Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraqi mobile operators are using artificial intelligence to prepare for a projected 135% rise in telecommunications traffic in Karbala near the peak of Arbaeen, Communications and Media Commission executive chief Baligh Abu Kalal said on Sunday.

Adopted for the first time during Iraq’s mass pilgrimage seasons, the tool analyzes data from more than 6,400 telecommunications towers and thousands of network cells using advanced machine-learning models.

An interactive heat map displays network traffic geographically in real time, allowing technical teams to expand operating capacity, add temporary sites, and redistribute resources before services are affected. Abu Kalal described the initiative as a shift from responding to network pressure to forecasting demand and preparing in advance to maintain services for millions of Iraqi and foreign pilgrims.

Arbaeen places exceptional pressure on Iraq’s telecommunications networks as millions converge on Karbala and travel along routes spanning several provinces. More than 4 million foreign pilgrims had entered Iraq by Friday night, while attendance in Karbala exceeded 21 million during the 2025 commemoration.

The commission recorded more than 475 million local and international calls during the 40-day Arbaeen period in 2024.

Arbaeen, which falls on August 4 this year, marks 40 days after Ashura, which commemorates the killing of Prophet Muhammad’s grandson and the third Shia Imam, Hussein bin Ali, at the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE.

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