BAGHDAD: A sea of pilgrims converged on a Baghdad shrine on Tuesday for an annual religious commemoration, defying fears of further bomb attacks by the militant Islamic State (IS) group.

The days-long pilgrimage to mourn the 799 AD death of Imam Musa Kazim came as Iraq wallowed in political limbo after the storming of parliament by protesters on Saturday.

IS has claimed two bombings targeting pilgrims in recent days that have killed at least 37 people, but the attacks have not deterred crowds of black-clad faithful from marching and beating their chests in mourning.

“This pilgrimage represents a defeat for terrorism,” said Mohammed Nayif, a 32-year-old from Babil province, south of Baghdad.

“We are not afraid of the explosions and nothing will stop us,” he said, as he marched with tens of thousands of devotees.

Abbas Mustafa, 63, agreed, saying: “The explosions increased my resolve and my strength to challenge these (militants).” An official from the shrine said that “millions” of people participated in the pilgrimage in recent days.

Published in Dawn, May 4th, 2016