There are several suggestions for the origin of the name of Iraq; one dates back to the Sumerian city of Uruk (or Erech). Another suggestion is that Iraq comes from the Aramaic language, meaning "the land along the banks of the rivers." Under the Sassanid dynasty, there was a region called "Erak Arabi" which referred to the southern part of modern Iraq. Al-Iraq was the name used by the Arabs themselves for the land since the 6th century.

Ancient history
Iraq was historically known as Mesopotamia, which means 'land between the rivers' in Greek. This land was home to the world's first civilization, the Sumerian culture, followed by the Akkadian, Babylonian, and Assyrian cultures, whose influence extended into neighboring regions as early as 5000 BC. These civilizations produced the earliest writing and some of the first sciences, mathematics, laws and philosophies in the world, making the region the center of what is commonly called the "Cradle of Civilization". Ancient Mesopotamian civilization dominated other civilizations of its time.

 

Beginning in the seventh century AD, Islam spread to what is now Iraq. The prophet Mohammed's cousin and son-in-law moved his capital to Kufa "fi al-Iraq" when he became the fourth caliph. The Umayyads ruling from Damascus in the 7th century ruled the province of Iraq.
Baghdad, the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate, was the leading city of the Arab and Muslim world for five centuries. In 1258, Baghdad was devastated by the Mongols and was later occupied by the Ottoman Turks. Ottoman rule over Iraq lasted until the Great War (World War I) when the Ottomans sided with Germany and the Central Powers. During World War I, the Ottomans were driven from much of the area by the United Kingdom during the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire.

I. Basic Information

KINGDOM OF IRAQ (IRQ)

II. Vital Statistics

Sub-Region: Central

 

Provinces (4): Baghdad, Mosul, Basra, Karbala

 

Population: 17,576,000

 

Gross Domestic Product: 

$38.790 billion

 

 

III. Government

Country Name

             Conventional Long Form:  Kingdom of Iraq

 

             Long Local Form: Iraq

 

             Local Short Form: Iraq

 

Country Motto: Unity is Strength

 

Government Type: Monarchy

 

Independence: August 10, 2006

 

National Holiday: August 8 (Independence Day) and December 13 (King’s Birthday)

 

Legal System: Sharia Law

 

Suffrage: 21 years of age for all citizens

Method of Election/Term Length:  Monarchic-reign. On death of king eldest prince or princess accedes to the throne.

 

Date of Last Election/Results: None

 

Date of Next Election: None

Major Political Parties: Kurdish Peoples Party - Socialist
Islamic Party of Iraq

 

Political Pressure Groups: Al Zaqari Islamic Resistance Movement-outlawed

 

Legislature: King’sc Council—House of Jounri and provincial governors

    House of Jounri consists of 20 seats;

    20 provincial governors are elected  

    by the people

 

Last Election Date: None

 

Last Election Results:   None

 

Next Election Date: None

VI. Judiciary Branch

Members of the Council of Integrity: 2 civil, 1 military, 4 provincial

 

Process through which Justices Come to Power: Appointed by the king..

V. Legislative Branch

VII. Foreign Policy

International Organization Participation: None

 

Territorial Disputes:  Seljuqia - over the Shat-al-Arab waterway

VIII. Economy

Iraq's economy is dominated by the petroleum sector, which has traditionally provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings. In the 1980s, financial problems caused by massive expenditures in the eight-year war with Iran and damage to oil export facilities by Iran led the government to implement austerity measures, borrow heavily, and later reschedule foreign debt payments; Iraq suffered economic losses of at least $100 billion from the war. After the end of hostilities in 1988, oil exports gradually increased with the construction of new pipelines and restoration of damaged facilities. Current GDP per capita of Iraq grew 56% in the Sixties reaching a peak growth of 857% in the Seventies. But this proved unsustainable and current GDP per capita consequently shrank by 23% in the Eighties.

At the end of World War I, the League of Nations granted the area to the United Kingdom as a mandate. It was formed out of three former Ottoman vilayets (regions): Mosul, Baghdad and Basra. However, for three out of four centuries of Ottoman Turkish rule, the vilayets of Baghdad, Mosul, and Basra were administered from Baghdad.

Iraq was granted independence in 1932, though the British retained military bases and transit rights for their forces in the country. Iraq was invaded by the United Kingdom in 1941, for fears that the government of Rashid Ali might cut oil supplies to Western nations and because of his strong leanings to Nazi Germany. A military occupation followed, and the occupation ended on October 26, 1947.

