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INTRODUCTION
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Iraq, country in the Middle
East that has been central to three wars since 1980. Some of the world’s
greatest ancient civilizations—Assyria, Babylonia, and Sumer—developed in the
area that now makes up Iraq. The modern state of Iraq was created in 1920 by
the British government, whose forces had occupied it during World War I
(1914-1918). The country is officially named the Republic of Iraq (Al
Jumhūrīyah al-‘Iraqia in Arabic). Baghdād is the capital and largest city.