Iranian pilgrims in Iraq long to return home

After filing out of their buses in the central Iraqi town of Ayn Tamr on Tuesday, Iranian pilgrims anxiously sought out internet connections, desperate for word from their loved ones back home.

The more than 400 Iranians had recently completed their hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, and since crossing the border by land into Iraq, they had not received any updates.

One woman dressed in black collapsed in tears after receiving a message informing her that her son was missing after Israeli strikes on Tehran, and that her son-in-law — an official killed in a bombardment — had been laid to rest in her absence.

Other women sighed with relief when they finally connected with children and grandchildren via video call.

“We fear for our children,” Amna Hammudi said, her voice trembling, before finally managing to reach her kids in Iran after two days of silence.

“We are all worried about our families, our cities and our country,” the mother of four added.

In a parking lot in Ayn Tamr, near the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 10 buses wait for permission to transport the pilgrims to the Mehran border crossing between Iraq and Iran.

– ‘They brought war on us’ –

Iraq is expected to receive 76,000 Iranian pilgrims by land after they were stranded in Saudi Arabia by airport closures following the surprise Israeli attack on Iran last week.

It will welcome 2,500 Iranian pilgrims a day in the hope of facilitating their return home, according to Sami al-Massudi, the head of the Iraqi body for pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.

Aziz Yussef, 55, said he was still in Saudi Arabia when he learned that a strike hit one kilometre (0.6 miles) from his house in the western city of Kermanshah.

“They brought war on us. They are not only fighting us, but also Gaza and Syria, and the Americans are not stopping them,” Yussef said.

Yussef urged the Iraqi government to speed up the process of getting pilgrims like him home, but even if he crosses into Iran, he doesn’t know how he will reach Kermanshah.

Whenever an internet connection is available, Yussef and his wife are glued to their phones and the television, hoping for good news.

– ‘God knows’ –

On Friday, Israel launched a surprise attack on its arch foe Iran, hitting military and nuclear facilities and killing top commanders and atomic scientists.

It has kept up its bombing campaign since then, with at least 224 people killed in strikes, according to Iranian authorities.

Iran has responded with multiple missile salvos targeting Israeli cities, killing at least 24 people there, according to the prime minister’s office.

Residential areas in both countries have suffered deadly strikes, and large numbers of people have fled Iran’s capital.

US President Donald Trump warned early Tuesday that Tehran residents should “immediately evacuate” amid fears of a broader conflict that could engulf the region.

Kadir Ansari, 70, had just contacted his family back home.

“They are good,” he said with relief.

In residential areas, “there are no armies and no bombs. You are sleeping, and they hit you,” he added.

Ansari was still in Medina in Saudi Arabia when he learned about the Israeli assault, and now he fears what may come next.

Nonetheless, he insists on going back to Kermanshah.

“God knows” what will happen after that, he said.