Bus crash on Najaf–Basra highway kills four pilgrims, injures four

BAGHDAD, Iraq — A traffic accident on the Najaf–Basra highway killed four pilgrims and injured four others on Wednesday, Iraqi security sources said. The crash occurred in the Sabbe area when vehicles belonging to the Beni Amir tribal procession were traveling along the expressway. The pilgrims had been completing the Arba'een commemoration marking the fortieth day after Ashura, the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, and were returning from Najaf toward Basra when the accident took place, the sources said. The injured were taken to hospital for treatment, the sources added. Authorities said the required legal and security procedures have been initiated and an investigation into the crash is underway. Security forces remained deployed at the scene, according to the sources.