Health plan in Karbala ahead of Ashuraa

KARBALA / IraqiNews.com: Emergency health measures will be put in place in Karbala ahead of the Ashuraa pilgrimage, which will coincide with the beginning of the new year, the media director of the province’s health department said on Monday. “The health department has drawn up an emergency plan, and put medical and health teams on the alert in preparation for the Ashuraa pilgrimage,” Saleem Kadhem told IraqiNews.com. 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