Gunmen Fire on Shiite Pilgrims in Iraq

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http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=540&ncid=716&e=5&u=/ap/20050330/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Gunmen opened fire on more Shiite Muslim pilgrims making their way Wednesday to a major religious festival in southern Iraq, killing one person and fueling fears that insurgents may target the gathering that draws hundreds of thousands of people every year.


The latest ambush, near Mahaweel, about 35 miles south of Baghdad, also wounded two pilgrims, police Capt. Muthana al-Furati said. Attacks on pilgrims Monday killed four people, including two police officers guarding pilgrims.


Roads across Iraq were crowded with Shiites heading to the holy city of Karbala to celebrate the al-Arbaeen festival Thursday. The holiday marks the end of a 40-day mourning period for one of Shiites' most important saints, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad, Imam Hussein, who was killed in a 7th century battle.


Wearing white coffin shrouds signaling their readiness for martyrdom, tens of thousands of supporters of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who has led uprisings against the U.S.-led forces in Iraq last year, paraded through the streets of Karbala on the eve of the al-Arbaeen.


"We're the Mahdi Army. We came to you, oh Hussein," they chanted while snaking through the city. Some held photos of al-Sadr and waved swords, and others beat their chests with their fists in a sign of mourning.

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