Three-Day Holiday Declared in Iraq’s Basra for Arbaeen

IQNA – The governor of Basra in southern Iraq declared three days of public holiday in the governorate to mark Arbaeen.

Asaad Al Eidani announced the holidays for the end of this week, according to Mideast News. 

Earlier, the governorates of Karbala and Najaf had announced public holidays for a week during the Arbaeen season.

Arbaeen is a religious event that is observed by Shia Muslims on the fortieth day after the Day of Ashura. It commemorates the 40th day of martyrdom of Hussein ibn Ali (AS), the grandson of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and the third Shia imam, who was killed by the army of Yazid I in the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE. 

Arbaeen is also known as the Ziyarat of Arbaeen, which means the visitation of Imam Hussein’s (AS) shrine in Karbala, Iraq, where his body is buried. Ziyarat is an act of pilgrimage and devotion in Shia Islam.

Arbaeen is one of the largest annual pilgrimages in the world, with millions of Shia Muslims from different countries walking to Karbala from various cities in Iraq and neighboring countries. The distance can range from 80 km to 500 km or more, depending on the starting point.

This year’s Arbaeen falls on August 25.

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