Iran vs. Iraq
Government
| Iran | Iraq | |
|---|---|---|
| Country name | conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran conventional short form: Iran local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran local short form: Iran former: Persia etymology: name derives from the Avestan term "aryanam" meaning "Land of the Noble [Ones]" | conventional long form: Republic of Iraq conventional short form: Iraq local long form: Jumhuriyat al-Iraq/Komar-i Eraq local short form: Al Iraq/Eraq former: Mesopotamia, Mandatory Iraq, Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq etymology: the name probably derives from "Uruk" (Biblical "Erech"), the ancient Sumerian and Babylonian city on the Euphrates River |
| Government type | theocratic republic | federal parliamentary republic |
| Capital | name: Tehran geographic coordinates: 35 42 N, 51 25 E time difference: UTC+3.5 (8.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins fourth Wednesday in March; ends fourth Friday in September etymology: various explanations of the city's name have been proffered, but the most plausible states that it derives from the Persian words "tah" meaning "end or bottom" and "ran" meaning "[mountain] slope" to signify "bottom of the mountain slope"; Tehran lies at the bottom slope of the Elburz Mountains | name: Baghdad geographic coordinates: 33 20 N, 44 24 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) although the origin of the name is disputed, it likely has compound Persian roots with "bagh" and "dad" meaning "god" and "given" respectively to create the meaning of "bestowed by God" |
| Administrative divisions | 31 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Alborz, Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi (West Azerbaijan), Azarbayjan-e Sharqi (East Azerbaijan), Bushehr, Chahar Mahal va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan-e Jonubi (South Khorasan), Khorasan-e Razavi (Razavi Khorasan), Khorasan-e Shomali (North Khorasan), Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Bowyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan | 18 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah (Arabic); parezgakan, singular - parezga (Kurdish)) and 1 region*; Al Anbar; Al Basrah; Al Muthanna; Al Qadisiyah (Ad Diwaniyah); An Najaf; Arbil (Erbil) (Arabic), Hewler (Kurdish); As Sulaymaniyah (Arabic), Slemani (Kurdish); Babil; Baghdad; Dahuk (Arabic), Dihok (Kurdish); Dhi Qar; Diyala; Karbala'; Kirkuk; Kurdistan Regional Government*; Maysan; Ninawa; Salah ad Din; Wasit |
| Independence | 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed); notable earlier dates: ca. 550 B.C. (Achaemenid (Persian) Empire established); A.D. 1501 (Iran reunified under the Safavid Dynasty); 1794 (beginning of Qajar Dynasty); 12 December 1925 (modern Iran established under the PAHLAVI Dynasty) | 3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration); note - on 28 June 2004 the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government |
| National holiday | Republic Day, 1 April (1979) | Independence Day, 3 October (1932); Republic Day, 14 July (1958) |
| Constitution | history: previous 1906; latest adopted 24 October 1979, effective 3 December 1979 amendments: proposed by the supreme leader - after consultation with the Exigency Council - and submitted as an edict to the "Council for Revision of the Constitution," a body consisting of various executive, legislative, judicial, and academic leaders and members; passage requires absolute majority vote in a referendum and approval of the supreme leader; articles including Iran's political system, its religious basis, and its form of government cannot be amended; amended 1989 | history: several previous; latest adopted by referendum 15 October 2005 amendments: proposed by the president of the republic and the Council of Minsters collectively, or by one fifth of the Council of Representatives members; passage requires at least two-thirds majority vote by the Council of Representatives, approval by referendum, and ratification by the president; passage of amendments to articles on citizen rights and liberties requires two-thirds majority vote of Council of Representatives members after two successive electoral terms, approval in a referendum, and ratification by the president |
