Saladin Governorate Explained

Official Name:Şalāḩ ad Dīn
Native Name:Arabic: صلاح الدين
Mapsize:200px
Settlement Type:Governorate
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Iraq
Subdivision Type1:Capital
Subdivision Name1:Tikrit
Subdivision Type2:Governor
Subdivision Name2:Badir al-Fahl
Coordinates:34.45°N 78°W
Population As Of:2018
Population Total:1,595,235
Area Total Km2:24,751
Blank Name Sec1:Official language(s)
Blank Info Sec1:Arabic
Blank Name Sec2:HDI (2021)
Blank Info Sec2:0.692[1]
Saladin Governorate

The Saladin, Salah ad Din, or Salah Al-Din Governorate (Arabic: محافظة صلاح الدين) is one of Iraq's 19 governorates, north of Baghdad. It has an area of 24363km2, with an estimated population of 1,042,200 people in 2003. It is made up of 8 districts, with the capital being Tikrit. Before 1976 the governorate was part of Baghdad Governorate.

The governorate is named after the Kurdish Muslim leader Saladin or Salah ad Din, who hailed from the governorate. This Sunni-dominated governorate is also known as the home of Saddam Hussein, who hailed from the village of Al-Awja. Salah Al-Din governorate, a traditional stronghold of Saddam and his Al-Bu Nasir tribe that is located in the heart of the Sunni Triangle, has been rocked by insurgencies, sectarian violence and tribal rivalries ever since Coalition forces invaded Iraq in 2003.[2]

Overview

Saladin Governorate contains a number of important religious and cultural sites. Samarra, the governorate's largest city, is home to both the Al-Askari Shrine (an important religious site in Shia Islam where the 10th and 11th Shia Imams are buried), the Sardab where the 12th Imam al-Mahdi went into occultation, and the Great Mosque of Samarra with its distinctive Malwiya minaret. It also contains an old Zengid mosque.

Samarra was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate in the 9th century CE, and today Abbasid Samarra is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The ancient Neo-Assyrian Empire Assyrian city of Assur is located in Al-Shirqat District on the banks of the Tigris River. Other sites in the governorate include the Crusader Dome (القبة الصلبية) north of Samarra and the Al-`Ashaq Palace (قصر العاشق). Today, the Saladin Governorate has a diverse population of Arabs, Kurds, Turkmens and Assyrians.

In January 2014, there were plans announced by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to make the Tuz Khurmatu district into a new governorate due to its Turkmen majority.[3] However, these plans were not implemented.[4]

Autonomy

In October 2011, the governorate's administration declared itself a semi-autonomous region, explaining that the declaration was in response to the central government's "domination over the provincial council authorities".[5] Saladin, which is a largely Sunni governorate, is also hoping that by declaring themselves an autonomous region within Iraq, it will entail them to a larger portion of government funding.[5] The council cited "article 119 of Iraq's constitution" in its call for autonomy, which states that "one or more governorates shall have the right to organize into a region" if one third of the Provincial Council members or one tenth of the voters request to form a region".[6]

Provincial government

Districts

Towns and cities

Population

The following table shows the populations of the districts of Saladin Governorate, according to the United Nations in 2003. No data is available for Dujail District.

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab. hdi.globaldatalab.org. en. 2018-09-13.
  2. Web site: 24 January 2007 . Iraq: No end to violence in Saddam's home province . ReliefWeb.
  3. News: Iraqi Council of Ministers approved new provinces of Tuz Khurmatu and Tal Afar . Kurd Net . 21 January 2014 . 23 August 2014.
  4. See for example the following newspaper article from July 2015, which refers to Tuz Khurmatu as part of Saldin Governorate. Web site: محتجون يتظاهرون في طوزخورماتو ضد القصف التركي . Protestors demonstrate in Tuz Khurmatu . شفق نيوز . 2015-07-30 . ar.
  5. Web site: Hammoudi . Laith . Saddam's home province declares regional autonomy in Iraq . 27 October 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20111210154253/http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/10/27/128503/saddams-home-province-declares.html. 10 December 2011. McClatchy Newspapers. 4 January 2020.
  6. Web site: Baghdad tries to cancel demands of Diyala Province . Kurdsat TV . 15 December 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20111214160234/http://www.kurdsat.tv/news.php?id=373&type=kurdistan . 14 December 2011 .
  7. News: Fierce clashes rage around IS-held Iraqi city of Tikrit - BBC News. BBC News. 3 March 2015. 2015-07-28 .
  8. Web site: Iraq: Saladin governor protests Shia militia's looting . Middle East Monitor - The Latest from the Middle East . 4 April 2015 . 28 July 2015 . 22 July 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150722220117/https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/middle-east/17883-iraq-saladin-governor-protests-shia-militias-looting . dead .