Shafaq News- Karbala

More than 20 million pilgrims are still expected to attend this year’s Arbaeen commemoration in Iraq’s Karbala, with Wednesday’s Saudi-US airstrikes causing no disruption to arrivals, Mohammed Al-Masoudi, head of the province’s Tribal Affairs and Religious Occasions Committee, told Shafaq News.

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Al-Masoudi, also a member of Karbala’s Provincial Council, said the province had completed its security and service preparations, including road security, coordination with Husseini mawkibs (pilgrim service groups) and tribal committees, and expanded transport capacity. Al-Kamaliya yard can accommodate more than 10,000 buses, while the former Intelligence yard is operating at 50% capacity and can receive over 1,000 vehicles.

Arbaeen, Arabic for “fortieth,” marks the final day of the 40-day mourning period after Ashura, when Islamic Prophet Muhammad’s grandson and third Shia Imam Hussein bin Ali was killed at the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE. Millions travel to his shrine, many on foot, while volunteers provide food, water, shelter, and medical services along the routes.

More than 2.1 million pilgrims had already entered Iraq by Tuesday. In 2025, Karbala alone received 21,103,524 pilgrims for the occasion.

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