RNA – Recently a ceremony was held at the Hadhrat Zaynab Centre, which is affiliated with the Holy Shrine of Imam al-Husayn in the Iraqi city of Karbala, on the occasion of the anniversary of the issuance of the “obligatory jihad” fatwa in June 2014 in which Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani, a senior Shi’ah religious authority, called on all Iraqi citizens to defend the country, its people, the honour of its citizens, and its sacred sites against the threats posed by the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.
During this ceremony, the families of martyrs who sacrificed their lives in the fight against Daesh were honoured.
Speaking at this event, Hujjat al-Islam Abdul-Mahdi al-Karbala’i, the representative of Ayatollah Sayyid Ali al-Sistani and the custodian of the Holy Shrine of Imam al-Husayn, said, “The martyrs are heroes who sacrificed their lives in the cause of God and to defend the nation and the sanctities of Iraq.”
The senior Iraqi cleric added that religious rituals, especially mourning for Imam al-Husayn, have had an increasingly influential role in encouraging people to join the Popular Mobilization Forces.
The custodian of Holy Shrine of Imam al-Husayn said that imagining the situation in Iraq without obligatory jihad fatwa issued by Ayatollah al-Sistani in the fight against terrorism is not possible because the aim of the enemies is to destroy Baghdad, Najaf and Karbala.
Sarah Muhammadi, the director of the Hadhrat Zaynab Centre, honoured 38 members of the families of the martyrs at the event and said, “These families of the martyrs from the governorates of Baghdad, Najaf, Salahuddin, Babil and members the various battalions of the Popular Mobilization Forces.”
Hujjat al-Islam al-Karbala’i added that the Hadhrat Zaynab Centre, under the Holy Shrine of Imam al-Husayn, has the noble duty of protecting and caring for the families of the martyrs.
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