TEHRAN – A total of 8,200 rescue workers of the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS), including relief workers, physicians, and nurses, will offer services to people in Iraq during the Arbaeen pilgrimage, according to the head of the IRCS.

Moreover, some 7,000 IRCS forces are working in the country on the routes and borders, IRIB quoted Pirhossein Kolivand as saying.

Arbaeen, commemorating Imam Hussein’s martyrdom on the 40th day after Ashura, is the world’s largest annual pilgrimage. This year it falls on August 14.

Each year, millions of Shia believers trek the 80-kilometre Najaf–Karbala route in a faith-driven, transnational movement that embodies Islamic unity, solidarity, and the enduring call for justice.

Four hospitals will provide services on the Najaf – Karbala highway. Also, the number of medical mawkibs (voluntary stations) has increased in Kabala, Najaf, and Samarra, he added.

Pilgrims will be able to benefit from medical, health, and nutritional consultations through mobile applications free of charge, Kolivand noted.

The official went on to say that the IRCS will use more than 200 special vehicles and ambulances to perform their tasks during the Arbaeen pilgrimage.

Intel. Congress on “Health in Arbaeen” 

The 5th International Congress on “Health in Arbaeen” was held in Tehran from May 26 to 27 with the participation of six countries.

This year’s event brought together participants as well as 24 international lecturers from Italy, Iraq, Palestine, Lebanon, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom, IRNA reported. 

“The main goal of the congress is to make physicians familiar with the issues of health care and treatment during the Arbaeen pilgrimage. It mainly focuses on endemic diseases that may spread by Afghan and Pakistani pilgrims who pass Iran on their way to Iraq,” IRNA quoted Abdolreza Pazoki, an official with the health ministry, as saying.

They also discussed guidelines for treating skin, musculoskeletal, and other diseases, as well as needed medicines and medical equipment.

The same as previous years, medical universities on the borders will monitor infectious diseases by taking preventive measures.

Iraq lauds IRCS for services

In August 2024, Iraqi health minister Saleh Mehdi Al-Hasnawi commended the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) for its outstanding efforts to offer services during the Arbaeen pilgrimage.

Meeting an Iranian delegation, led by Kolivand, Al-Hasnawi said, “The Iranian Red Crescent Society’s cooperation with Iraq’s health ministry in providing health services to pilgrims is praiseworthy,” the IRCS website reported.

“Medical services are being carried out in collaboration with the two parties for all the pilgrims, including Iranians and Arabs,” he added.

On August 5, 2024, Iranian and Iraqi officials held a meeting in Baghdad to review and discuss strategies to facilitate the Arbaeen pilgrimage and ensure the safety of pilgrims.

Iran’s Deputy Minister of Interior, Majid Mirahmadi, and Kolivand, in a meeting with the Iraqi Minister of Interior, Abdul Amir al-Shammari, followed up on the latest arrangements made regarding the Arbaeen pilgrimage. 

During the meeting, the Iranian officials obtained permission to operate IRCS rescue helicopters as well as ambulances and bring necessary medicine and equipment to provide medical services to pilgrims.

MT/MG