They took part in mourning processions, beating their chests and self-flagellating.
Ashura is observed worldwide with reverence and solemnity to commemorate the supreme sacrifice rendered by Imam Hussein (AS) to uphold the principles of justice and truth against the forces of tyranny.
Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei took part in one of the ceremonies held in Tehran to pay tribute to the Master of Martyrs and his 72 companions, including members of his immediate family and his followers, who attained martyrdom on the scorched plain of Karbala in the year 680 C.E.
Hundreds of thousands of Shias also marched in Karbala and Baghdad on Saturday, carrying green Islamic posters of Imam Hussein (AS).
Shia men and women dressed in black parade through the streets slapping their chests and chanting to mourn the Ashura event.
Some Shia men seek to emulate the suffering of Imam Hussein (AS) by flagellating themselves with chains.
Ashura is a holiday in Iran and some other countries.
Mourning ceremonies to mark the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (AS) have a special status in Iranian culture.
The event is observed in a unique way in Iran and is unlike the rituals held in other Islamic countries in terms of magnitude.
Violence marks Ashura rituals in Iraq
Suicide bombers have killed more than 30 people in Iraq as Shia Muslims marked Ashura, their holiest day.
Religious processions, mosques and funerals were struck in a second day of attacks targeting Ashura.
In the deadliest incident, at least 17 people were killed when a suicide bomber walked onto a bus in a northern district of Baghdad, police said.
But major security in Karbala seemed to have prevented attacks, as thousands of Shias converged on the holy city.
Security was tightened this year after more than 180 people were killed in bombs in Baghdad and Karbala during last year's festival.
Checkpoints were set up around Karbala, where the main commemorations took place, and cars were banned from a wide area.
The BBC's Jon Leyne, in Baghdad, says this year's festival was considered a likely target for Sunni insurgents, especially after the Shia victory in last month's election.
The intention of the latest attacks was clearly to inflame divisions between the two communities, he says.
At least four suicide bombers struck in Baghdad on Saturday.
Following the bus bomb that killed 17 in the northern district of Kadhimiya, another man blew himself up in the same area after an exchange of fire with security forces.
A third suicide bomber later killed two Iraqi guardsmen. A fourth killed at least three people at a Sunni funeral in the west of the capital.
In yet another incident in Baghdad, four pilgrims died in an attack near a Shia shrine. There were conflicting reports about whether it was a mortar attack or suicide bombing.
In violence elsewhere, at least four Iraqis were killed in suicide bombs at army checkpoints in the towns of Latifiya and Baquba.
On Friday, at least 30 people were killed in suicide bombs and attacks against mainly Shia targets around Baghdad.
Thousands of Shia Muslims also staged religious processions across Pakistan Sunday to commemorate the death of Imam Hussein (AS) amid tight security by police and commandos to avert any sectarian violence.
However the rituals passed off peacefully and no incident had been reported, AFP quoted police as saying.
The Shia community held a big procession in the southwestern city of Quetta where 48 people were killed in clashes last year, police said.
Security forces were put on high alert amid fears of a suicide attack, Quetta police chief Pervez Rafi Bhatti told AFP.
MS/HG
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MNA
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