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| Iraq Facts |
Location: Middle East, bordering the Persian
Gulf, Geographic coordinates: 33 00 N, 44 00 E Map references: Middle East Area: total: 437,072 sq km Area—comparative: slightly more than twice the size of Idaho Land boundaries: total: 3,650 km Coastline: 58 km Maritime claims: continental shelf: not specified 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 Terrain: mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey Elevation extremes: lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur Land use: arable land: 11.89% Irrigated land: 35,250 sq km (1998 est.) Natural hazards: dust storms, sandstorms, floods Environment—current issues: government water control projects have drained most of the inhabited marsh areas east of An Nasiriyah by drying up or diverting the feeder streams and rivers; a once sizable population of Shi'a Muslims, who have inhabited these areas for thousands of years, has been displaced; furthermore, the destruction of the natural habitat poses serious threats to the area's wildlife populations; inadequate supplies of potable water; development of Tigris-Euphrates Rivers system contingent upon agreements with upstream riparian Turkey; air and water pollution; soil degradation (salination) and erosion; desertification Environment—international agreements: party to: Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban Geography—note: landlocked—strategic location on Shatt al Arab waterway and at the head of the Persian Gulf |