SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The Iraqi government announced that Monday will be an official holiday in the country in recognition of the Ashura mourning.
The Iraqi government in a statement said on Saturday that it had decided to add a one-day holiday this week due to the Ashura Shiite festival.
Ashura is observed on the tenth day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar to commemorate the death of the martyr Imam Hussein bin Ali at the Battle of Karbala in 680 ad, according to Islamic Shiite sources.
Muharram is the first month of the Islamic calendar. It is one of the four sacred months of the year when warfare is forbidden. It is held to be the second holiest month after Ramadan, according to Islamic sources.
