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At the edge of the desert, and surrounded by beautiful greenery
of fruit orchards and palm groves lies the holy city of Karballa.
The city is built around the twin Shrines of Al-Hussien and that
of Al-'Abass. Since their martyrdom the city has had a long line
of tragedies, the last of which was its ransacking after the 1991
uprising.
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This birdseye view of Karballa' was taken in 1990, just prior to the
Gulf War. The sacred city with its twin shrines to Al-Hussain and
Al-'Abbas. The core of the old city, including the souk between the
mosques, was bulldozed after the rising of 1991.
The name of Karballa brings up immediatly the story of Imam
Al-Hussien. His martyrdom, and some 70 of his family and
companions, at the plains of Karballa in the Battle of Tuff
is one of the great defining moments of history. Al-Hussin is
the second son of Imam Ali (who is burried in Al-Najaf, some
80 kilometers to he south of Karballa) and grandson of the
Prophet Mohammed.
Facing the Shrine of Al-Hussien is that of his younger brother
Al-Abass. Al-Abass was also martyred in the same tragic battle
as Al-Hussien. He was ambushed while trying to get badly needed
water to his brother and his followers.
