BAGHDAD — As Shiite pilgrims waving black mourning flags poured through the sunny streets of the Iraqi capital on Saturday, a roadside bomb exploded in the eastern part of the city, adding to the drumbeat of sectarian violence that has been on the rise during the 10-day religious observance of Ashura.
Hundreds of thousands of marchers reached the holy city of Karbala on Saturday, with more expected to arrive Sunday, the last day of Ashura, amid heightened security measures and a scattering of deadly attacks.
The bomb in eastern Baghdad exploded near a tent that served food to marchers, killing two people and wounding eight, according to the Interior Ministry.
In further attacks on worshipers, a roadside bomb in southeast Baghdad killed one person and wounded nine, and a grenade thrown into a crowd wounded five people in the city’s center.
The day of Ashura commemorates the death of the Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, and his followers formed the Shiite sect.
NYTIMES
Religious
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