Arba’een marks the anniversary of the 40th day following Ashura, the 10th day of the lunar month of Muharram, when Imam Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad and the third Shia Imam, was martyred at the hands of tyrant Yazid in the seventh century.
Thousands of Iranians are marching toward the Iraqi holy city of Karbala to perform the rituals of Arba’een, one of the most revered religious occasions on the Islamic calendar.
Iranian pilgrims gathered at Mehran border crossing to pass into Karbala to honor the 40th day after the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, the third Shia Imam.
More than two million people have crossed the country’s border into Iraq to attend the upcoming Arba’een religious rituals.
Imam Hussein is a highly-venerated figure not only among Shias but also Sunni Muslims. Even some groups of Iraqi Christians join the march to Karbala.
Large numbers of Iranians travel to Iraq each year, walking the distance between the Iraqi holy cities of Najaf and Karbala, which houses the Imam’s holy shrine, so as to be able to be there by Arba’een, which falls on November 10 this year.
The devotees are joined by their fellow Muslims from other countries as well as followers of other religious groups such as Christians on the course.