orthern Iraq, a "Kurdish Assembly" was elected in May 1992
and calls for Kurdish self-determination within a federated Iraq;
the assembly is not recognized by the Baghdad government

Judicial branch: Court of Cassation

Political parties and leaders: Ba'th Party, SADDAM Husayn, central
party leader

Other political or pressure groups: political parties and activity
severely restricted; opposition to regime from disaffected members
of the Ba'th Party, Army officers, tribes, and Shi'a religious and
ethnic Kurdish dissidents; the Green Party (government-controlled)

International organization participation: ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AL,
AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-19, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA,
IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol,
IOC, ITU, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO

Diplomatic representation in US: none; note - Iraq has an Interest
Section in the Algerian Embassy; address: Iraqi Interests Section,
Algerian Embassy, 1801 P Street NW, Washington, DC 20036; telephone:
[1] (202) 483-7500; FAX: [1] (202) 462-5066

US diplomatic representation: none; note - the US has an Interests
Section in the Polish Embassy in Baghdad, which is in the Masbah
Quarter (opposite the Foreign Ministry Club); address: P. O. Box
2447 Alwiyah, Baghdad; telephone: [964] (1) 719-6138, 719-6139,
718-1840, 719-3791; Telex 212287

Flag: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black
with three green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in
the white band; the phrase ALLAHU AKBAR (God is Great) in green
Arabic script - Allahu to the right of the middle star and Akbar to
the left of the middle star - was added in January 1991 during the
Persian Gulf crisis; similar to the flag of Syria that has two stars
but no script and the flag of Yemen that has a plain white band;
also similar to the flag of Egypt that has a symbolic eagle centered
in the white band

Economy
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Economic overview: The Ba'thist regime engages in extensive
central planning and management of industrial production and foreign
trade while leaving some small-scale industry and services and most
agriculture to private enterprise. The economy has been dominated by
the oil sector, which has traditionally provided about 95% of
foreign exchange earnings. In the 1980s, financial problems caused
b