Karbala, 28 August (AKI) - Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims have been cleared from the holy city of Karbala after deadly clashes between devotees and security forces during a Shiite festival. Police say at least 25 people have been killed and another 65 wounded in the southern city near two shrines on one of the holiest days on the Shiite calendar. More than ten thousand police, backed by another five thousand Iraqi soldiers have been deployed to close streets and stop people from entering the city.Iraq's security forces are on heightened alert for the two-day festivities amid fears that Sunni Islamists may use the event to launch a major attack. The news agency, Voices of Iraq, said the Karbala office of Shiite leader, Muqtada al-Sadr, called for calm after clashes between gunmen and Iraqi security forces on Monday night.
According to the VOI, US forces also deployed large numbers of tribesmen to protect Shiite pilgrims travelling the 100 kms from Baghdad to Karbala. More than four million pilgrims were expected to arrive in Karbala from inside and outside Iraq to visit the tomb of Imam al-Hussein and his brother al-Abbas to mark the 9th century birth of Muhammad al-Mahdi.