3rd October: Iraq Independence Day

Iraq gained Independence from the UK in 1932. Here are ten things you may not know about Iraq.

1. The country of Iraq as we know it today was actually created by the British after the first world war. The borders were drawn up by Winston Churchill, who was then Great Britain's colonial secretary.
2. The capital, Baghdad, is home to the largest embassy in the world. The US embassy in Iraq is almost as large as Vatican City, employs 15,000 people, and cost $750 million to build.
3. Iraq is sometimes called The "Cradle of Civilization". It was home to the earliest known civilization, the Sumerians, who are said to have invented writing, the wheel, calendars and city states. Their writings contain the first evidence of Mathematics, Astronomy, Astrology, Written Law, Medicine and Organised religion. The first cookbooks in the world are tablets found in ancient ruins in Iraq, showing recipes prepared in the temples during religious festivals. It was also ancient Iraq which came up with the 60 second minute and 60 minute hour, and superstitions about black cats.
4. The country has a lot of Biblical connections. Some scholars believe the Garden of Eden was here. The cities of Ur, Babylon and Nineveh were here. A natural gas vent in Iraq known as The Eternal Fire has been burning continuously for over 4,000 years - many believe the Eternal Fire is the fiery furnace in the Book of Daniel.
5. The children’s story Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves was written in Iraq about 1,000 years ago.
6. Iraq's two major rivers are the Euphrates and the Tigris. Both rivers begin in Turkey. The Tigris flows directly into Iraq and the Euphrates passes through Syria first. The Euphrates is longer river at 1,469 miles, and the Tigris is 1,150 miles long.
7. The national bird of Iraq is the Chucker Partridge (Alectoris chukar) and the national animal is the Lion.
8. The highest point is at 3,611 m (11,847 ft) point, unnamed on maps, but known locally as Cheekah Dar (black tent).
9. Scientists believe Iraq could be sitting on over 300 billion barrels of crude oil, the second largest oil reserves in the world. However, damage to the infrastructure thanks to sanctions and the war mean it's not being extracted as well as it used to be. Iraq has no refineries, so the oil it does produce has to be exported in order to be processed. As a result, despite having massive oil reserves, the country suffers from severe petrol shortages.
10. Oil is not Iraq's only product. Iraq has more than 22 million date palms and is one of the top three date producers in the world.