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                               IRAQ

Geo~ra~hy and Climate

     Iraq's geography is discussed in terms of four main regions:
the desert in the west and southwest; the rolling upland between
the Tigris and Euphrates rivers  (i~n Arabic, the Dijhis and Furat,
respectively); the highlands in the northeast; and the central
and southeastern alluvial plain through which the Tigris and
Euphrates flow.   Iraq's total land area is approximately 435,000
square kms.

     The desert zone, lying west and southwest of the Euphrates
river, is a part of the Syrian Desert.   The region is sparsely
populated and consists of a wide stoney plain interspersed with
rare sandy stretches.   A widely ramified pattern of wadis runs
from the border to the Euphrates.   Some wadis are more than 400
kms long, and carry brief, but torrential,  floods during the
winter rains.

     The uplands region, between the Tigris north of Samarra and
the Euphrates north of Hit,  is known as Al Jazirah and is part of
a larger area that extends westward into Syria, between the two
rivers, and into Turkey.   Water in the area flows in deeply cut
valleys.   Much of this zone may be classified as desert.

     The northeastern highlands begin just south of a line drawn
from Mosul to Kirkuk, and they extend to the borders with Turkey
and Iran.   High grounds, separated by broad, undulating steppes,
give way to mountains ranging from 1,000 to 4,000 m near the
borders.   Except for a few valleys, the mountain area proper is
suitable only for grazing in the foothills and steppes; adequate
soil and rainfall make cultivation possible.   Iraq's largest oil
fields are located near Mosul and Kirkuk.

     The alluvial plain begins north of Bagdad and extends to the
Persian Gulf.   The Tigris and Euphrates rivers lie above the
level of the plain in many areas in this region.   The whole area
is a delta interlaced by the channels of the two rivers and by
irrigation canals.   Intermittent lakes, fed by the rivers in
flood, also characterize southeastern Iraq.   A fairly large area
just above the merging of the two rivers at Al Qurnah and
extending east of the Tigris beyond the Iranian Border is
marshland, known as the Hawr al Hammerar.   Much of it is
permanent marsh, but some parts dry out in early winter, and
other parts become marshland only in years of great flood.

     Roughly 90 percent of the annual rainfall occurs between
November and April, most of it in the winter months from December
through March.   The remaining 6 months, particularly the hottest
ones of June, July, and August, at approximately 102 degrees F,
are dry.   The summer months are marked by two types of wind.  The
southerly and southeasternly Sharqi, a dry, dusty wind with


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