Images of religious figures banned in Karbala

KARBALA / IraqiNews.com: Pictures of religious clerics, slogans and leaflets that may spark sectarian sedition will be banned in Karbala throughout the holy month of Muharram, the local police chief said on Sunday. “These measures aim to make the visit, which will take place this month, a success,” Staff Maj. Gen. Ali Jassem Mohammed said during a conference held at the Cultural House. “A million pilgrims are expected to arrive in the city and a security plan will be in place to protect the visitors,” Jassem added. Karbala, with an estimated population of 572,300 people in 2003, is the capital of the province and is considered to be one of Shiite Muslims’ holiest cities. The city, 110 km south of Baghdad, is one of Iraq’s wealthiest, profiting both from religious visitors and agricultural produce, especially dates. It is made up of two districts, “Old Karbala,” the religious centre, and “New Karbala,” the residential district containing Islamic schools and government buildings. At the centre of the old city is Masjid al-Hussein, the tomb of Hussein Ibn Ali, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad by his daughter Fatima al-Zahraa and Ali Ibn Abi Taleb. Imam Hussein’s tomb is a place of pilgrimage for many Shiite Muslims, especially on the anniversary of the battle, the Day of Ashuraa (on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar). Many elderly pilgrims travel there to await death, as they believe the tomb to be one of the gates to paradise. On April 14, 2007, a car bomb exploded about 600 ft (200 m) from the shrine, killing 47 and wounding over 150. SS (S) 1