Iraq

Region: Middle East

Official language: Arabic, Kurdish

Population: 42,083,436 (2024 est.)

Nationality: Iraqi(s) (noun), Iraqi (adjective)

Land area: 437,367 sq km (168,868 sq miles)

Water area: 950 sq km (367 sq miles)

Capital: Baghdad

National anthem: "Mawtini" (My Homeland), by Ibrahim Touqan/Mohammad Flayfel

National holiday: National Day, October 3 (1932); Republic Day, July 14 (1958)

Population growth: 1.99% (2024 est.)

Time zone: UTC +3

Flag: The flag of Iraq consists of three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white (middle), and black (bottom). Centered in the white band and written in green is the Arabic expression “God is great.” In 2008, the Council of Representatives approved this flag as a temporary replacement to the Ba’athist-era flag.

Motto: “Allahu Akbar” (God is [the] Greatest)

Independence: October 3, 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration); note – on June 28, 2004 the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal system: mixed legal system of civil and Islamic law

In ancient times, the region of Iraq was known as Mesopotamia, meaning "land between the rivers" (the Tigris and the Euphrates). Because of its incredibly long history, some believe Iraq to be the location of the mythical Garden of Eden. The ruins of Ur, Babylon, Nineveh, Assyria, and other ancient cultures are still evident throughout the country. Iraq was under the control of numerous empires throughout its history, including the Mongol and Ottoman Empires, before gaining full independence from its status as a British protectorate in 1932. Iraq was devastated by wars, sanctions, government repression, and instability during the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.

Starting in the 1960s, Iraq was dominated by the Arab nationalist Ba'ath Party, under the leadership of Saddam Hussein, who ruled the country as dictator from 1979 to 2003. His dictatorial rule was marked by numerous human rights abuses in Iraq, as well as bloody international conflicts, including the Iran-Iraq War (1980–88) and Persian Gulf War (1990–91). While Hussein's government was toppled in 2003 following the United States-led invasion and replaced with a democratic government, Iraq continued to face high levels of factional violence, particularly between Shiite and Sunni Muslims, as well as numerous terrorist attacks by al-Qaeda and other organizations.

In 2014, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), a radical Islamic group, was able to capture large portions of Iraqi territory, including the major city of Mosul, and were responsible for numerous terror attacks and grave human rights abuses. By the end of 2017 international forces had deprived ISIS of virtually all its territory in Iraq and Syria, but threats of terror attacks, civil unrest, and political violence remained an issue in Iraq into the 2020s.

Note: unless otherwise indicated, statistical data in this article is sourced from the CIA World Factbook, as cited in the bibliography.

People and Culture

Population: Iraq is a multiethnic nation, although exact data on the country's ethnic composition is somewhat sparse. Based on existing data, the majority of Iraqis (roughly three-quarters) are Arab. Other ethnic groups in Iraq include Kurds, who represent 15 to 20 percent of the population, with the remainder comprised of Turkmen, Chaldeans, Assyrians, Yazidi, and other minorities. The southern and western portions of the country are sparsely populated, and the majority of Iraq's population lives in the flat river plain between Baghdad and the Persian Gulf.

Languages include Arabic, Kurdish (mostly in the north), Turkmen, Armenian, and Syriac.

The vast majority of Iraq's population is Muslim (about two-thirds Shia, and the remainder Sunni). Most Kurds are Sunni. Iraq also has a very small Christian minority with deep roots in the country.

Millions of Iraqis fled the country following the 2003 US invasion and the subsequent sectarian violence that wracked the country during the US military occupation. Many Iraqis fled to neighboring countries including Syria, Jordan, and Iran. In 2022 the United Nations estimated that 1.2 million people in Iraq remained internally displaced.

Indigenous People: Iraq is a diverse, multiethnic nation, and the country's modern history was often marked by discrimination against a number of these minority groups. The Kurds live in the northeast, particularly in the cities of Dahuk (Dohuk), Arbil, Kirkuk, Mosul, and Sulaimaniyah. They are a non-Arab, seminomadic people who have long sought autonomy. During the Iran-Iraq War, they were slaughtered by both sides. In 1988, Hussein ordered the use of poison gas on Kurdish civilians and rounded up and executed Kurdish men. A total of 200,000 Kurds died that year.

The Kurds assisted the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, intent on regaining control of Kirkuk and Mosul.

The Ma'dan (Marsh) Arabs lived along the lower reaches of the Tigris, at its confluence with the Euphrates. They were scattered when Hussein's government drained the marshes in the early 1990s, although some of these communities attempted to rebuild after the fall of Saddam's regime.

Education: Once a model of education in the Middle East, Iraq struggled to rebuild its education system in the post-Saddam era.

