TEHRAN -- All routes leading to Iran’s multiple border crossings with Iraq are jammed as millions of pilgrims are heading to the neighboring country for the annual Arbaeen pilgrimage.
Arbaeen marks 40 days since Ashura (10th day of Islamic month Muharram) and sees millions of people from across the world travelling to Najaf and Karbala to mark the occasion.
Imam Hussein (AS) and his 72 companions were martyred in the Battle of Karbala in southern Iraq in 680 AD after fighting courageously for justice against the much larger army of the Umayyad caliph, Yazid I.
Iranians comprise the biggest foreign contingent of pilgrims, with tens of thousands making the journey — many walking at least part of the way from Iran to Karbala in large convoys.
The pilgrimage takes place on September 16 and 17, with pilgrims offered food and drink by volunteers.
This year’s Arbaeen pilgrimage comes after two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to rough estimates, around 5 million Iranians are heading to Iraq for the pilgrimage, resulting in traffic jams at the border crossings in the western provinces of Ilam and Khuzestan.
Officials temporarily closed the Shalemcheh and Chazaba border crossings in Khuzestan province, which connect with Iraq’s city of Basra, after an overwhelming rush of pilgrims.
At Mehran border crossing in Ilam province, which connects with Iraq’s Diyala governorate, pilgrims were reportedly stranded for several hours, with no transport to ferry them on the Iraqi side.
Iran’s Vice President Muhammad Mokhber traveled to the Mehran border crossing on Thursday to take stock of problems facing the Iranian pilgrims, his office said.
According to the border police, a large majority of pilgrims prefer Mehran border crossing, followed by Shalamcheh and Chazaba. A small percentage cross through Khosravi, Tamarchin, and Bashmaq crossings.
Iran’s Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi traveled to Baghdad to discuss ways to ease the passage of Iranians through Iraq, including his Iraqi counterpart Othman al- Ghanimi.
Vahidi “lauded the significant role played by the Iraqi security forces to protect the Arbaeen pilgrims, to offer services and to secure all roads they go through on their way to holy Karbala”, the Iraqi interior ministry said.
Late Thursday, Vahidi and Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation and support for joint coordination in areas that benefit the two countries.

During the Thursday meeting, the two sides also discussed Kadhimi’s efforts to curb the current political crisis in Iraq through the “National Dialogue” initiative in order to find solutions that guarantee the stability and security of Iraq.
Vahidi conveyed the greetings of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to Kadhimi and underlined the importance of strengthening cooperation between Iran and Iraq in all fields.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Hussein Amir-Abdollahian also spoke over phone with his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein, calling for hassle-free arrangements for pilgrims traveling to Iraq by land or air.
He also raised the issue of problems being faced by Pakistani and Afghan pilgrims, his office said, who are also said to be stranded at the Iran-Iraq border for days.
Last year, the Iraqi government eased coronavirus travel restrictions for foreign pilgrims planning to observe the Arbaeen pilgrimage. It allowed 80,000 pilgrims to enter Iraq, of which nearly 60,000 were Iranians.
This year, no limits have been applied, with the number of visitors to the gold-domed shrine expected to exceed 10 million, according to government estimates.
In 2019, 14 million people attended Arbaeen commemorations in Karbala, a third of them from overseas countries including Iran, Lebanon, Pakistan and Persian Gulf states, official figures showed.