Iranian government-backed broadcaster Press TV has finally got its fondest wish and lost its UK broadcast licence, but its martyrdom is self-inflicted rather than the result of any government conspiracy.

FORBES: Press TV and the Freedom of the Press

Yet Mr. Bush's flirtation with the term unquestionably pushed Muslim intellectuals to debate the legitimacy of its use and the cult of martyrdom that had -- and may still have -- a widespread grip on many among the faithful.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Speaking truth to Muslim power

The pilgrimage is to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Musa al-Kadhim, one of the 12 Imams of Shia Islam.

CNN: Three U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq

It was not an act of martyrdom, or of arrogance or self-delusion, but, rather, an exercise in intellectual consistency.

NEWYORKER: Deceptive Picture

Unfortunately for Israel, the seizure of ships with commandos, despite the prospect that some of the 700 pro-Palestinian activists aboard might seek martyrdom, led to 9 deaths and further eroded Israel's international standing.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Gaza, Guantanamo and the media battlefield

It celebrates the end of the 40-day Ashura period honoring Hussein's martyrdom.

CNN: Pilgrims flood Karbala on final holy day

They regard the denial of Ali's alleged right to succeed the prophet on his death, his subsequent murder, and the martyrdom of his son Hussein at Karbala (in present-day Iraq) later as seminal events.

WSJ: Sadanand Dhume: The Plight of Pakistan's Shia