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In Najaf, where the walk begins, for more than a week, streets were teeming with people who had come from different parts of the world. Locals had set up stalls, serving visitors sweetened drinks, fruits and food. Along the way from Najaf to Karbala, stalls had been set up by local residents, charities, mosques, and foreign aid groups to ensure no guest goes hungry or thirsty.
Cooks prepared vast quantities of stewed lamb, grilled fish, beans, fresh bread, and rice. There were small makeshift tents lined with foam mattresses and woolen blankets for people to rest or sleep. For those tired, there were masseurs to give them quick and revitalizing massage. There were also mobile bathrooms for a quick shower and mobile ambulances in case of a medical emergency. Days were relatively hot and nights extremely cold. At every step of the way, there were friendly hosts urging visitors to sit for a sweetened black Iraqi tea and snacks or stop for a nap.
These people have redefined the whole concept of hospitality, where a host takes honor in serving his guests who are complete strangers to him," Hussein Al-Hadi, a pilgrim from Lebanon, told Anadolu Agency. At one small roadside stall on the way, a husband and wife in their 30s from a local village were serving tea and fresh dates to travelers. Serving the guests, the husband told Anadolu Agency that it was a privilege for him. I can starve myself to make sure our guests have no reason to complain.
For almost ten days, the people of Iraq open their hearts for pilgrims even though they have been facing their own economic problems. TEHRAN Braving intense heat, sand storms, and precarious security situation, millions of Shia Muslims from different corners of the world converge at one place and cover vast swathes of land by foot. Awe-inspiring For one week before Arbaeen, every day tens of thousands begin the walk, including women, children, and the elderly. COM in 30 languages. Deutsche Welle. Audiotrainer Deutschtrainer Die Bienenretter.
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On June 14, Massoud Barzani was sworn in as president of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the result of an agreement with Iraqi President Talabani on power sharing between their rival Kurdish parties. On August 31, fears of a suicide bomber approaching triggered a panicked stampede by Shia pilgrims on a bridge to the Kadhimiyah Shrine, in northern Baghdad, which killed more than 95 people.
All the detainees were Sunnis. Twin suicide bombings at two Shia mosques in Khanaqin, near the eastern border with Iran, killed 90 Iraqi civilians. The bombings occurred as U. Following the vote to ratify a new constitution in October, Iraqis elected a new parliament for the first time since the U. Turnout was high. The results were announced in January. The United Iraqi Alliance—a list of Islamist groups— won the most seats, , but fell 10 short of the majority needed to govern without a coalition.
The secular list of former Prime Minister Allawi won just 25 seats. The two Sunni lists collectively won 55 seats, significantly increasing their representation compared to the previous parliament. Sunnis had largely boycotted the January election. In separate attacks AQI suicide bombers attacked police recruits in Ramadi and pilgrims in Karbala, killing more than people. It was still commonly referred to as AQI. In March, Kurdish and Sunni parties rejected Jaafari as prime minister and refused to join a national unity government because he had failed to stop escalating sectarian violence.
On April 21, Jaafari agreed to step aside.
After 22 policemen were arrested for killing Sunnis, the Interior Ministry launched an investigation into its personnel who had allegedly ran death squads. The arrests brought attention to a pattern of extrajudicial killing by Iraqi forces targeting minority Sunnis.
On February 22, the famous golden dome of the al Askari Shrine in Samarra, one of the holiest Shia shrines, was destroyed in a bombing widely blamed on Sunni jihadis of AQI. The shrine bombing triggered violence by Shia and Sunni militias that killed more than a 1, people. On March 26, U.
Ambassador Khalizad charged that violence by Shia militias exceeded killings by Sunni terrorists or insurgents.
He urged the prime minister to reign in militias and end extrajudicial killings by people with links to the government. On April 7, a triple suicide bombing at the Shia Buratha mosque in Baghdad killed 85 and wounded The attack came amid a post-election political crisis and related sectarian violence. His cabinet included representatives from most Iraqi sects and ethnic groups, although three key cabinet positions remained unfilled due to sectarian disagreements.
Jawad al-Bolani, a Shia, became interior minister. Sherwan al-Waili, a Shia, became national security minister. He was succeeded by Abu Ayyub al-Masri. On June 14, Prime Minister Nuri al Maliki released his security plan, Operation Together Forward, to improve conditions in the Baghdad area amid increasing sectarian bloodletting.
It introduced curfews, checkpoints, and joint Iraqi-U.