Under Hussein, it was difficult for academics to get permission to leave the country to study or to meet with other education professionals. Years of sanctions depleted laboratories, computers, and supplies. The bombing, burning, and looting of the Iran-Iraq War, the Persian Gulf War, the 2003 US invasion, and the reign of terror perpetrated in some areas by ISIS destroyed many schools and facilities.

Education is free and compulsory for both boys and girls between the ages of six and twelve. Secondary education begins at age twelve and lasts for one or two three-year terms. The largest universities in Iraq include the University of Baghdad, Iraqi University, University of Basrah, and University of Mosul, although the University of Mosul suffered heavy damage from ISIS between 2014 and 2017. Iraq's oldest university—and one of the oldest universities in the world—is Al-Mustansiriya in Baghdad, founded in 1233.

Even though all of Iraq's schools are free, many have struggled with enrollment especially among women and girls. Some parents have kept their daughters home because of the overcrowding, lack of sanitation, and inadequate security at many schools. Students and faculty have faced roadblocks, armed checkpoints, and occasional explosions throughout the armed conflicts in Iraq. Some women who do attend bring male family members with them for protection.

The adult literacy rate in Iraq was estimated at 85.6 percent in 2018—91.2 percent for men, and 79.9 percent for women.

Health Care: Following the US invasion and subsequent years of violence and instability in Iraq, healthcare infrastructure in Iraq suffered serious setbacks. Life expectancy at birth was 73.7 years in 2024. Health care expenditures accounted for 5.1 percent of GDP in 2020.

Decades of war and economic sanctions severely damaged Iraq's health care system and its infrastructure, prompting efforts to reinvest and improve the country's healthcare situation. Looting and violence also damaged sanitation services and water and electricity systems. Iraq's HDI value for 2022 is 0.673— which put the country in the Medium human development category—positioning it at 128 out of 193 countries and territories.

Many of Iraq's hospitals were damaged, medical equipment disappeared, and the two main public health laboratories were destroyed. Iraq's hospitals have poor sanitation, few drugs, and insufficient personnel. Mothers and children, especially, have suffered from lack of services. The death rate for mothers, infants, and children rose sharply after the invasion. The infant mortality rate in 2024 was estimated at 18.7 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Food: Normally, Iraqi food includes typical Arab spices such as saffron and mint. Meals consist of numerous elaborate dishes. The evening meal is usually served around 8:00 pm.

Favorite meats include lamb, goat, mutton, beef, and poultry (Muslims typically use no pork or pork products). The meat is usually cooked with vegetables and rice.

Some common main dishes are kebabs, grilled meat on skewers; quzi, stuffed, roasted lamb; and kibbe, minced meat with nuts, raisins, and spices. Other dishes may include masgouf, fish from the Tigris River, and tripe, cow's stomach. Samoons, a kind of flat, round bread, usually accompany the meal.

Popular desserts include local fruit, rice pudding, Turkish Delight (jellied candy, often made with rosewater) and baklava, a pastry with honey and nuts between layers of filo dough.

Baghdad was once home to many restaurants serving both domestic and international foods. However, as American forces bombed suspected gathering places of insurgents and suicide bombers destroyed international restaurants, their numbers fell sharply. By the 2010s and 2020s, amid improved security in Baghdad, some of the city's culinary culture began to experience a revival.

Arts & Entertainment: Football, or soccer, is popular throughout Iraq. The national team competes internationally. The team won the 2007 Asian Cup after defeating Saudi Arabia 1–0. The victory resulted in celebration and calls for unity nationwide. A women's national soccer team also competes internationally. Other popular sports include volleyball and tennis for women, and horseback riding, swimming, boxing, basketball, and weightlifting for men.

Iraq's national chess team is a member of FIDE, the World Chess Federation. Grandmaster Eman Hassane Al-Rufei won the women's division of the Arab Chess Championship multiple times, including in 2001, 2002, and 2005.

Iraqis enjoy several types of music, from classical Iraqi music to Western pop songs. Traditional instruments include the def, a type of tambourine; the rebaba, a string-and-bow instrument; and the oud, an Arabic lute.

Many homes of educated Iraqis have small libraries, with Western works as well as the works of Arabic and Iraqi authors. Important Iraqi writers include Dhu al-Nun, Lamia Abbas Amara, Wafaa' Abdul Razak, and Muhammad Mehdi El Jawahiri.

Iraq's artistic tradition goes back to Sumer, Assyria, and Babylon. Many ancient artworks in the Iraqi Museum in Baghdad were lost to looting following the US invasion, although in subsequent years efforts began to recover some of these works.

The Quran forbids using representations of humans in artwork, so Iraqi art features geometric designs and floral representations. Arabic calligraphy is so graceful that mosques and other public buildings are often decorated with verses from the Quran.

