Ya Hussein

It was pretty apocalyptic stuff. Millions of pilgrims dressed in black, the giant mosques of Imam Hussein and Abbas lit up in red, Muqtada Sadr's Madhi army drapped in white indicating a willingness to die chanting loudly, groups of hundreds rythmically beating their chests (and, though I haven't seen it yet, some self-flagilating with chains and swords). And to top it all off there were dozens of bursts of lighting flashing across the sky and earthing behind the mosque! (Apparently common weather for this time of year). Unfortunately I didn’t have the equipment, position or skill to get any meaningful photos of it last night, hopefully I will get some tomorrow morning to show you.

So what is this all about? Tomorrow is the Arba'een, the 40th day of mourning after the death of Mohammed's grandson and heir Hussein. He small family group was surrounded by a vast army, outnumbering them maybe 500-to-1, and slaughtered tragically. Now the inconspicuous patch of desert where this happened, about 100km south of Baghdad, has become the site for perhaps the biggest pilgrimage in the world. Maybe a quarter of Iraq - some say 8 million people (though is is probably an exaggeration) is gathered here. On Tuesday I drove past a human sea of marchers from Baghdad, walking for three days to get here, others make a 12 days march from Basra in the south. What is amazing is that most only bring the clothes on their back - all their food and lodging on the march and in Karbala is provided for free by local people - this is arab hospitality on a massive scale.

Unfortunately I haven't got time to write more now, but check out the piece in the Washington Post, and I'll write more and post some photos in a day or two. Also I've wrote a reflection last year on the significance of Hussein's martyrdom and parallels with the Christian understanding of Jesus' sacrifice.

P.S. A new UN report today says that 8% of Iraqi children under five are malnurished, twice the number under Saddam Hussein 2 years ago. This is a serious inditement of the US Occupation.