Iranian Influence

The Karadah security district is located in central Baghdad, on the southeastern bank of the Tigris River. To the north and northeast, Karadah neighbors the districts of Rusafa and 9 Nissan, respectively. Opposite the Tigris, the Karadah peninsula neighbors the Karkh district to the north and the Rasheed district to the south.

The 9 Nissan security district, also referred to as Tissa Nissan or New Baghdad, is located in eastern Baghdad. The Diyala River runs along 9 Nissan’s eastern border. On its southwestern edge, 9 Nissan borders the Karadah and Rusafa security districts.

Sadr City, a sprawling slum in northeastern Baghdad, is home to over 2 million Iraqis and has the largest Shi’a population in Baghdad. Sadr City was built in 1959 and unofficially named for Ayatollah Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr, the highly-revered Shi’a cleric who was assassinated by the Saddam Hussein’s regime in 1999. Sadr City presents one of the biggest security challenges for U.S. forces in Baghdad.

Situated in northeast Baghdad along the Tigris River, the Adhamiyah security district neighbors Sadr City to the southeast, Rusafa to the south, and the Kadhimiyah district across the Tigris. The district is made up of a number of smaller neighborhoods, including Adhamiyah, Basateen, Beida, Maghreb, Qahira, Rabi, Shamasiya, Shaab, Tunis, Ur, and Waziriya.

Baghdad Security Districts:

The southern provinces of Maysan, Dhi Qar, Muthanna, and Basra are populated almost entirely by Shi’a Arabs, in the major cities of Amarah, Nasariyah, and Basra, as well as in the rural marshlands. Of these provinces, Basra is the primary economic hub.

The mid-Euphrates region of Iraq lies south of Baghdad. Its main cities include Karbala, Hillah, Kut (الكوت), Diwaniyah (الديوانية), and Najaf (النجف). The population is predominantly Shi'a in the south and generally a mixture of Sunni and Shi'a to the north of Hillah and northwest of Kut. Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) play an important role in this region, particularly the 8th Iraqi Army Division led by the capable General Othman Ali Ferhood.

The Iraqi province of Diyala lies to the north of Baghdad. Its shares its eastern border with Iran, its northern border with Kurdistan, and its western border is shaped by the flow of the Tigris River. The Diyala River, a tributary of the Tigris, flows south through Diyala before meeting with the Tigris just south of Baghdad. Diyala's main cities include Baqubah (its capital), Muqdadiyah, Balad Ruz, Khalis, and Khanaqin.  The province has a mix of Sunni Arab, Shi'a, and Kurdish residents.