The reinstalled Hashemite monarchy lasted until 1958, when it was overthrown through a coup d'etat by the Iraqi army, known as the 14 July Revolution. The coup brought Brigadier General Abdul Karim Qassim's government to power (which withdrew from the Baghdad Pact and established friendly relations with the Soviet Union) from 1958 till 1963, when he was overthrown by Colonel Abdul Salam Arif. Salam Arif died in 1966 and his brother, Abdul Rahman Arif, assumed the presidency. In 1968, Rahman Arif was overthrown by the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party. The Ba'ath's key figure became Saddam Hussein who acceded to the presidency and control of the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC), Iraq's supreme executive decision making body, in July 1979, killing off many of his opponents in the process. After the end of the gulf war Iraq regime was toppled by coalition forces, who stayed on to fight insurgents, Saddam Hussein was brought before a court and executed after 21 day trial, along with the Baath party membership elite figures the civilian administration collapsed in 2006 splitting the country between Sunni and Shia, the Army then installed the King to unite the country and begin reconciliation and reconstruction,

 

THE KINGS MESSAGE TO THE POPULATION
WE HAD BLOOD AND TEARS,FOR YEARS OUR PEOPLE STUGGLED AGAINST TYRANNY,FROM WITH IN AND AGGRESSION FROM OUTSIDE,WE HAVE SUFFERED WARS AND CIVIL WAR NOW I WANT PEACE STABILITY AND YOU WILL LABOUR NIGHT AND DAY,TOO REBUILD THIS NATION AND LEAVE A LEGACY FOR YOUR CHILDREN AND GRAND CHILDREN A NEW NATION WILL RISE ABOVE THE ASHES,AND YES THEIR WILL BE BLOOD SHAED AND TEARS TO MAKE IT WORK,DO YOUR DUTY AND MAKE HISTORY

GDP Growth Rate: N/A

 

GDP Per Sector:

                 Agriculture: N/A                 Industry: 17%

                 Services: 6%       

 

Unemployment Rate: 20-30%

                 Urban: N/A

                 Rural: N/A

 

Percentage of Population Below the Poverty Line: N/A

                 Urban: N/A

                 Rural: N/A

 

Inflation: 40%

 

Electricity Production by Source:

                 Fossil Fuels: 100% oil/gas

                 Hydro: N/A

                 Nuclear: N/A
                 Other: N/A

 

Nuclear Energy Capabilities: Classified information

 

Currency Name: Iraqi Dinar

 

Current External Debt: N/A

 

Current Creditor States: N/A

 

Head of State: Crown Prince Jamal Alsar Jounri

 

Head of Government: King Abdullah Jounri

 

Cabinet:

Royal Court members of King’s family run the state’s Executive Branch under the house of Jounri

IV. Executive Branch

Annual Surplus (Exports)

Current National Demand (Imports)

IX. Infrastructure

Ports and Harbors (1): BASARA Oil Terminal Port and Refinery

 

Airports with Paved Runways: 40

 

Major International Airports:

             Baghdad International Airport

X. Social Indicators

Life Expectancy at Birth

             Male: 54

             Female: 64

 

Total Fertility Rate: N/A

 

Nationality

             Noun: Iraqi

             Adjective: Iraqi

 

Ethnic Groups: Kurds, Assyrians, Iraqi Turkmens

 

Religions: Sunni Arab 18.5%, Shia 55%, Kurds 21%, Other 7%

 

Languages: Arabic, Kurdish, English

 

Literacy (definition — age 15 and older can read and write):                     Total Population: 65%

             Male: 65%

             Female: 35%

 

HIV/AIDS

Adult Prevalence Rate: N/A

People Living with HIV/AIDS: N/A

Deaths in the Past Year: N/A

 

Major Infectious Diseases/Risk:  N/A

XI. Military

Military Branches: Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Guard

 

Military Service:  Compulsory for males, voluntary for females

 

Manpower avail. for military service: Males—5,870,000 Females—4,777,400

 

Military Expenditures per Year: $1.3 billion

 

Military Expenditures as a Percentage of GDP: Classified

 

Weapons of Mass Destruction:

             Nuclear: None

             Chemical: Yes

             Biological: Yes

XII. Transnational Disputes

Territorial Disputes: Seljuqia—Shat al Arab waterway

 

 

Non-Territorial Disputes: Malawi, Political differences.

 

Updated:  August 26, 2006

King Abdullah Jounri

Prime Minister Ibrahim Mali

Prince Jamal Alsar Jounri

Chief of Staff