Bloodied Shi’ite Muslims slashing themselves with chained blades - PHOTO+VIDEO

Blood-covered young men swarm into the streets as part of a religious procession in Pakistan. Children also take part in the gory ritual self-flagellation which is held ahead of Ashura on the ninth day of Muharram in Peshawar. Shi'a Muslims all over the world pay their respects with the flowing of their blood as they mourn the slaying and martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Mohammad.Imam Hussein who was killed by armies of the Yazid near Karbala in 680 AD.He was killed by his political rivals along with 72 companions in the seventh century battle of Kerbala where some of the bodies of the dead were then mutilated.People taking part in the procession hit themselves with blades on long chains and draw blood on their backs and heads.Millions of pilgrims poured into the Iraqi city of Karbala for the peak of commemorations for Ashura today, the most important day in the Shi'ite calendar, with security tight following mass-casualty attacks in previous years.Shi'ite Muslims run between the Imam Hussein and Imam Abbas shrines as part of the ritual ceremony of Ashura in Karbala, 50 miles southwest of Baghdad.In some regions of Muslim countries such as Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Lebanon, and Bahrain, the commemoration has become a national holiday.(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az