⁍ Volunteers provide free food, shelter and clothes for Shi’ite pilgrims on their way to the holy city of Kerbala.
⁍ Arbaeen marks the end of a 40-day mourning period for the grandson of the Prophet Mohammad, Imam Hussein, killed in battle in 680.
⁍ With the coronavirus continuing to spread in Iraq and with new cases averaging around 3000 to 5000 per day, the Iraqi government decided to limit the number of foreign pilgrims to 1,500 per country of origin.
– Tens of thousands of pilgrims are making their way to the holy city of Kerbala this week for a religious ceremony that marks the anniversary of the death of the Prophet Mohammad’s grandson, Imam Hussein. But this year, due to the H1N1 virus, the Iraqi government has limited the number of foreign pilgrims allowed on the pilgrimage to 1,500, Reuters reports. That’s down from last year’s 2 million, but up from the estimated 3,000 to 5,000 new cases per day that were reported before the start of the pilgrimage. Meanwhile, security has been beefed up in Baghdad, where volunteers are providing free food, shelter, and clothes to the pilgrims, many of whom are from the country’s Shiite majority. “The volunteers here serve people without wearing face masks, without using disinfectant, because our love and passion for (Imam) Hussein kills this illness,” says one volunteer.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/health-coronavirus-iraq-arbaeen-voluntee/undeterred-by-virus-iraqi-volunteers-cater-for-thousands-of-arbaeen-pilgrims-in-baghdad-idUSKBN26R272