Vital Karbala street renovated

KARBALA / IraqiNews.com: Technical teams and engineers on Monday initiated work on a project to renovate a vital street in downtown Karbala city at a cost of 1.7 billion Iraqi dinars, according to the mayor. “The project will be carried out under the provincial development program for the year 2008 and is expected to be completed within six months,” Aqeel al-Khazaali told IraqiNews.com. Karbala, with an estimated population of 572,300 people in 2003, is the capital of the province and is considered to be one of Shiite Muslims’ holiest cities. The city, 110 km south of Baghdad, is one of Iraq’s wealthiest, profiting both from religious visitors and agricultural produce, especially dates. SS (P) 1