The nation of Iraq is a land of stark contrasts, with the fertile plains of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, high mountains, and desert. This historic region was the site of the
ancient Sumerian, Assyrian, and Babylonian empires.

Iraq has an agonizing history caused by great religious and ethnic diversity. Following a violent revolution in 1958, Iraq became a repressive dictatorship.

Except for the Assyrian and Armenian minorities, all peoples of Iraq are unreached. There is no known direct witness to the Shi'a Arabs of the south; The Marsh Arabs, with their distinctive culture; the Bedouin; Turkmen; Farsi; or Gypsies.