Portal:Iraq

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The Iraq Portal

A view of Erbil, Iraq

Flag of Iraq	Coat of Arms of Iraq

Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia and a core country in the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. With a population exceeding 46 million, it is the 35th-most populous country. It consists of 18 governorates. The country is bordered by Turkey to the north, Saudi Arabia to the south, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and Kuwait to the southeast, Jordan to the southwest, and Syria to the west. The capital and largest city is Baghdad. Iraqi people are diverse; mostly Arabs, as well as Kurds, Turkmen, Yazidis, Assyrians, Armenians, Mandaeans, Persians and Shabakis with similarly diverse geography and wildlife. Most Iraqis are Muslims – minority faiths include Christianity, Yazidism, Zoroastrianism, Mandaeism, Yarsanism and Judaism. The official languages of Iraq are Arabic and Kurdish; others also recognized in specific regions are Turkish, Suret, and Armenian.

Iraq remained under Ottoman rule until the end of World War I, after which Mandatory Iraq was established by the British Empire, ruled by Faisal I. Iraq gained independence in 1932 as the Kingdom of Iraq. It became a republic in 1958, led by Abdul Karim Qasim and then by Abdul Salam Arif and Abdul Rahman Arif. Following the 1968 revolution, the Iraqi Ba'ath Party came to power, under the leadership of Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, followed by Saddam Hussein, who led the Ba'ath regime from 1968 to 2003. The 21st century has seen the country facing challenges, which came after the 2003 invasion of Iraq, that overthrew the government of Saddam and the protracted Iraq War, followed by the subsequent efforts to rebuild the country amidst sectarian violence and the rise of the Islamic State. Today the Post-war conflict in Iraq continues at a lower scale, which has been obstacle to the country's stability. (Full article...)

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Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya (Arabic: نادي القوة الجوية الرياضي, lit. 'Air Force Sports Club') is an Iraqi sports club based in Rusafa District, Baghdad that competes in the Iraq Stars League, the top-flight of Iraqi football. Founded in 1931, it is the oldest existing club in Iraq.

Its football team is one of the most successful in Iraq, having won seven Iraq Stars League titles, most recently in the 2020–21 season, while they won their sixth Iraq FA Cup title in 2023. The club also won a joint-record three Umm al-Ma'arik Championships as well as two Iraqi Super Cups, and in the 1996–97 season became the first of only two clubs to win all four major national trophies in the same season. (Full article...)

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Kufa Mosque

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Did you know...

...that the oldest known writing system, known as cuneiform, was developed in southern Iraq during the Sumerian civilization.
...that the oldest laws were written in Iraq by the Sumerian King Ur-Nammu.
...that Iraq is second only to Saudi Arabia in oil reserves.
...that the national soccer team of Iraq won the AFC Asian Cup in 2007.
...the wheel was invented in the southern Iraqi city of Ur.
...that Iraq is the largest producer of dates with more than 400 types and more than 22 million date palms.
...that Iraq’s national dish is Masgouf (impaled fish) and its national cookie is Kleicha (meaning circle or wheel), both of which can be traced back to antiquity.
...in the 1940s and 1950s, Iraq had 4/5 of the world's Arecaceae population, these numbers have drastically decreased in the last few decades.

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Possible depiction of Shalmaneser V during his time as crown prince, from one of the reliefs of his father Tiglath-Pileser III

Shalmaneser V (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: [] Error: {{Lang}}: no text (help) Salmānu-ašarēd, meaning "Salmānu is foremost"; Biblical Hebrew: שַׁלְמַנְאֶסֶר‎ Šalmanʾeser) was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of his father Tiglath-Pileser III in 727 BC to his deposition and death in 722 BC. Though Shalmaneser V's brief reign is poorly known from contemporary sources, he remains known for the conquest of Samaria and the fall of the Kingdom of Israel, though the conclusion of that campaign is sometimes attributed to his successor, Sargon II, instead. (Full article...)

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Louis Raphaël I Sako Rifat Chadirji Nebuchadnezzar II Sennacherib Al-Mu'tasim Al-Mu'tadid Sargon II Justin Meram Gilgamesh Zaha Hadid Ashurbanipal Nabonidus Saddam Hussein Barham Salih Sassoon Eskell Sargon Of Akkad Ilham al-Madfai Kadim Al Sahir Rida Al Abdullah Jamil Sidqi al-Zahawi Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr

General images

The following are images from various Iraq-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 17th-century BC relief depicting Ashurbanipal (r. 669–631 BC) and three royal attendants in a chariot. Ashurbanipal was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire which was the largest empire in history up to that point. (from History of Iraq)
Image 2The Age of the Caliphs
  Muhammad, 622–632

