Over 2 million Arbaeen pilgrims exit borders safely; 98% travel by land

Tehran - BORNA - Brigadier General Mohammad Sharifi said that 2.3 million people have registered in the Samah system, and nearly two million pilgrims have safely departed. Some 500,000 pilgrims have already returned.

Sharifi stressed that the main duty of police is to ensure security, and no security incidents have been reported during the pilgrimage.

On passport services, he said over 1.2 million travel documents, including regular and pilgrimage passports and service permits, were issued to Iranian and foreign nationals. Police also designed a system to deliver documents directly to applicants at public gatherings.

He reported that 1,500 criminals were identified and arrested during the operation, preventing any crimes against pilgrims.

Sharifi said 52 million vehicle trips were recorded on roads leading to border provinces. Despite high traffic, fatal accidents dropped by 75 percent and fatalities by 85 percent, with injuries down by 35 percent and the number of injured by 16 percent.

625,000 vehicle trips recorded in five target provinces

Brigadier General Seyed Teymour Hosseini, head of the Traffic Police, said traffic management has focused on five target provinces: Ilam, Kermanshah, Khuzestan, Kurdistan, and West Azerbaijan.

Some 98 percent of pilgrims have traveled through land borders. Over 19 percent used buses, with the rest using private cars.

From the beginning of the lunar month of Safar to August 1, over two million pilgrims entered Iraq through land borders, while 516,000 have returned. Mehran border accounted for about 50 percent of all crossings.

Hosseini said 625,000 vehicle trips were recorded on roads leading to borders, with 568,000 passenger cars and 5,700 buses. Ilam province and the Mehran border saw the highest traffic.

Parking lots at the Mehran border are full, but alternative lots are available. Pilgrims park their vehicles and are transferred to the border terminal by public transport.

Hosseini reported two fatalities and 45 injuries in road accidents during the pilgrimage period. Most accidents were caused by driver fatigue, speeding, and failure to maintain safe distance.

Given the heat, most pilgrims travel at night, and a significant portion of accidents occurred during these hours, underscoring the need for adequate driver rest.

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