Holidays: National secular holidays include Armed Forces Day (January 6). Nowruz (March 21) marks both the first day of spring and the anniversary of Kurdish freedom from tyrannical rule. Liberation Day (April 9) commemorates the 2003 fall of the Ba'ath regime, and Republic Day (July 14) is the anniversary of the 1958 coup by General Abdul Karim Qasim, during which King Faisal II was killed. National Day (October 3) celebrates independence from the United Kingdom in 1932.

Islamic holidays are also celebrated throughout the year. The dates vary, as the holidays are based on the lunar calendar. The biggest religious holiday is Id al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan (a month of fasting from sunup to sundown). Children wear new clothes, women use henna (red dye, also used for hair) to decorate their hands and feet, and people exchange visits and cards and give money and food to the poor.

During Id al-Adha, the Feast of the Sacrifice, people often sacrifice a lamb and donate the meat to the poor. Other holidays include: Islamic New Year; Ashura (or Ashoura), which commemorates the martyrdom of Imam Ali Hussein, during which Shia Muslims hold processions; Moulo, celebrating the birth of Muhammad; and Leilat al-Meira, marking the ascension of Muhammad.

Environment and Geography

Topography: Iraq, about twice the size of the US state of Idaho, is located in western Asia. Nearly landlocked, it has only a narrow, 58-kilometer (36-mile) coastline on the Persian Gulf between Iran and Kuwait. Iraq is bordered on the east by Iran, on the south by Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, on the west by Syria and Jordan, and on the north by Turkey.

Iraq's highest point is Cheekha Dar, at 3,611 meters (11,847 feet) high. Its lowest point is on the coast of the Persian Gulf, at sea level.

Mountains mark the northern and northeastern borders with Turkey and Iran. Most of the country consists of the broad plain of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Along the southeastern border with Iran lie the remnants of drained reed marshes. Desert dominates most of the country's area.

The Tigris and the Euphrates are the two major rivers. The Tigris rises in Anatolia, Turkey, and flows 1,850 kilometers (1,150 miles) southeast through Iraq. At al-Qurna joins with the Euphrates to form the Shatt al Arab, which flows into the Persian Gulf, around 190 kilometers (118 miles) away. The city of Baghdad lies on the banks of the Tigris.

Iraq also has some major lakes. The largest is Buhayrat ath Tharthar, an artificial lake in the Tigris-Euphrates River basin, with a surface area of 2,119.4 square kilometers (818.3 square miles). Next in size is Bahr al Milh (Sea of Salt), a brackish, 1,000 square kilometer (386 square mile) lake in central Iraq, south of Tharthar. Buhayrat Habbaniyah, also south of Tharthar, covers 250 square kilometers (96.5 square miles).

Natural Resources: Major natural resources include oil, natural gas, phosphates, and sulfur.

The draining of the marshes by Saddam Hussein destroyed much of Iraq's natural habitat, threatening many species of wildlife. Air and water pollution, soil degradation through salination, erosion, and desertification are other environmental problems that threaten Iraq.

Overfishing has depleted Iraq's lake fish, and farm vehicles damage the fragile topsoil. Timber operations and overgrazing in the Zagros Mountains have destroyed some of the country's oak forests.

Plants & Animals: Along Iraq's rivers roam wild pigs, wolves, gazelles, foxes, and lions. Small animals include gerbils, jerboas, hares, hedgehogs (similar to porcupines), jackals, hyenas, and river otters. Some of the birds commonly found in Iraq include hawks, eagles, falcons, grouse, and babblers. Lizards and snakes are numerous in the desert areas.

Domesticated animals include camels, oxen, horses, sheep, goats, and water buffalo.

Native trees include oak, willow, maple, tamarisk, hawthorn, pistachio, date palms, and ash. Much of the land is nutrient poor, and vegetation often consists only of shrubs and scattered ziziphus trees (jujube or jujuba fruit trees).

Iraqis use about 1,500 different medicinal plants, such as wormwood and licorice, usually taken as tea.

Climate: Most of Iraq has a desert climate, with mild winters and hot, dry summers. The northern mountain regions have cold winters and occasional heavy snowfall. The melting snow sometimes causes severe flooding in the spring. Near the Persian Gulf, summers are hot and humid.

In July and August, average temperatures are often higher than 48 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit). Average rainfall is 10 to 18 centimeters (4 to 7 inches), most of it falling from December through April.

Periodic dust and sand storms are common occurrences. During the first decades of the twenty-first century, increasing desertification became an issue of concern.

Economy

Iraq once had a strong economy, but it was significantly damaged by international sanctions, political instability and repression, and multiple violent conflicts starting in the late twentieth century. Estimates in 2023 put the unemployment rate at 15.53 percent, with young Iraqis particularly affected. The gross domestic product (GDP, purchasing power parity) was US$572.939 billion in 2023, or $12,700 per capita.

