Karbala to Close Starting Next Sunday for Arbaeen
according to the English section of webangah News Agency, citing Mehr news Agency adn the Iraqi news agency WAA, Nasif Jassim Al-Khatabi, Governor of Karbala, has declared a closure of the province from next Sunday in honor of Imam Hussein’s Arbaeen.
The Governor’s office issued a statement confirming that all government offices in Karbala will observe an official holiday beginning next Sunday for Arbaeen commemorations. However,this closure does not apply to security or essential service departments.
Arbaeen marks the 40th day after Imam Hussein’s martyrdom on Ashura (the 10th of Muharram) and falls annually on the 20th of Safar according to the Islamic lunar calendar. As the lunar year is about 10 to 11 days shorter than the solar year, Arbaeen shifts approximately ten days earlier each year on the Gregorian calendar.This means its timing varies across solar months and seasons. For example, in 2025 Gregorian (year 1404 Iranian calendar), Arbaeen will fall on Thursday, August 14.
From a lunar calendar outlook,there is no difference between Iran and Iraq; both observe Arbaeen on Safar 20.However, minor variations occasionally occur due to differing moon sighting practices between countries. Such discrepancies rarely affect event timing substantially as pilgrim activities follow Iraq’s official calendar.
The movement of Iranian pilgrims toward Karbala for the Arbaeen walk generally begins about two weeks prior to Arbaeen day itself. Given that in 2025 it falls on August 14 (Thursday), major pilgrim departures typically start from early August onwards-particularly from Friday, August 1.
Many pilgrims prefer departing around august 11-12 (August9-10 Gregorian) to allow sufficient time for walking from Najaf to Karbala. This window enables them to benefit from facilities along pilgrimage routes known as moqabs and avoid heavy crowds during peak days before arriving peacefully with better planning at thier destination. The highest volume crossing Iranian borders into Iraq-especially through Mehran border crossing-usually occurs during this period as well.
