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IraqIraq<!-- begin quick bar --> <div style="float: right; margin: 0 0 1em 1em"> <table cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" style="border: 1px solid #9866FF; background-color: #f3f3ff" width="200"> <tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align: center; border-bottom: 1px solid #C9AFFF; background-color: #ddddff">Flag</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align: center; padding: 2px">Image:iz-flag.png</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" style="text-align: center; border-bottom: 1px solid #C9AFFF; border-top: 1px solid #C9AFFF; background-color: #ddddff">Quick Facts</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Capital'''</td><td>Baghdad</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Government'''</td><td>republic<br/></td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Currency'''</td><td>Iraqi dinar (IQD)</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Area'''</td><td>''total:'' 437,072 sq km <br>''water:'' 4,910 sq km <br>''land:'' 432,162 sq km</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Population'''</td><td>25,374,691 (July 2004 est.)</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Language'''</td><td>Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Religion'''</td><td>Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%, Sunni 32%-37%), Christian or other 3%</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Country Calling Code'''</td><td>964</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Internet TLD'''</td><td>.iq</td></tr> <tr><td valign="top" style="padding-left: 2px">'''Time Zone'''</td><td>UTC +3</td></tr> </table> </div> <!-- end quick bar --> '''''Iraq''''' is a country in the Middle East. It lies at the north end of the Persian Gulf and has a small (58 km) coastline in the southeast of the country. It is surrounded by Iran to the east, Kuwait to the south, Saudi Arabia to the southwest, Jordan to the west, Syria to the northwest, and Turkey to the north. Image:iz-map.png|frame|Map of Iraq ==Regions== *Baghdad (province)|Baghdad (بغداد) *Salah ad Din (صلاح الدين) *Diyala *Wasit *Maysan *Basra province|Al Basrah (البصرة) *Dhi Qar (ذي قار) *Al Muthanna *Al Qadisyah (القادسية) *Babil (بابل) *Karbala province|Al Karbala (كربلاء) *Najaf province|An Najaf (النجف) *Al Anbar (الأنبار) *Ninawa (نينوى) *Dahuk (دهوك) *Arbil (أربيل) *At Ta'mim *As Sulaymaniyah province|As Sulaymaniyah (السليمانية) ==Cities== *Arbil (أربيل) *Baghdad (بغداد) *Basra (بصرى) *Dahuk, Iraq|Dahuk *Fallujah *Karbala (كربلاء) *Kirkuk (كركوك) *Mosul (موصل) *Najaf (نجف) *Nassiriya (ناصرية) *Osiraq *Samarra (سامراء) *Ar Ramadi (الرمادي) *Ar Rutba (الرطبة) *As Sulaymaniyah (السليمانية) *Tikrit (تكريت) *Umm Qasr (أم قصر) ==Other destinations== * Babylon (بابل) * Nineveh (نينوى) * Sumer (سومر) * Ur (أور) ==Understand== The area where Iraq is today was the birthplace of many of the Earth's oldest civilizations, including the Babylonians and the Assyrians. A part of the Ottoman Empire from 1534, the Treaty of Sèvres brought the area under British control in 1918. Iraq gained independence in 1932. In 1968 the socialist Ba'ath Party took control of Iraq and Saddam Hussein came to power eleven years later. The next twenty-five years took a grinding toll on the country, A long war with neighboring Iran in the 1980s cost hundreds of thousands of lives and billions of dollars. The invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and subsequent Gulf War caused further casualties, followed by civil war inside the country and a decade of international sanctions. Iraq was invaded in 2003 by a U.S.-led coalition of forces, principally including the United Kingdom, Poland and Australia, who removed Saddam Hussein from power. Although some transfer of power to an Iraqi Interim Government has occurred, the country remains occupied by 200,000 US and coalition soldiers. While some rebuilding has occurred, an ongoing insurgency keeps the country in continued turmoil. ==Get in== You do not need a visa to enter Iraq. At any of the border crossing you simply need to state that you are there for personal reasons, such as visiting friends. Being a tourist is acceptable and the border control may laugh when you state this. ===By plane=== At present the only civilian airline serving Baghdad is Royal Wings, a subsidiary of Royal Jordanian, who have flights to Amman for around US$500 each way. ===By train=== There was a weekly train from the Turkish town of Gazientep to Baghdad. It is no longer operational. There are no more trains into Baghdad. ===By car=== The best method of travel into the country is by car. Driving in from Turkey is the best method