Karbala
Site of Shi'ia Islam's most revered shrines (see photo). In 680, the grandson of the prophet Muhammad (Husayn ibn Ali) left Medina to claim what many believed was his right: a position as Caliph of the region around Karbala. Yazid, son of the recently-deceased Caliph, also claimed the title. Yazid met Husayn, his brother Abbas, and his followers as they journeyed through Karbala, and massacred them. Many Shi'ias commemorate Imam Husayn's martyrdom by making a pilgrimage to the town.
A missile range near Karbala was bombed in 1991. Saddam Hussein named two missiles after the holy men and has described the Al-Abbas missile as the "twin brother" of the Al-Husayn one.