Baghdad, a city that has risen and fallen countless times over the centuries, is enjoying a period of relative peace. I took the opportunity to walk the streets of a city that I had long wanted to explore.
The capital of Iraq has spent much of the last 20 years in turmoil, but there are few more resilient cities in the world. It has rebuilt itself many times over.
There has been a settlement here on the Tigris for nearly 4000 years. The famous fortified round city from the 8th century developed into the richest city in the world. An epicentre of trade and learning. Then came the sieges of the Persians and the Mongols, and the destruction of Tamerlane, not to mention catastrophic floods and plagues. Ottoman rule from the 15th century then gave way to British rule, followed by the regime of Saddam Hussein, followed by the American invasion which led to sectarian civil war. Thankfully Islamic State were held back, but only just. If ever a city deserved a period of peace its Baghdad. But you won’t find much peace on the roads. Don’t think of renting a car here. Red lights have no meaning and there appear to be no rules.
No target was off-limits during the worst years of the civil unrest. The Mutanabi street book market, long a symbol of intellectual freedom, was blown apart by a car bomb in 2007. 30 people were killed. The wreckage of the car is now an exhibit at the Imperial War Museum in London.
Museum.
There were no winners in the tragic Iran - Iraq War but Saddam nonetheless erected a victory arch with replicas of his own hands holding two swords. It stands in the Green zone, a heavy guarded city within a city which houses government buildings, embassies and residences of the Baghdad elite. An enduring symbol of the fragile peace in this city.
A monument that I was keen to see was the Martys Monument. Two Giant tear drops commemorating both those killed in the war with Iran and now also the Kurdish and Shia victims of Saddam Hussein. Access is restricted but you can’t help but be moved by the significance of this vast sculpture.
It’s estimated that 15,000 items were stolen. Many have been lost forever, but the work that has been done to reassemble Iraq’s heritage is remarkable. The museum houses so many treasures from sites such as Babylon, Hatta, Nineveh, and Nimrod that the casual observer would never be able to image what had happened here. It may lack a shop, a cafe and the other facilities of its cousins in Paris, London and New York, but make no mistake, this is a world class museum.
Apart from the museum there is little other evidence of the richness of Baghdad’s past. The city is choked with traffic, and sprawls in all directions with little evidence of investment and development when compared say to Erbil in Kurdistan. The international hotel chains are still absent. But some new developments are being marketed so perhaps the cityscape may be very different in ten years time, if the peace can be maintained,but whatever is coming next Baghdad will endure, as it always has.
Big thanks to Qutaiba Ahmed (qtoursiraq.com).
Tour arranged through Rocky Road
Filmed October 2024
Jonathan Wheeler
@TravelObscurer
Music licensed through Artlist
#baghdad #iraqtravel