Muslims were pictured drenched in blood as they slashed, whipped and cut themselves with sharp blades to mark an Islamic festival.
The holiday, known as the holy Day of Ashura, is celebrated by Shi’ite Muslims, and mourns the death of Imam Hussein on the battlefield in the seventh century.
The gory ceremony, which sees males of all ages cut themselves across the scalp or whip themselves with blades attached to chains, is meant to commemorate Imam Hussein’s violent end.
In Iraq, pilgrims converged on the holy city of Karbala, which was the site of the battle and is home to a shrine to Hussein, and were pictured wearing white clothes stained by bright red patches of blood from their wounds.
In Baghdad, thousands marched through the streets, including some who slashed their heads with razors and performed other forms of self-flagellation in a show of grief to mark the occasion.
Muslims also gathered in Iran, Lebanon and other parts of the world for the annual commemoration.
Shi’ite men bleed from self-inflicted wounds after cutting their heads with swords during a procession to mark festival of Ashoura, on the tenth day of Muharram, in Basra, Iraq, June 26
American Buddhist Net 