Iraq is to bar entry to religious pilgrims to the country, its government health committee said in a statement on Monday, just weeks ahead of a Shi'ite Muslim pilgrimage which is the largest annual religious gathering in the world.
Arbaeen, due in early October, usually draws millions of people to the holy city of Kerbala.
More than 8,000 people have died of COVID-19 in Iraq and more than 300,000 have been infected, according to the Health Ministry.