| Legal system | religious legal system based on secular and Islamic law | mixed legal system of civil and Islamic law |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: Supreme Leader Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989) head of government: President-elect Ebrahim RAISI (since 18 June 2021); First Vice President Eshagh JAHANGIRI (since 5 August 2013) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval; the supreme leader has some control over appointments to several ministries elections/appointments: supreme leader appointed for life by Assembly of Experts; president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term and an additional nonconsecutive term); election last held on 18 June 2012 (next to be held in June 2025) election results: Ebrahim RAISI elected president; percent of vote - Ebrahim RAISI (CCA) 72.4%, Mohsen Rezaee MIRGHA'ED (RFII) 13.8%, Abbdolnaser HEMMATI (ECP) 9.8%, Amir Hossein Hossein Ghazizadegh HASHEMI (Islamic Law Party) 4% note: 3 oversight bodies are also considered part of the executive branch of government | chief of state: President Barham SALIH (since 2 October 2018); vice presidents (vacant) head of government: Prime Minister Mustafa al-KADHIMI (since 7 May 2020) cabinet: Council of Ministers proposed by the prime minister, approved by Council of Representatives elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by Council of Representatives (COR) to serve a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); COR election last held on 12 May 2018 (next NA) election results: COR vote in first round - Barham SALIH (PUK) 165, Fuad HUSAYN (KDP) 90; Barham SALIH elected president in second round - Barham SALIH 219, Fuad HUSAYN 22; note - the COR vote on 1 October 2018 failed due to a lack of quorum, and a new session was held on 2 October |
| Legislative branch | description: unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e Shura-ye Eslami or Majles (290 seats; 285 members directly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by 2-round vote, and 1 seat each for Zoroastrians, Jews, Assyrian and Chaldean Christians, Armenians in the north of the country and Armenians in the south; members serve 4-year terms); note - all candidates to the Majles must be approved by the Council of Guardians, a 12-member group of which 6 are appointed by the supreme leader and 6 are jurists nominated by the judiciary and elected by the Majles elections: first round held on 21 February 2020 and second round for 11 remaining seats held on 11 September 2020 (next full Majles election to be held in 2024) election results: percent of vote by coalition (first round) - NA; seats by coalition (first round) - conservatives 219, reformists 20, independents 35, religious minorities 5; remaining 11 seats to be decided in April 2020 | description: unicameral Council of Representatives or Majlis an-Nuwwab al-Iraqiyy (329 seats; 320 members directly elected in 83 multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 9 seats at the national level reserved for minorities - 5 for Christians, 1 each for Sabaean-Mandaeans, Yazidis, Shabaks, Fayli Kurds; 25% of seats allocated to women; members serve 4-year terms); note - in early November 2020, the president ratified a new electoral law - approved by the Council of Representatives in late October - that eliminates the proportional representation electoral system elections: last held on 12 May 2018 (next to be held on 10 October 2021) election results: percent of vote by party/coalition - NA; seats by party/coalition - Sa'irun Alliance 54, Al Fatah Alliance 48, Al Nasr Alliance 42, KDP 25, State of Law Coalition 25, Wataniyah 21, National Wisdom Trend 19, PUK 18, Iraqi Decision Alliance 14, Anbar Our Identity 6, Goran Movement 5, New Generation 4, other 48; composition - men 245, women 84, percent of women 25.5% |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and organized into 42 two-bench branches, each with a justice and a judge) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court president appointed by the head of the High Judicial Council (HJC), a 5-member body to include the Supreme Court chief justice, the prosecutor general, and 3 clergy, in consultation with judges of the Supreme Court; president appointed for a single, renewable 5-year term; other judges appointed by the HJC; judge tenure NA subordinate courts: Penal Courts I and II; Islamic Revolutionary Courts; Courts of Peace; Special Clerical Court (functions outside the judicial system and handles cases involving clerics); military courts | highest courts: Federal Supreme Court or FSC (consists of 9 judges); note - court jurisdiction limited to