Food tables extended from the capital, Baghdad, through the southern provinces and up to Basra, in addition to routes coming from the north of the country, all intersecting at one destination. The services are not limited to food, but also include places for rest and sleep, medical services, first aid, and even shoe repair and basic equipment workshops for visitors. Some organizers estimate that this initiative feeds hundreds of thousands of people daily in an atmosphere full of cooperation, volunteerism, and altruism.
Conversely, visitors who walk hundreds of kilometers on foot see these tables as a symbol of solidarity and unity, where social and economic differences disappear, and everyone gathers at one table in the largest humanitarian demonstration of its kind in the world. Abdul Hussein Al-Mohammadawi, who leads a procession on the Baghdad-Karbala road, tells Sputnik: “As each month of Muharram approaches, Iraqis prepare as if they are on an annual date with the highest meanings of generosity and altruism, with tents and mobile shops spread out to welcome visitors heading to commemorate the Arba’een pilgrimage.”
“Service here knows no rest,” says Hassan Saad Sattar, another procession leader, adding: “Everything we provide comes from our own money, without any government support. We sleep only one hour a day, but we remain open 24 hours serving food with the highest standards of cleanliness and quality.” On the other hand, a volunteer in the initiative, Abu Saif, confirms that “these processions have become like a humanitarian artery stretching between the provinces. For ten days, we have been providing services non-stop.”
Along this spiritual road, the offerings are not limited to traditional rice and bread. Salman Mohamed, a procession leader, tells Sputnik: “We serve burgers, pizza, kebabs, chicken, and even sweets, all free for everyone, all day long.” On these crowded roads, kilometers of asphalt turn into the longest open table in the world, where strangers sit next to locals, sharing bread, water, and smiles, in a scene that encapsulates the spirit of brotherhood and coexistence in Iraq each year.
