Iraq: Cities
From Grolier's The New Book of Knowledge

	The Iraqi capital of Baghdad on the Tirgris River. (Photo: Grant Smith/CORBIS)

Baghdad is the capital and largest city of Iraq and the center of its commerce and industry. The city is situated in the east-central part of the country, on both banks of the Tigris River.

Mosul, the capital of the Nineveh province, is the major center of administration and agricultural trade in northern Iraq. It is situated on the upper Tigris River, near the ruins of the ancient city of Nineveh, once a capital of the Assyrian Empire. It has been the chief city of northern Mesopotamia since the A.D. 900s.

Basra, the capital of the Basra province, is Iraq’s chief port and primary outlet to the Persian Gulf. Founded in A.D. 636, it is now the administrative center of southern Iraq. Much of the city was destroyed during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-88) and by bombing during and after the Persian Gulf War (1991).

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