Iraq is a republic with about 28 million inhabitants which is situated in the middle east. Iraq's neighbours Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Iran and Kuwait. In the south just to the east bordering the Persian Gulf. At the River Tigris, the capital Baghdad, where about 5 million people reside. Other major cities Mosul and Kirkuk, Erbil, the religious cities of Najaf, Karbala, Kufa and the port of Basra. Iraq consists of swamp areas, mountains, steppe and desert areas. There is, for the most part a desert climate. At the Unesco World: Hatra, an archaeological site, the ancient Assyrian city of Ashur Qalat Sjergat and the Mesopotamian city of Samarra.