  Rashidun Caliphate, 632–661

  Umayyad Caliphate, 661–750
(from History of Iraq)
Image 3Munir Bashir, an acclaimed musician. (from Music of Iraq)
Image 4Saddam Hussein promoting women's education in the 1970s (from History of Iraq)
Image 5Masghouf fish, one of Iraq's national dishes, a Mesopotamian cuisine dating back to ancient times, typically fish caught from the rivers of Euphrates and Tigris, and grilled near the river bed (from Culture of Iraq)
Image 6Saddam Hussein, a leading member of the revolutionary Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, served as the fifth president of Iraq from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. (from History of Iraq)
Image 7Iraq state emblem under nationalist Qasim was mostly based on Mesopotamian symbol of Shamash, and avoided pan-Arab symbolism by incorporating elements of Socialist heraldry. (from History of Iraq)
Image 8Nazem Ghazali was one of the most popular singers in the history of Iraq and in the Arab world. His songs are still heard by many in the Arab world. He was known by his maqam songs. (from Music of Iraq)
Image 9Zaha Hadid was an Iraqi architect, artist and designer, recognised as a major figure in architecture of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. She is known for being influenced by Sumerian ancient cities. (from Culture of Iraq)
Image 10Younis Mahmoud is Iraq's all-time most capped player in international matches, having played in 148 official games. (from Sport in Iraq)
Image 11Iraqi music group led by Yusuf Za'arur in Baghdad, wearing the sidara, ca 1930. (from Music of Iraq)
Image 12Riyadh Alazzawi fighting for his seventh world heavyweight kickboxing title in his hometown of Baghdad, Iraq. (from Sport in Iraq)
Image 13Kadim Al Sahir known as "The Caesar" of Arabic songs. Considered as one of the most successful singers in the history of the Arab World. (from Music of Iraq)
Image 14The Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nabonidus (r. 626–539 BC) (from History of Iraq)
Image 15The Queen's gold lyre from the Royal Cemetery at Ur. Iraq Museum, Baghdad. (from Music of Iraq)
Image 16Nuri Said (1888 – 1958) contributed to the establishment of the Kingdom of Iraq and the armed forces while also serving as Prime minister. (from History of Iraq)
Image 17The Lion of Babylon of The Ishtar Gate has remained a prominent symbol of Iraqi culture throughout history. (from Culture of Iraq)
Image 18A partial view of the ruins of Babylon (from History of Iraq)
Image 19Iraq Museum (from Culture of Iraq)
Image 20The Assyrian Empire at its greatest extent (from History of Iraq)
Image 217th-century BC relief depicting Ashurbanipal (r. 669–631 BC) and three royal attendants in a chariot (from Culture of Iraq)
Image 22"Entry of Alexander into Babylon", a 1665 painting by Charles LeBrun, depicts Alexander the Great's uncontested entry into the city of Babylon, envisioned with pre-existing Hellenistic architecture. (from History of Iraq)
Image 23U.S. Army soldier searches an Iraqi boy, March 2011. (from History of Iraq)
Image 24This earthenware dish was made in 9th-century Iraq. It is housed in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. (from History of Iraq)
Image 25Flood Tablet of the Epic of Gilgamesh (from Culture of Iraq)
Image 26Abbasid Caliphate at its greatest extent (from History of Iraq)
Image 27Al-Mutanabi, regarded as one of the greatest, most prominent and influential poets in the Arabic language; much of his work has been translated into over 20 languages worldwide. (from Culture of Iraq)
Image 28The Mongol Empire's expansion (from History of Iraq)
Image 29Inside the Shanidar Cave where the remains of eight adults and two infant Neanderthals, dating from around 65,000–35,000 years ago were found. (from History of Iraq)
Image 30Bronze head of an Akkadian ruler from Nineveh, presumably depicting either Sargon of Akkad, or Sargon's grandson Naram-Sin. The Akkadian Empire was the first ancient empire of Mesopotamia after the long-lived civilization of Sumer. (from History of Iraq)
Image 31Occupation zones in Iraq in September 2003 (from History of Iraq)
Image 32British ruled Mesopotamia in pink (from History of Iraq)
Image 33Kuwait became a Governorate of Iraq. (from History of Iraq)
Image 34Muhammad al-Qubbanchi performing Maqam (from Culture of Iraq)
Image 35Coat of arms of the Kingdom of Iraq 1932–1959 (from History of Iraq)
Image 36Ilham Madfai, "The Baghdad Beatle". Madfai's synthesis of Western guitar stylings with traditional Iraqi music has made him a popular performer in his native country and throughout the Middle East. (from Music of Iraq)