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Oil
Share of global reserves: 10.0%
More info: How Much Oil Does Iraq Have? by IAGS' Gal Luft
Share of global production (2003): 1.8%
More info: Iraq's Oil Sector One Year After Liberation by IAGS' Gal Luft
Share of petroleum sector in the economy: provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings and 50% of GDP.
Iraq Pipeline Watch: List of attacks on Iraqi oil targets
Demographics
Population: 25.4 million
Population growth rate: 2.74% (2004 est.)
GDP per capita: $1,500 (2004 est.)
Government type: none; note - the Interim Government was appointed on 1 June 2004
Religions: Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60%-65%, Sunni 32%-37%)
Literacy: 40.4%
Freedom House Ranking: not free
Political situation: 1980-1988: The Iran-Iraq War.
March 1988: Saddam Hussein uses nerve gas to attack Kurds. In the northern Iraq town of Halabja, nearly 5,000 men, women and children are killed. August 1990: Iraq invades Kuwait. The U.N. Security Council unanimously approves Resolution 660 condemning the Iraqi invasion and calling for an immediate and unconditional withdrawal. January 1991: The Gulf War begins. April 1991: An Iraqi army offensive against Kurds in northern Iraq results in 2 million Kurdish refugees. June 1991: The U.N. Special Commission (UNSCOM) is established to monitor Iraqi disarmament. December 1998: The U.S. begins a four-day air strike campaign ("Operation Desert Fox") against Iraq hours after U.N. military inspectors declare that their work in Iraq has been blocked. October 2002: President Bush signs a resolution by the U.S. Congress authorizing him to use force against Iraq if necessary. Meanwhile, debate
continues at the UN regarding a possible new Security Council resolution on Iraq.
March 2003: U.S.-led coalition of more than 40 nations launched military campaign against Iraq with the objective of removing Saddam Hussein's regime and disarming Iraq from weapons of mass destruction in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1441.
Additional information
Fencing in looters and saboteurs in Iraq
Minding Its Business - Saudi Arabia has not acted to aid U.S. efforts to rebuild Iraq
U.S. Dept. of Energy country analysis brief
CIA World Factbook
Library of Congress
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