On June 25, Prime Minister Maliki delivered his point plan to restore order and reduce sectarian violence in Iraq. The reconciliation plan promised amnesty for those imprisoned on charges unrelated to crime, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. Videos of three Russian diplomats kidnapped on June 3 being executed was released online. On July 1, at least 66 people were killed in a car bombing at an outdoor market in the Shia Sadr City area of Baghdad. Mahdi Army militiamen killed at least 40 Sunnis during house searches and at phony checkpoints in Baghdad.
On July 11, a double suicide bombing near the entrance to the Green Zone killed more than 50 people. Prime Minister Maliki rejected suggestions that Iraq was falling into civil war despite deepening violence. On July 17, a shooting and mortar attack in Mahmoudiyah, a predominantly Shia city, killed at least 40 people. The attack marked several days of intensifying violence in retaliation for the July 9 Mahdi Army killings.
July was the deadliest month for civilians since violence erupted, according to the Iraqi Health Ministry. Nearly 3, Iraqis—or an average of Iraqis per day—were killed that month, although the United Nations said the body count was higher. More than half of the deaths occurred in the Baghdad area. The United States increased troop deployments on an emergency basis, despite hopes earlier in the year for a partial withdrawal.
Masri and Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, another al-Zarqawi successor, led the new group. On October 20, the U. In an act of revenge, Shia militiamen burned six Sunnis alive after they left Friday prayers. An Iraqi special tribunal sentenced Saddam Hussein to death for the killing of Shias in the town of Dujail. On December 30 , Hussein was executed by hanging for crimes against humanity.
The parallel was to give Iraqi leaders time and space to forge political reconciliation. Between January 16 and March 27, a wave of sectarian bombings in Baghdad killed hundreds of Sunnis and Shias. On March 30, the U. Senate set March 31, as a goal for the complete withdrawal of U. On April 1, President Talabani said al-Sadr had ordered his Mahdi Army to stand down after six weeks of the new security push by joint U.
On April 18,car bombings by ISI killed more than people. On June 10, U. The al Askari mosque in Samarra was bombed for the second time, destroying its minarets. More than were killed in the deadliest attack to date. Shia and Kurdish leaders formed a political coalition to support Prime Minister Maliki after a Sunni faction quit the coalition government on August 1.
On August 29, al-Sadr suspended military operations by his Mahdi Army militia for six months after street battles with Iraqi forces in Karbala. Seven Americans were killed, making the deadliest year for U. On December 16, British forces handed over security for Basra province to Iraqi forces, ending five years of British control of southern Iraq. After the surge of U. The organization lost the majority of its leaders, cells, and capabilities. Fighting broke out between the government and militias.
On May 11, the government agreed to a ceasefire with al-Sadr. The United States transferred administrative and operational control over the Sunni Awakening Council militias to the Iraqi government. The government also assumed security control over Anbar province.
But the security situation worsened in the neighboring city of Mosul. In October, some 13, Christians fled threats and killings attributed to Sunni extremists. On January 5, the United States opened a new embassy in the Green Zone, one of the largest it had ever built. President Obama announced a plan to end the U. By June 30, U. On July 31, the last British troops withdrew from Iraq to Kuwait.
ISI claimed responsibility for a series of bombings. Among the biggest was an August 19 bombing in Baghdad that killed more than An October 25 bombing in Baghdad killed more than On December 10, five suicide bombings in Baghdad killed at least Iraq held its second parliamentary elections since the U. No single coalition came close to winning majority seats. A new government was not formed because of political gridlock that played out over several issues for eight months.
Maliki served as a caretaker prime minister. Iraqi security forces, with the support of U. Baghdadi had participated in the Sunni insurgency against U. A series of coordinated attacks carried out by ISI kill more than people in Baghdad and other cities across Iraq.
Millions of Shia from around the world take part in march to Karbala to The marathon walk on an 80 km stretch from Najaf to Karbala in Iraq 30s from a local village were serving tea and fresh dates to travelers. "At the same time, we will continue to serve our guests, the Arbaeen pilgrims, in the best. Great savings on hotels in Karbala, Iraq online. Good availability great rates. Read hotel reviews and choose the best hotel deal for your stay. Choose your dates to see up-to-date prices and availability Overpriced, very average service.
President Obama officially ended the seven-year U. The last U. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani asked Maliki, the incumbent prime minister, to form a new government. On December 21, Parliament approved a new government , inclusive of all major political parties and ethnic groups, just four days before a constitutional deadline.