of entry into the Northern Kurdistan. Assuming that you fly to Diyarbakir, Turkey, you will drive south east to Zakho, Iraq. It is best to take a previously arranged taxi, the average cost of this taxi ride is $150 American dollars and most of the drivers only speak Kurdish or Arabic. Assuming that you take the taxi from Diyarbakir you will often switch taxis in a city called Silopi about five minutes from the Iraqi border. Or you will change cars about 70 KM from the border of Iraq and continue on from there. The taxi driver will then take care of all your paper work at the border. This involves your driver running from building to building getting paperwork stamped and approved. You must have a photocopy of your passport for the Turkish section of the border, they require that you leave the photocopy with them. At this point you will finish driving across the border crossing into Iraq. Your taxi driver will then take you to the Iraqi customs section. When asked what the purpose of your trip is, it's acceptable to say that you're visiting friends. Unless you speak Kurdish or Arabic, it's best to simply stay quiet, look like you're a westerner and wait for your passport to be returned. You can say that you're a tourist or a contractor. At this point you will have a piece of paper with a stamp on it, the northern border crossing at Zakho will not stamp your passport. If you lose this paper you will be fined. A method for getting out of the fine is tell them you entered through Baghdad via a flight where they do not issue the paper. At this point, you will be in Zakho. For the Taxi ride from the Turkish city where you changed cars to Zakho, it's about $20 US dollars. This is a semi-safe place to meet your friends or to charter a taxi into another part of the country. Enjoy some tea while waiting. ===By bus=== It is possible to enter Iraq from Jordan by taking a bus from Amman. Other countries may have bus service to Iraq. ==Get around== ==Talk== ==Buy== You will be able to spend US dollars, Euros or Iraqi dinars almost everywhere. Be aware that most people do not like to make change for large bills. It's advised that you carry mostly small bills in the form of Iraqi dinars for daily spending cash. However most people will pay hotel bills or large dinner bills with US dollars. ==Eat== ==Drink== It is not safe for visitors to drink the water. It is best to always drink bottled water. Drinking the local tea is considered safe because the water is brought to a boil before serving. ==Sleep== ==Learn== ==Work== ==Stay safe== {{warningbox|Foreign and domestic journalists, contractors, and other travellers are subject to kidnapping and murder in Iraq. Probably the best way to stay safe in Iraq is '''not to go at all'''.}} Even people who have always lived in Iraqi and who are uninvolved with political issues are often subject to kidnapping-for-profit, which can be fatal if a ransom is not paid. The ransom price is very high and only some governments will pay it. The United States will not pay a ransom whereas it's possible that the U.K., France and Italy will. Iraq is beset with numerous problems that make travelling risky and difficult. The security situation is perilous in most areas of the country, and continues to deteriorate under a growing insurgency. Resistance to continuing military occupation, U.S. and U.K. forces, and the Iraqi Governing Council makes '''street warfare''' and '''acts of terrorism''' daily occurrences. The central third of the country is the most volatile; the northern Kurdish area and southern ports are ''less'' dangerous, but only relatively so. You should always have a weapon with you (handgun, AK-47, etc) and you should always keep a guard with you. ''Never travel alone.'' Always travel with a translator/guard if possible. Be aware that Iraq has mine fields, do not walk into fields, especially marked ones unless you're absolutely sure that it's safe. ==Stay healthy== As tap water is generally not potable, you should avoid uncooked foods. Most people will drink only bottled water for the duration of their stay. ==Respect== Never show the soles of your feet to others. This is considered very disrespectful for most Iraqis unless you are in the company of friends. When in the company of friends, it's still best to excuse yourself before putting your feet up in the air with the soles of your feet in the direction of any person. Do not spit in public or in the direction of others even when done without malice. ==Contact== ==External links== *[http://www.iraqigovernment.org/index_en.htm Iraq Interim Government] - official web site fr:Irak WikiPedia:Iraq {{stub}} de:Irak First page | Prev | Next | Last page |
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