Shafaq News- Dhi Qar
A Shiite mourning procession named after demonstrators killed during Iraq's 2019 anti-government protests canceled its Ashura march on Thursday, a day after authorities barred it from participating in one of Dhi Qar province's main religious commemorations.
The organizers of the "Tishreen Martyrs Procession" said the decision was taken to preserve public order and prevent tensions during Ashura, the annual Shiite commemoration marking the killing of Imam Hussein, Prophet Muhammad's grandson and the third Shiite Imam, at the Battle of Karbala.
In a statement, the procession blamed authorities for preventing participants from carrying photographs of protesters killed during the 2019 demonstrations, widely known in Iraq as the Tishreen movement.
Security forces prevented the procession yesterday from joining the annual Ashura parade in Haboubi Square, the main gathering point in the southern city of Nasiriyah. A security source told Shafaq News that the procession was denied entry because the participants intended to display portraits of victims of the Tishreen protest. Organizers, however, said the procession has been officially registered with Dhi Qar's Hussainiya Processions Authority for more than five years and had participated in previous Ashura commemorations.