Industry: Iraq’s major export is crude oil. Exports of oil were sanctioned for years. In 1996, the United Nations Oil-for-Food program allowed Iraq to export some oil in exchange for food, medicine, and other essentials. However, this program was plagued by incidents of corruption within the United Nations and Iraq.

Iraq has some of the largest oil reserves in the world. Oil production was negatively affected by the 2003 invasion, but returned to more normal levels in subsequent years. Nonetheless, many petroleum processing plants in Iraq are outdated and deteriorating. For a time, the situation was so bad that Iraq was forced to import 50 percent of the gasoline it used, as well as thousands of tons of other refined petroleum products such as cooking and heating fuel. Foreign companies continue to work with the government to improve Iraq’s oil industry infrastructure.

Agriculture: Approximately 8.4 percent of the land in Iraq is arable. Dates are the major cash crop. With Egypt, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, Iraq is one of the world's three largest producers of dates. Other crops include wheat, barley, eggs, milk, honey, rice, potatoes, tomatoes, melons, oranges, and cotton. Livestock includes cattle, sheep, and poultry.

While agriculture is only responsible for a small proportion of Iraq's GDP, it employs a significant portion of the country's labor force.

Tourism: Most foreigners in Iraq are active military members or journalists. Although the Iraqi Tourism Board oversees several sites throughout the country, warfare and violence have brought the industry to a virtual standstill. Efforts to improve this sector of the country’s economy continue, including a $2 million grant by the US State Department to repair the ruins of Babylon. Despite the difficulties faced by this sector, in 2019 travel and tourism accounted for 6.4 percent of the Iraqi economy, with the great majority of inbound arrivals (89 percent) coming from Iran. An estimated 1.3 million international arrivals were expected in Iraq in 2019. However, the number of international arrivals fell the following year, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the aftermath of the pandemic, the Iraqi government dedicated resources to try and boost the country's tourism sector, emphasizing the area's rich cultural history and famous ancient sites.

Government

Iraq's government was restructured after the national elections of January 2005. In October 2005, Iraqis approved a constitution in a national referendum. The country has eighteen governorates. The head of state is the president, who is indirectly elected by legislative branch's Council of Representatives to serve a four-year term. The legislative branch consists of the unicameral Council of Representatives. Its 328 members serve four-year terms. Eight seats are reserved for minorities representatives, while the other 320 members are directly elected in multiseat constituencies by proportional representation vote. Iraq's constitution calls for the establishment of an upper house, called the Federation Council, but by the 2020s had still not been established. The country's highest court is the Federal Supreme Court, which consists of nine judges.

Critics of the Iraqi government since 2004 say it has done little to help quell the country’s sectarian strife and incidents of corruption within its ranks. Many have claimed that the Shiite majority in the government has not done enough to prevent the persecution of Sunnis by Iraqi police forces. US president Barack Obama declared an end to American combat operations in the country as of August 31, 2010. While the last combat troops were pulled out of Iraq by the end of 2011, a large contingent of US troops and military contractors remained in the country to assist and train the Iraqi military and police force. When the threat of ISIS surfaced and grew in 2014, the United States began to authorize limited air strikes and continued to send further troops in a training capacity as part of an international effort to thwart the spread of the terrorist group. Mosul was liberated in 2017, and ISIS was declared defeated in Iraq by the end of the year.

While Iraq held elections in 2021 and continued to work towards greater stability, it continued to struggle with civil unrest and other issues in the late 2010s and early 2020s. For example, amid greater tensions between the US and Iran, a protest at the US embassy in Baghdad from December 31, 2019–January 1, 2020, turned violent, with protesters and militia opposed to US drone and airstrikes on targets in Iraq and Syria vandalizing and burning buildings. Still, despite political tensions, the early 2020s saw far less sectarian violence than Iraq had seen in the previous decade.

Interesting Facts

• Iraq has just 58 kilometers (36 miles) of coastline, along the Persian Gulf.
• The name of the country's highest point, Cheekha Dar, is Kurdish for "black tent."

• The earliest form of writing, called cuneiform, was developed in the Sumerian city-state of Uruk around 3000 B.C.

Bibliography

Human Development Insights, United Nations Development Programme, 13 Mar. 2024, hdr.undp.org/data-center/country-insights#/ranks. Accessed 23 Jan. 2025.

"Iraq." The World Bank, 2024, data.worldbank.org/country/iraq. Accessed 23 Jan. 2025.

"Iraq." The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 16 Jan. 2025, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/iraq/. Accessed 23 Jan. 2025.

"Iraq Country Profile." BBC News, 13 Sep. 2023, www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14542954. Accessed 23 Jan. 2025.

Moore, Kathleen. "Iraq: The Rise And Fall Of Saddam Hussein." Radio Free Europe, 15 Dec. 2003, www.rferl.org/a/1105321.html. Accessed 1 June 2022.