Arbaeen pilgrims on foot in the mud

Some cry hot tears, others slap their faces, to mark the killing of Imam Hussein centuries ago in the Karbala desert. Among the 20 million pilgrims -- up from 17 million last year -- are five million foreign visitors, according to figures released by Baghdad. Iran is of course the key external source. "Arbaeen is an opportunity... for working class Iranians to travel" and celebrate what is both a religious and social occasion, said Alex Shams, who is researching a doctorate on the politics of Shiite Islam at the University of Chicago.