NPR (Jane Arraf) - Despite Mideast wars, 20 million gather in Iraq for Shia pilgrimage
Despite wars ranging across the Middle East, more than 20 million Shia pilgrims gather in Iraq shrine city for Arbaeen festival
SUBSTACK (The Grayzone) - Millions Mourn as Slain Iranian Leader’s Body Returns to Karbala, Iraq — Cradle of Shia Islam
The Grayzone’s Wyatt Reed documents the arrival of the body of Iranian leader Sayyid Ali Khamenei to the Iraqi city of Karbala — the spiritual capital for over 200 million Shias — and explains why so many are drawing parallels between his killing at the hands of Trump and Netanyahu, and the slaying of the foundational figure of Shia Islam, Imam al-Hussein.
NYTIMES (Erika Solomon and Sergey Ponomarev) - Iraqis Turn Out in Droves to Mourn Khamenei in Show of Solidarity
In the cities of Najaf and Karbala, home to two of Shiite Islam’s holiest sites, hundreds of thousands attended commemorations for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who extended Iran’s influence in Iraq.