Virus strikes another blow at religious tourism in Iraq

Iraq's vital religious tourism sector was already suffering after months of protests, political turmoil and sanctions hitting pilgrims from neighbouring Iran - then the novel coronavirus arrived.

In the southern Shiite holy city of Karbala, hotels have closed and face masks are more common on the street than the full-length black veils worn by female pilgrims.

Visitors are scarce at the golden-domed tomb of Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Mohammed, despite twice-daily visits by health officials to sanitise the site.

Haidar, who sells rosaries and holy soil from the shrine, said his business had already been hit hard since mass anti-government protests broke out in October.

"We haven't been selling anything because of the lack of visitors from Iran and the Gulf," he said, rows of colourful beads glistening on the shelf in his shop.

"Now, on top of everything, the coronavirus outbreak happened." Millions of Shiite pilgrims, many from neighbouring Iran, visit shrines in Karbala and nearby Najaf every year, especially during the huge annual Arbaeen commemoration.

In "normal" times, income from pilgrims creates jobs for hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and brings in billions of dollars per year, constituting almost the only form of tourism in a country ravaged by decades of conflict.

But Iraq now has five confirmed cases of the COVID-19 virus -- all traced to Iran -- and visitor numbers are plunging yet further.

The first confirmed case of the virus was an Iranian national studying in a Shiite seminary in Najaf, another shrine city around 150 kilometres (90 miles) south of Baghdad.

The authorities responded by closing the land borders with Iran and banning the entry of foreign nationals travelling from the Islamic republic and other affected countries.

This week, they even took the exceptionally rare step of closing Najaf's Imam Ali mausoleum.

The site is one of the holiest sites for Shiite Muslims, who flock there to kiss and caress the tomb of the Prophet Mohammed's son-in-law.

Until October, the city hosted more than 5,000 visitors per day, 85 percent of them Iranians, said Saeb Abu Ghneim, head of the city's association for hotels and restaurants.

"Najaf had 350 hotels. At least 300 have closed and those that remain open have a five to 10 percent occupancy rate," he told AFP.

The virus itself has yet to hit Karbala, halfway to Baghdad, but the city has not been spared the fallout.

"Religious tourism in Karbala is currently zero," said Sahib Zaman, deputy head of the city's chamber of commerce.

"No money is coming in. No tourists are coming because of the situation."