18 people killed in Iraq after bus carrying Shiite pilgrims

Near the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, a collision between two minibuses claimed the lives of 18, the majority of them Iranian pilgrims.

According to Khaled Burhan, the Salaheddin province’s director of health services, the “horrible accident” happened between Dujail and Samarra, according to state news agency INA.

The Shiite pilgrimage of Arbaeen, which is recognized as the greatest yearly public assembly in the world, draws millions of worshippers to the city each year.

14 Iranians, two Afghans, and two unidentified individuals were among the deceased, according to a second hospital employee who also spoke anonymously.

According to a representative of the local traffic authority, the two drivers were among the deceased.

One of the minibusses had strayed into the opposing lane, according to the officer, who also included allegations of a driver nodding off.

Many pilgrims travel on foot to Karbala from different regions of Iraq as well as from Iran and the Gulf states.

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A bus overturned in the town of Balad, some 55 miles north of Baghdad, according to two Iraqi medical authorities who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.