ANKARA 

Iraq said Sunday that it had foiled a plot by the Daesh/ISIS terrorist group to target Shia pilgrims in the central city of Karbala.

In a statement carried by the state news agency INA, the Karbala Investigation Court said 23 suspects, including a woman, were arrested in raids across southern Iraq, the Middle Euphrates, and Baghdad.

The statement said the suspects admitted to planning attacks aimed at disrupting the safety and security of pilgrims attending the Arbaeen, which marks the end of a 40-day mourning period for the grandson of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad, Imam Hussein, killed in battle in 680.

Every year, thousands of Shia pilgrims travel on foot to Karbala to mark the ritual, one of the largest religious events in the Shia world.