We’re sure that many connect the word IRAQ with a country that’s been destroyed and ravaged by war. A place full of conflicts. And that has been Iraq’s reality in recent decades, especially with the First Gulf War, the US invasion and the emergence of the Islamic State – which managed to occupy a large part of the country.
However, in this video we’re not going to talk about a destroyed Iraq, or disasters or victims, or misfortune.
You already know that we love to look at the good side of things. And, it’s precisely, in this video, here on VisualPolitik that we’ll try to take a look at the side of Iraq, which we never hear about. That is, their good side. What are the reasons that Iraq has to be optimistic?
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in Western Asia. The capital and largest city is Baghdad. Iraq is home to diverse ethnic groups including Arabs, Kurds, Turkmen, Assyrians, Yazidis, Shabakis, Armenians, Mandaeans, Circassians, Sabians and Kawliya. Around 99% of the country’s 38 million citizens are Muslims, with small minorities of Christians, Yarsans, Yezidis and Mandeans also present. The official languages of Iraq are Arabic and Kurdish.
Iraq has a coastline measuring 58 km (36 miles) on the northern Persian Gulf and encompasses the Mesopotamian Alluvial Plain, the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range and the eastern part of the Syrian Desert. Two major rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates, run south through Iraq and into the Shatt al-Arab near the Persian Gulf. These rivers provide Iraq with significant amounts of fertile land. The region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, historically known as Mesopotamia, is often referred to as the cradle of civilisation.
Iraq is a federal parliamentary republic consisting of 19 governorates, four of which make up the autonomous Kurdistan Region. Disputes over the sovereignty of Kurdistan Region continue.
Iraq is a founding member of the UN as well as of the Arab League, OIC, Non-Aligned Movement and the IMF.
