Diyala Governorate

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Country	Iraq
Diyala Governorate (Arabic: ديالى)

Capital	Baqubah
Area
- Governorate	17,685 km² (6,828.2 sq mi)
Population (2003)
- Governorate	1,271,000
Main language(s)	Arabic Kurdish

Diyala (Arabic: ديالى) is one of the constituent governorates of the nation of Iraq.

1 Geography
2 Government
- 2.1 Districts
- 2.2 Cities, Towns, Villages, Settlements
3 Infrastructure
4 Civil Unrest

[edit] Geography

It extends to the northeast of Baghdad as far as the Iranian border. Its capital is Baqubah.

Diyala province covers an area of 17,685 square kilometres (6,828 sq mi).

A large portion of the province is drained by the Diyala River, a major tributary of the Tigris. Because of its proximity to two major sources of water, Diyala's main industry is agriculture, primarily dates grown in large Date Palm groves. It is also recognized as the orange capital of the Middle East.

The Hamrin mountains are in this governorate.

[edit] Government

The current governor is Ra’ad Hameed Al-Mula Jowad Al-Tanimi [1]

In 2003, it had an estimated population of some 1,271,000 people, mostly Sunni Arabs, with a sizeable community of Shi'a Arabs and Kurds.

[edit] Districts

Al Khalis whose population center is the city by the same name. The city of Al Khalis is roughly 15 kilometers (9 mi) North of Baqubah.

Muqdadiyah also has a population center by the same name. The city of Muqdadiya is roughly 100 kilometers (60 mi) Northeast of Baqubah.

Baqubah one of the major cities in Iraq which is centrally located in the province, roughly 25 kilometers (15 mi) East of the Tigris River and divided in half by the Diyala River. the city of Baqubah is roughly 200 kilometers (125 mi) Northeast of Baghdad.

Balad Ruz is in the southern portion of the Diyala province about half way between Baqubah and Baghdad.

Khanaqin

Kifri

[edit] Cities, Towns, Villages, Settlements

Al Khalis
As-Sadiyah
Ashraf City
Baqubah
Jalula
Kingirban [2]
Marfu Village
Muqdadiyah
Village of Nye
Udame
Kingirban

[edit] Infrastructure

The Diyala Province also boasts the Diyala Media Center which has one of the Middle East's tallest radio and television antenna's at 349 metres (1,047 ft). The Diyala Media Center was built under contract by a Japanese architectural firm in 1989. It is one of Iraq's few independent radio and television stations that offer local television and radio news coverage as well as rebroadcasting the state run television media.

[edit] Civil Unrest

There is evidence that Al-Qaeda in Iraq has recently moved its base of operations from Anbar province to Diyala. During late 2006 Baqubah and much of the Diyala province were reported to have come under Sunni insurgent control. [3] This insurgent control is reported to have continued as of early 2007 [4]