AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Iraq is going to implement an integrated security plan during the lunar Hijri month of Muharram, which will begin Sunday.
Lieutenant General Walid Khalifa Al-Tamimi, the commander of operations in Baghdad, said the plan would cover all religious sites in the country.
It is aimed at ensuring the security of pilgrims and those taking part in mourning rituals, he stated.
There will also be an all-out security plan for the Arbaeen season, the senior commander stated, according to the Middle East News.
He went on to say that instructions have been issued for organizing Moukebs (resting places offering accommodation, food and other services to Arbaeen pilgrims).
He also said that a meeting will soon be held to coordinate all of the issues related to serving the Arbaeen pilgrims.
Muharram is the first month in the lunar Hijri calendar.
Shia Muslims, and others in different parts of the world, hold ceremonies every year in the month of Muharram to mourn the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (AS) and his companions.
The third Shia Imam (AS) and a small group of his followers and family members were martyred by the tyrant of his time - Yazid Bin Muawiya, in the battle of Karbala on the tenth day of Muharram (known as Ashura) in the year 680 AD.
The Arbaeen mourning ceremony is one of the largest religious gatherings in the world.
It marks the 40th day after Ashura. This year’s Arbaeen is expected to fall on August 25, depending on the moonsighting.
Each year, a huge crowd of Shias flock to Karbala, where the holy shrine of Imam Hussein (AS) is located, to perform mourning rites.
The pilgrims, mainly from Iraq and Iran, travel long routes on foot to the holy city.
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