Iraq

Daniel D’Aquila

Map

Geography

• Location: Iraq is located in between Iran and Kuwait. It boarders the Persian Gulf, in the middle east.

• Slightly more than 2 times the size of Idaho and the 59th largest country in the world.

• Iraq’s elevation ranges from 0meters to 3,611 meters.

Elevation

• O meters to 3,611 meter.

Climate and Terrain

• Iraq’s climate mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, and cloudless summers. The mountains experience cold winters with the occasional heavy snow.

• The terrain of Iraq is mostly broad plains and reedy marshes along the Iranian boarder in the south with large flooded areas. Also there are mountains along the board of Turkey and Iran.

General Information

• Population:– The total population: 30,399,572– Age 0-14: 38% (male: 5,882,682/

female:5,678,741)– Age 15-64: 58.9% (male: 9,076,588/ female:

8,826,545)– Age 65 and older: 3.1% (male: 435,908/ female:

499,138)

More General Information

• Religion:– Muslims: 97% (official)

• Shia: 60-65%• Sunni: 32-37%

– Christian and Other: 3%• Ethnic Groups:

– Arab: 75-80%– Kurdish: 15-20%– Turkoman, Assyrian, or other: 5%

• Language: Arabic (official), Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Turkoman (Turkish), Assyrian, and Armenian.

Education

• Literacy Rate– Total Population: 74.1%– Male: 84.1%– Female:64.2%

• School Life Expectancy – Males: 11 years– Females: 8 years

• Government budget spent on education:– About 8%

Health

• Infant Mortality Rate:– Average: 41.68 deaths/ 1,000 births– Males: 45.93 deaths/ 1,000 births– Females: 37.21 deaths/ 1,000 births

• Life Expectancy:– Average: 70.55 years– Males: 69.15 years– Females: 72.02 years

Government

• Parliament Democracy (democracy having a parliament)

• Capital: Baghdad• President: Jalal Talaban• Prime Minister: Nuri al-Maliki• Stability: Some what stable and unstable, kind of in

between. About 50,000 US troops are stationed there to train, help and equip the Iraqi security forces. There’s no on going civil war, but there is still terrorism occurring.

Economics

• Income per capita: $3,800 (2010)• Industries: Petroleum, chemicals, textiles, leather,

construction materials, food processing, fertilizer, metal fabrication/processing.

Relationship With The USA

• The Iraqi Prime Minister claims to be good allies with the US. Currently the US is helping to make sure that Iraq has a stable government and a fair leader. They have currently 50,000 troops stationed in Iraq to help, train, and equip the Iraqi security forces.

• The US is supposed to with drawl there troops from Iraq by the end of 2011, but the US insists they stay to insure stability.

Sharia

• Iraq’s constitution states that no law can be passed that contradicts the “established rulings” of Islam (meaning Sharia).

Human Rights

• Iraq’s constitution prohibits torturing, but according to former prisoners torturing techniques included branding, electric administrations to the genitals and other areas, beating, pulling out of finger nails, burning with hot iron or blowtorches, suspension from rotating ceiling fans, dripping acid on to skin, rape, breaking of limbs, denial of food and water, extended solitary confinement in dark and extremely small compartments, and threats to rape or otherwise harm family members and relatives.

More Human Rights

• In Iraq women and minorities are said to be treated equal to men of the country under the Iraqi law, but many women are “honorably beheaded”.

• After the US invaded they had to rebuild the court systems in Iraq from scratch. After some observations of the Iraqi courts there was to be a large lack of due process in Iraq.

Current Events

• On November 27th the final pallets of computer equipment, hospital equipment, and radios were being load up and shipped away from the Contingency Operating Base in Adder to either Afghanistan or back to the US to be fixed up and ready to go again when needed. This was all in preparation for the end Operation New Dawn, the 50,000 US troops helping Iraq back on its feet. They were sending these pieces of equipment out before the troops leave because the troops can’t take them back with them.

More Current Events

• The US has had troops in Iraq since March of 2003, so the troops have been there for about 8 years.

• I believe that it’s about time that we finished up there. We helped enough and they want us gone, so now shortly here our boys will be on their way home just in time for the holidays.

Bibliography • "Iraq." U.S. Department of State. Web. 30 Nov. 2011.

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/6804.htm.• Dreyfuss, Robert. "Iraq As American Ally in 2012? Dream On, Brookings." The Nation. Web. 30

Nov. 2011. http://www.thenation.com/blog/156834/iraq-american-ally-2012-dream-brookings.

• "Women, Islam, and the New Iraq | Foreign Affairs." Home | Foreign Affairs. Web. 01 Dec. 2011. http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/61371/isobel-coleman/women-islam-and-the-new-iraq.

• "Iraq." U.S. Department of State. Web. 01 Dec. 2011. http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2001/nea/8257.htm.

• "CIA - The World Factbook." Welcome to the CIA Web Site — Central Intelligence Agency. Web. 03 Dec. 2011. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/iz.html

• "Education in Iraq." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 03 Dec. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Iraq

• "Fighting for Women's Rights in Iraq - CNN." Featured Articles from CNN. 26 June 2007. Web. 04 Dec. 2011. http://articles.cnn.com/2007-06-26/world/pysk.mohammed_1_honor-killings-baghdad-morgue-iraqi-women?_s=PM:WORLD.

• "Final Pallets of Equipment Prepare to Exit Iraq | United States Forces - Iraq." The Official Web Site | United States Forces - Iraq. Web. 04 Dec. 2011. http://www.usf-iraq.com/news/headlines/final-pallets-of-equipment-prepare-to-exit-iraq.