Governorates of Iraq

History

Throughout early 2014, the Council of Ministers of Iraq approved proposals to add the three newly proposed governorates:

• Tal Afar, from part of Nineveh Governorate
• Tuz Khurmatu, from part of Saladin Governorate
• Nineveh Plains from the Nineveh Governorate.
• Halabja from Sulaymaniah Governorate

In 2013, activists and political parties called for the conversion of Hawija from a District into a governorate, but the Kirkuk government blocked the proposal.

Shortly after the approval of the proposals, the Islamic State attacked the cities, towns and villages of the Nineveh Plains. Upon the eventual withdrawal of ISIS, the initial decision by the Council of Ministers was dishonored by Kurdistan, Baghdad and Iranian-connected political entities, as they began pushing security forces into different parts of the Nineveh Plains to try and lay claim to different parts of the territory, asserting that the demographics had changed due to ISIS and that the original inhabitants could no longer be representatives of their indigenous land. Part of the reason for the demographic shift was that squatters were encouraged to occupy Christian homes. Without enough paperwork to prove ownership, some of those homes became extremely challenging to reclaim. Initiatives are underway to help reclaim families' homes.

Another proposal exists to add a 19th governorate: Fallujah, from part of the Al Anbar. This largely did not occur due to the ISIS insurgency. Following the defeat of ISIS in the Battle of Fallujah (2016), the proposal may resurface or Al-Anbar may remain undivided.

List of governorates

Former governorates

Flags

References

bg:Административно деление на Ирак ps:د عراق ولایتونه pl:Podział administracyjny Iraku ru:Тамбовская область

References

1. "Iraq's Constitution of 2005".
2. "Halabja: City of Peace becomes Kurdistan's fourth province".
3. "Iraqi Kurdistan government announces Halabja as its fourth province".
4. "Iraq Ministers Agree Turning Halabja into Province".
5. (31 December 2013). "Council of Ministers decisions in Session 54 in 31/12/2013".
6. "Halabja on the cusp of ascension to province on 35th anniversary of chemical attack".
7. "Iraqi parliament approves Halabja as country's 19th province".
8. "KRG welcomes Iraqi parliament's approval of Halabja as province".
9. (21 January 2014). "Resolutions of Council of Ministers For Session No. 3 on 21/1/2014".
10. (21 January 2014). "Iraqi Council of Ministers approved new provinces of Tuz Xurmatu and Tal Afar". Kurd Net.
11. BetBasoo 1 and Kino 2, Peter 1 and Nuri 2. (22 January 2014). "Assyria: Nineveh Plain To Become Iraqi Province".
12. Network, Esta Media. (13 March 2023). "Iraq recognizes Halabja as its 19th governorate".
13. "Iraq: What is the strategic importance of Hawija?".
14. Lucente, Adam. (26 April 2020). "In post-Islamic State northern Iraq, demographic changes raise concerns".
15. (8 September 2008). "Iraq: Government cracks down on squatters".
16. "Original PDF".
17. (7 October 2021). "Anbar governor Ali Farhan al-Dulaimi speaks to AFP at his office in".
18. "Baghdad Governorate (Iraq)".
19. (15 June 2021). "محافظ بغداد يؤكد اتخاذ اجراءات مشددة على المولدات الاهلية لمنع رفع الاسعار".
20. "Gulf 25 inspection team concludes its tour of Basra, holds a press conference – اتحاد كأس الخليج العربي لكرة القدم".
21. "Deputy governor of Diyala contracts COVID-19".
22. (13 May 2022). "IRAQ: Ramy Noori appointed mayor of Ankawa District by Erbil Provincial Council".
23. (4 May 2013). "A Sadrist Governor is a Folk Hero to Iraqis". The New York Times.
24. (29 June 2022). "محافظ النجف الاشرف الدكتور المهندس ماجد الوائلي يستعرض اهم المشاريع في قضاء الكوفة". najaf media.
25. "Mosul, Iraq. 2nd July, 2019. New governor of Nineveh Mansour al-Mar'eed speaks to Xinhua in an interview at his office in Nineveh province, Iraq, July 2, 2019. The governor of Iraq's northern province of Nineveh called on the Chinese companies to take part in the reconstruction of its capital Mosul. TO GO WITH: Iraqi governor calls on Chinese companies to take part in reconstruction of Mosul. Credit: Khalil Dawood/Xinhua/Alamy Live News Stock Photo – Alamy".
26. "Saladin (Salah ed-Din) Governorate (Iraq)".
27. "Chaos prevails in Saladin as two governors lock horns over who runs the governorate".
28. (2025-03-04). "محافظة كركوك تعتمد شعاراً جديداً باللون الرصاصي". shafaq.com.
29. "الموقع الرسمي لمحافظة الديوانية – النائب الثاني لمحافظ الديوانية يتراس اجتماع غرفة عمليات الطاقة في المحافظة".
30. slemani.gov. (14 June 2022). "رەوشی مافەكانی مرۆڤ تاووتوێ‌ دەكرێت https://t.co/iT3fPt3Tui https://t.co/P9ZVqR5vDv https://t.co/xutgAlQztV https://t.co/7M8B9ip87O https://t.co/3JrqGjKZZU https://t.co/xL8fxXDw6I".