mindful that dozens had been killed in recent days as they made their way there on foot from across Iraq for the ceremonies.
Arbaeen marks 40 days after the Ashura anniversary commemorating the slaying of Imam Hussein, one of Shia Islam's most revered figures, by the armies of the caliph Yazid in 680 AD. Throngs of mourners overflowed Hussein's shrine in Karbala, demonstrating their ritual guilt and remorse at not defending him by beating their heads and chests in rituals of self-flagellation.
Sad songs blared from loudspeakers throughout the city and black flags fluttered alongside pictures of Hussein and his half-brother Imam Abbas, both of whom are buried in the city. Security forces were on alert throughout, following a triple car bombing on Monday killed at least 12 people. Abdul-Hussein Sajit, a pilgrim from Diwaniyah province who was separated from his wife in the chaos that followed one of the bombings, said he was reunited with her early Tuesday.
"We arrived outside Karbala yesterday with my wife, and I saw the explosion," Sajit said. "We became separated in the crowds and she spent the night at one of the mosques reserved for women where they provide food and a place to sleep," he said. "Now, all we want is a way to get home," he added, walking with his wife out of the city to deal with the arduous task of finding a bus or shared taxi to take them back home.
Karbala governor Amal al-Deen al-Har said that 15 million Shia pilgrims had been through the city, 110 kilometres (70 miles) south of Baghdad, over the past two weeks. Mohammad Sadiq al-Har, the head of the city's hospitalities guild, said Karbala's packed hotels and restaurants had catered to 11 million Iraqis and 50,000 pilgrims from 30 other countries.
Security for the pilgrims was paramount, said Muhammed al-Mussawi, head of the provincial council. "The security plan is flexible and changeable according to the development in the security situation," he said. "The number of security forces was increased after the latest attacks, and cars were prevented from entering Karbala city," he said.
Monday's car bombs targeted crowds of pilgrims gathering on the outskirts of the city to make the rest of the journey on foot. Another triple car bombing on Thursday killed 45 pilgrims. "These attacks only strengthen our resolve to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein," said Mohammed Mohsen, a 40-year-old who came with a convoy of other volunteers with food and drinks to feed pilgrims as an act of devotion. "These acts will not stop us from practising our religion," he said. Brigadier General Nohman Dakhel Jawad, commander of Iraq's emergency response forces, said his officers had carried out multiple raids, arresting 32 suspects and uncovering a cache of weapons.
The battle near Karbala is at the heart of the historical division with Islam's Sunni and Shia sects, a split that fuelled sectarian violence between Iraq's majority Shia and smaller Sunni population since the 2003 US-led invasion. This year marks the first time Iraqi troops have been in sole charge of security for Ashura since 2003. While the Americans have not provided ground forces for it in several years, they have previously helped with surveillance and reconnaissance.