TEHRAN— In a tweet posted Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian thanked Iraq for its warm hosting of Iran’s Arbaeen pilgrims. 

“This year's Arbaeen ritual once again showed that the two nations of Iran and Iraq have an unbreakable bond,” the foreign minister tweeted. 

“We sincerely appreciate all Iraqi people, the government and the armed forces for hosting Iranian and non-Iranian Arbaeen pilgrims,” he added.

According to Iraqi officials, over 21 million pilgrims attend the Arbaeen march to show the miraculous unity of Muslims. 

Iranian government spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi has said over 3 million Iranians attended the Arbaeen march this year, setting a new record.

In the mourning ceremony held by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution on Saturday, Ayatollah Khamenei hailed the incredible holding of the Arbaeen ritual.

The Leader emphasized that the miraculous event of the Arbaeen march shows that this ritual is the divine will for the flag of Islam to be raised even higher. 

“Such a movement could not have come about based on any human strategy or planning. This is God’s hand which is giving us good news with this magnificent manifestation that this path that is before us is clear and can be traveled,” Ayatollah Khamenei underlined.

During the Arbaeen march, Iraqis hold Mukibs (temporary accommodations that provide food, water, and resting places).

The Iraqi government does not fund these Mukibs. Observations from the Arbaeen march in 2018 had interesting results. For example, an Iraqi family with eight children living in critical financial conditions generously served pilgrims rice and chicken, various types of salads and traditional Iraqi desserts.

Iraqis living in Najaf and rural villages are on the belief that they should save up some money throughout the year just to serve the pilgrims attending the Arbaeen march ritual.

They also believe that these pilgrims should receive the best treatment, therefore they massage the pilgrims’ feet to relax them after a long walk and provide the best food they can afford. 

This year was no exception. After the Covid-19 pandemic, the march was shut down for two years. Naturally, this year, huge crowds flocked to Iran’s border crossings.