Hundreds of barefoot Shia Muslims have honoured the death of the prophet Mohammed’s grandson by marching through British streets in an annual tradition.

The crowd of worshippers held banners and a coffin draped with a black cloth as they paraded through Blackburn, Lancs., to mark the passing of Imam Hussein.

Participants also sang sorrowful chants and beat their chests rhythmically in an expression of grief, as they moved through the rain-soaked roads on Sunday (Aug 6).

Imam Hussein, revered by Shia Muslims as the third imam, died in 680 AD in Karbala, near Baghdad, Iraq, with parades commemorating him held annually.

The march was organised and marshalled by volunteers who were on hand to speak to any passers-by and explain the significance of the event.

Householders living in the area watched from their windows or from their doorsteps as the group peacefully passed by.

And later, two horses joined the march as it made its way along Devonport Road, in a North-West district of the town.

No police officers were needed for the event with traffic disruption kept to a minimum.

The event is known as Ashura and is held worldwide on the 10th day of the Islamic month of Muharram - the first month of the lunar calendar.

The march in Blackburn followed a similar event in Manchester recently and comes ahead of another procession in Burnley in the coming week.