| Area Total | 438,317 sq km |
| Climate | mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq |
| Natural Resources | petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur |
| Imports | $39.47 billion (2017 est.) partners: Turkey 27.8%, China 25.7%, South Korea 4.7%, Russia 4.3% (2017) – food, medicine, manufactures |
| Government | federal parliamentary republic |
| Capital | Baghdad |
| Population | 40.2 million (July 2018 est.) |
| Ethnicity | Arab 75-80%, Kurdish 15-20%, other 5% |
| Language | Arabic (official), Kurdish (official), Turkmen (a Turkish dialect), Syriac (Neo-Aramaic), and Armenian official in areas where native speakers of these languages constitute a majority of the population |
| Exports | $61.4 billion (2017 est.) partners: India 21.2%, China 20.2%, US 15.8%, South Korea 9.4%, Greece 5.3%, Netherlands 4.8%, Italy 4.7% (2017) – crude oil 99%, crude materials excluding fuels, food, live animals |
News about Iraq
- Report: Republican Sen. Joni Ernst won't seek reelection in 2026
on August 29, 2025A top Republican senator with a decade of experience is planning to surprise her colleagues with a shock announcement, sources close to the lawmaker reveal.
- From the streets of Baghdad, I saw a clear line to the bloodshed in Gaza | Owen Jones
by Owen Jones on August 26, 2025The west faced no reckoning for the death and destruction it wreaked in Iraq. That made the war crimes we’re now witnessing inevitable “You destroyed Iraq.” I had to wait for my companion, the Iraqi journalist Ghaith Abdul-Ahad, to translate these words, but the thunderous look on this middle-aged man’s face already told its own story. We were […]
- How Ukrainian sharpshooter used AI to kill two Russian soldiers with one bullet in world record 4,000m shot as Kyiv's elite marksmen 'rewrite the rules of global sniping'
on August 18, 2025The shot was made using a 14.5mm Snipex Alligator rifle, a domestically produced anti-materiel weapon, on August 14.
- War hero's jaw-dropping $29k fine that proves Canada can't see the forest for the trees
on August 18, 2025The tough-talking ex-soldier marched into a government office, told startled officials exactly what he planned to do, and then strode into the trees while recording the whole stunt on camera.
- PETER HITCHENS: You may not like it, but we have lived peaceful lives because of squalid deals like this one
on August 17, 2025All aboard HMS Humbug for another round of ignorant bloviation, empty moralising and hypocrisy.
- ‘It’s destruction disguised as progress’: how the oil industry is sucking Iraq’s ancient wetlands dry
by Azhar Al-Rubaie, Sara Manisera and Daniela Sala in Hawizeh Marshes on August 13, 2025Hawizeh’s wetlands once had abundant fishing and wildlife. In a land threatened by drought and desertification, oil drilling is draining the last of the waterAt dawn, a veil of mist clings to the canals of Hawizeh, where sky and water seem to blur into a mirror. In the stern of a narrow wooden boat, 23-year-old Mustafa Hashim scans the marshes’ […]
- Temperature records broken as extreme heat grips parts of Europe
by Ajit Niranjan on August 13, 2025Unprecedented temperatures causing difficulties in south-west France, Croatia, Italy and Spain with wildfire destruction across Europe up 87%How dangerous are wildfires and how can we stop them from getting worse?Extreme heat is breaking temperature records across Europe, early measurements suggest, and driving bigger and stronger wildfires.In south-west […]
- The book the MoD tried to ban... Scots SAS hero Colin MacLachlan's book is published after decade-long battle
on August 10, 2025Heroic rescues of hostages from terrorists and undercover operations in some of the world's most dangerous war zones are usually the stuff of action movies and video games.
- ‘I live for a chance to leave Iraq’: how I survived torture and slavery at the hands of Islamic State
by As told to Turkiya Shammo on August 9, 2025A decade on from being freed, a Yazidi woman tells how she endured being abducted by militants when she was aged nineMy childhood living in a village in northern Iraq near the city of Mosul was rich in happiness despite the lack of resources. I was fond of my school and friends and enjoyed a warm family life filled with laughter. That all vanished when […]
- Fate of parents accused of attempting to murder daughter outside American school in 'honor killing' revealed
on August 7, 2025A brutal attack outside a high school left a teenage girl unconscious and her parents facing explosive allegations. Accused of a culturally motivated murder attempt, the couple stood trial.
- Cocky cyclist hit with instant karma after celebrating race win metres from the finish line
on August 6, 2025The incident took place during the final stage of the Iraqi Cycling Championships, which had more than 20 cycling clubs representing capital Baghdad and the rest of the governorates.
- Iraqi small boat migrant wins appeal to stay in Britain because he's the divorcee of a 'prominent politician'
on July 23, 2025The migrant won an appeal at the immigration court after saying he can't return to Iraq because of a divorce he went through in his home country.
- Thousands of Army soldiers may be suffering brain damage from blast of own weapons
on July 23, 2025Defence chiefs have confirmed for the first time that machineguns and anti-tank weapons emit harmful blast waves which can cause traumatic injuries. Explosions create a wave of 'overpressure'.
- Grinning small boat migrant chronicles his journey across the Channel to the UK - as he films himself celebrating on Blackpool beach after illegally crossing into Britain
on July 22, 2025A small boat migrant posting to a TikTok account of a man, believed to be from Iraq and called Youssef Hassan, has been documenting his 'best life' in Britain since arriving on UK shores.
- Why government plans to crackdown on people smugglers with sanctions could have little impact on stopping small boat crossings
on July 22, 2025The Government's move to introduce sanctions for people-smugglers is 'an obvious PR exercise' that will do little to stop small boat crossings, experts warned today.
- George W. Bush feared Saddam Hussein planned a '9/11-style' attack
on July 22, 2025Private remarks from the US President in the months leading up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq underlined his commitment to 'ridding (the world) of evil-doers', according to the UK's ambassador.
- President George W Bush 'feared Saddam Hussein would attempt his own version of 9/11 terror attacks', newly declassified records revealon July 22, 2025
Private remarks from the US President in the months leading up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq underlined his commitment to 'ridding (the world) of evil-doers', according to the UK's ambassador.
- Britain told US that invading Iraq could cost Blair his premiership, papers reveal
by Caroline Davies and Ben Quinn on July 21, 2025Adviser to former PM said Bush’s pursuit of regime change in Baghdad could also cause ‘regime change in London’The stark terms in which the US was warned that invading Iraq without a second UN security council resolution could cost Tony Blair his premiership have been revealed in newly released documents.Blair’s foreign policy adviser, David […]
- Florida hit by terrorist threat against retired commanders
on July 20, 2025The alarming notice was quietly circulated to former senior military personnel who served in Iraq and Syria, and specifically cautioned those now residing in the Sunshine State.
- Tories demand inquiry into Keir Starmer's National Security chief Jonathan Powell over secret taxpayer-funded talks with 'rogue states'
on July 19, 2025One of Sir Keir Starmer's most powerful advisers was last night accused of running secret diplomatic back channels to 'terrorists' using his own taxpayer-funded team.
