AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The fifteenth edition of the annual cultural festival of the birth of Kareem Ahl al-Bayt; Imam al-Hassan al-Mujtaba (peace be upon him), held by the people of the city of Hilla under the auspices of the secretariats of the holy shrines of Imam al-Hussayn and al-Abbas (peace be upon both of them), in commemoration of the birth anniversary of Imam al-Hassan (peace be upon him), was launched after the Maghreb and Isha prayers this Saturday evening (14th of the month of Ramadan 1443h) corresponding to (April 16, 2022).
The opening ceremony of the festival, which was held under the slogan: (Imam Hassan al-Mujtaba - peace be upon him- the grandson of the Holy Prophet and the apple of the eye of the Guardian and al-Batool –Allah’s prayers be upon them-), was held on the gardens of the shrine of Radd al-Shams in the city of Hilla, and witnessed the presence of delegations from the holy shrines and the Office of the Shiite Endowment in the province of Babylon, and a large number of religious, cultural, academic and media figures.
The ceremony began with the recitation of verses from the Holy Quran, after which the audience recited the Surah Al-Fatiha in memory of the righteous martyrs of Iraq.
The attendees then went to participate in raising the banner of Imam al-Hassan al-Mujtaba (peace be upon him), in the sky of the city of Hilla to mark the beginning of the fifteenth edition of this Festival, a tradition established by the committee overseeing this festival annually.
Then came the speech of the host of this festival - the people of Hilla- delivered on their behalf by the chairman of the preparatory committee of the festival Eng. Hassan Ali al-Hilli: "After a break of nearly three years as a result of the repercussions of the corona epidemic, and in compliance with the directives of the Ministry of Health and the supreme religious authority, here we return today with the blessings of the Master of the Order and Time (Allah hasten his holy reappearance)".
"The launch of the festival was held under the theme of this year that is a reference to two important components of our homeland, namely the security forces and the staff of the health sector.”
This was followed by the speech of the deputy head of the Religious Affairs department at the al-Abbas's (P) holy shrine, Sheikh Salah al-Karbalai, which he began by offering congratulations and blessings to the believers in the East and the west of the Earth and to the attendees, on the anniversary of the birth of Imam al-Hassan al-Mujtaba (peace be upon him).
The opening ceremony of the festival include a chant sung on this auspicious occasion and the love of the Ahl al-Bayt(peace be upon them), presented by the Al-Kafeel Scouts of the division of childhood and youth in the Information Department of the al-Abbas's (p) holy shrine, in addition to the delivery of poems.
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