Over 3 Million Iranians Expected to Take Part in Arbaeen Pilgrimage

TEHRAN (IQNA) –  The number of Iranians in this year’s Arbaeen pilgrimage is expected to exceed 3 million, an official said.

Shahriar Heidari, secretary of Iran’s Central Arbaeen Headquarters, told IQNA that this will mean a 1.5 times increase in the number of pilgrims from Iran.

He added that all the necessary planning has been made to facilitate the pilgrimage.

Last year, some 2 million Iranians took part in the pilgrimage.

Arbaeen, which is one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, comes 40 days after Ashura, the martyrdom anniversary of the third Shia Imam, Imam Hussein (AS).

Each year, a huge crowd of Shias flock to the Iraqi city of Karbala, where the holy shrine of Imam Hussein (AS) is located, to perform mourning rites.

Arbaeen falls on October 19 this year.

http://iqna.ir/fa/news/3808313/