Iraq slashes int’l call prices for Iranian pilgrims of Arbaeen event

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Iraqi government announced on Monday the reduction of prices of international phone calls to Iran for the coming two weeks as Shia Muslims prepare for the religious observance of Arbaeen.

The commemoration is the culmination of a 40-day mourning period for Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Islamic Prophet Mohammad.

On Arbaeen day, Oct. 31 in 2018, millions of Shia Muslims will arrive in Karbala, an Iraqi city considered holy by some Muslims, with most traveling on foot and ending their march with a visit to the shrines of Hussein and his half-brother Abbas.

With the majority of Iran practicing Shia Islam, their pilgrims make up the largest of the foreigners attending the event every year.

Since Sunday, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry has given over one million visas to Iranians planning to participate in the procession, as officials expect more than two million visitors from the country.

In support of the pilgrims of Arbaeen, Iraq’s Ministry of Communication (MoC) decided to “reduce the price of international calls between Iraq and the Islamic Republic of Iran by 50 percent temporarily,” MoC said in a statement.

Iraqi provinces, including Najaf and Karbala, previously announced multiple days as official holidays on the occasion of Arbaeen.

The religious observance has often been the target of terrorist attacks by the Islamic State (IS) and al-Qaida before them since the fall of Saddam Hussein, who prohibited the event.

Providing security for the millions of pilgrims is expected to prove challenging for Iraqi security forces, a year after the declaration “victory” over IS, which continues to carry out small-scale attacks in the country.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany