Millions of Shi’ite pilgrims gathered in Karbala on Friday to observe Arbaeen, a religious holiday that marks the end of the 40-day mourning period for Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Mohammed. The rite was banned under Saddam Hussein, who was Sunni.
Clashes were reported between Shi’ite militiamen and Kurdish fighters in two neighborhoods of Kirkuk on Thursday, but the Iraqi military later denied the reports.
At least eight people were killed, and 14 more were wounded in recent violence:
In Baghdad, a bomb killed a policeman in Amiriya. Two people were wounded by a blast in Radwaniya. A bomb on Thursday wounded three people in the Jisr Diyala district.
Several soldiers were wounded when leftover explosives blew up in Rayhana.
Soldiers killed four militants attempting cross over from Syria.
Three militants were killed and nine were wounded when security forces fired artillery at their location in the Hamrin Mountains.
