TEHRAN Millions of Muslims, mostly Shias, in Iran and other countries held mourning ceremonies on Thursday, on the day of Ashura to commemorate the bravery and reighteousness of Imam Hussein (AS) the grandson of the Prophet (S) and his loyal followers. On Ashura, the 10th of Muharram in the year 61 AH (680 AD) Imam Hussein (AS) and his small but steadfast group of followers were cruelly martyred by the forces of evil in Karbala, situated in present-day Iraq. The uprising of Imam Hussein (AS) who was martyred along with 71 followers in a battle against an army of Yazid of Omayyed Dynasty in Karabala is a symbol of righteousness and self-denial and he is a role model for his sense of justice, courage and defiance against oppression. Tehran and other cities and towns in Iran were all draped in black, as a mark of respect for martyrs of Karbala whose blood triumphed over the swords of the evil forces. People have been wearing black since the first day of Muharram. Streets, government and private buildings and mosques as well as make-shift tents erected for the ceremony, where free meals known as Nazri were distributed, were draped in black banners. Mosques and Husseinias organized special programs of religious sermons and also chest-beating and reciting poems in commemoration of the Karbala tregedy. The ceremonies were attended by large groups of various walks of people in Iran and other countries. In related ceremonies in Iran and other countries, preachers addressing Karbala mourners threw light on different aspects of the immortal Ashura tragedy and took the podium to enlighten the audience on the historic uprising of the Prophet's grandson at Karbala. From the early hours of Thursday, Muslim residents in many cities in Turkey including Istanbul, Ankaram Izmir, Erzurum, Kars and Agri gathered at mosques, Husseinias and other religious centers to commemorate the tragic event of Karbala both on Tasu'a (Wednesday) and Ashura on the nineth and tenth of Muharram. Special ceremony on this occasion was held in the Cultural Center of Iran in Ankara on Wednesday nights and Thursday nights. The gathering of mourners in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, was adressed by Iran's Cultural Attache to Sarajevo Hojjatoleslam Ahmad Sheikhbahaei, who paid tributes to the martyrs of Islam. He also briefed the audience of the faithfulness of Imam Hussein's survivors at the night of Ashura, the night known in Iran as `Sham-e Ghariban' (the night of the oppressed). Sheikhbahaei said that Karbala uprising gives the lesson of freedom loving, of refusing to submit to tyranny and of the victory of blood over sword. Mourning processions were carried out in Syria, attended by thousands of the faithful people in `Zeinabieh', the shrine of Imam Hussein's sister, Hazrat-e Zeinab (SA) who witnessed the Karbala tragedy. Similar ceremonies were also held in the shrine of Imam Hussein's daughter Hazrat-e Roqayyeh (SA) in Damascus. In Madrid, Spain, mourners gathered at Iranian Embassy both on Wednesday and Thursday, reciting elegies and beating their chests on the occasion. Hundreds of Shias from Iran, Pakistan, Japan and other countries gathered at Iranian Embassy in Tokyo on Tasu'a and Ashura. During the ceremonies ulema from Pakistan and Iran expounded on the goals of Imam's uprising. In Washington, U.S., mourners, among them Iranians and Afghans, recited poems and elegies for the martyred Imam at the Islamic Studies Center of Washington. Muslims also held Ashura ceremonies in different cities in Italy on Thursday. In Rome, Iranians and a group of other Muslim residents of the city and other cities gathered in Shaid bahonar Husseinia. A similar ceremony was held in Milan on the same day. In London, groups of mourners of the martyred Imam Hussein (AS) on Thursday marched from Hide Park towards the International Islamic Center. During the march and in the center, hundreds of Shias from Iran, Iraq, England, Pakistan and Afghanistan recited elegies and performed chest-beating. During the first ten-day of Muharram mourning ceremonies were also held in Manchester, Glascow, Birmingam and Shefield. In many other cities in Europe including Vienna, Bucharest Prague, Budapest, Lubljana, Bratislava and Geneva, similar ceremonies in commemoration of the martyred Imam, the Third Imam of the Infallible Household of the Prophet (S) were held on Wednesday and Thursday. (IRNA)