4 civilians wounded in blast in Baghdad

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Four civilians were wounded when an improvised explosive device (IED) targeting a procession of Shiite pilgrims went off south of Baghdad on Friday, a local security source said. “The IED targeted a Husseini procession of Shiites heading for Karbala to celebrate the Ashuraa in al-Zaafaraniya, south of Baghdad, leaving four civilians wounded,” the source told IraqiNews.com news agency. “The injured civilians were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment,” he added. Thousands of Shiite Muslims from all over Iraq and neighboring countries would head for the shrine of Imam al-Hussein Ibn Ali in the holy Shiite city of Karbala for the Ashuraa, or the 10th of Muharram on the Muslim Hegira calendar. Ashuraa commemorates the slaughter of Imam al-Hussein, the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, and his family and companions in the battle of Taf in Karbala in the Hegira year 61 (680 in the Gregorian calendar). The holy Shiite city of Karbala lies 108 km south of the Iraqi capital Baghdad. AmR (S) 3