constitutional issues and disputes between regions or governorates and the central government; Court of Cassation (consists of a court president, 5 vice presidents, and at least 24 judges) judge selection and term of office: Federal Supreme Court and Court of Cassation judges selected by the president of the republic from nominees selected by the Higher Judicial Council (HJC), a 25-member committee of judicial officials that manages the judiciary and prosecutors; FSC members appointed for life; Court of Cassation judges appointed by the HJC and confirmed by the Council of Representatives to serve until retirement nominally at age 63 subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal (governorate level); civil courts, including first instance, personal status, labor, and customs; criminal courts including felony, misdemeanor, investigative, major crimes, juvenile, and traffic courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Combatant Clergy Association (an active political group) Council for Coordinating the Reforms Front Executives of Construction Party Followers of the Guardianship of the Jurisprudent [Ali LARIJANI] Front of Islamic Revolutionary Stability [Morteza AGHA-TEHRANI, general secretary] Islamic Coalition Party Islamic Iran Participation Front [associated with former President Mohammed KHATAMI] Islamic Law Party Militant Clerics Society Moderation and Development Party National Trust Party National Unity Party Pervasive Coalition of Reformists [Ali SUFI, chairman] (includes Council for Coordinating the Reforms Front, National Trust Party, Union of Islamic Iran People Party, Moderation and Development Party) Principlists Grand Coalition [Ali Reza ZAKANI] (includes Combatant Clergy Association and Islamic Coalition Party, Society of Devotees and Pathseekers of the Islamic Revolution, Front of Islamic Revolution Stability) Progress, Welfare, and Justice Front Progress and Justice Population of Islamic Iran or PJP [Hosein GHORBANZADEH, general secretary] Resistance Front of Islamic Iran [Yadollah HABIBI, general secretary] Steadfastness Front Union of Islamic Iran People's Party Wayfarers of the Islamic Revolution | Al Fatah Alliance [Hadi al-AMIRI] Al Nasr Alliance [Haydar al-ABADI] Al Sadiqun Bloc [Adnan al-DULAYMI] Al Sa'irun Alliance [Muqtda al-SADR] Badr Organization [Hadi al-AMIRI] Da`wa Party [Nuri al-MALIKI] Fadilah Party [Muhammad al-YAQUBI] Goran Movement [Omar SAYYID ALI] Iraqi Communist Party [Hamid Majid MUSA] Iraq Decision Alliance [Khamis al-KHANJAR, Usama al-NUJAYFI] Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq or ISCI [Humam HAMMUDI] Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP [Masoud BARZANI] National Wisdom Trend [Ammar al-HAKIM] New Generation Movement [SHASWAR Abd al-Wahid Qadir] Our Identity [Muhammad al-HALBUSI] Patriotic Union of Kurdistan or PUK [KOSRAT Rasul Ali, acting] State of Law Coalition [Nuri al MALIKI Wataniyah coalition [Ayad ALLAWI] numerous smaller religious, local, tribal, and minority parties |
| International organization participation | CICA, CP, D-8, ECO, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, SAARC (observer), SCO (observer), UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, CICA, EITI (compliant country), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: none; Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy; address: Iranian Interests Section, Embassy of Pakistan, 1250 23rd Street NW, Washington, DC 20037; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990; FAX [1] (202) 965-1073; info@daftar.org | chief of mission: Ambassador Fareed Mustafa Kamil YASSEEN (since 18 January 2017) chancery: 3421 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 742-1600 FAX: [1] (202) 333-1129 email address and website: http://www.iraqiembassy.us/ consulate(s) general: Detroit, Los Angeles |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | embassy: none; the US Interests Section is located in the Embassy of Switzerland; US Foreign Interests Section, Embassy of Switzerland, Pasdaran, Shahid Mousavi Street (Golestan 5th), Corner of Paydarfard Street, No. 55, Tehran | chief of mission: Ambassador Matthew TUELLER (since 9 June 2019) embassy: Al-Kindi Street, International Zone, Baghdad; note - consulate in Al Basrah closed as of 28 September 2018 mailing address: 6060 Baghdad Place, Washington DC 20521-6060 telephone: 0760-030-3000 email address and website: BaghdadACS@state.gov https://iq.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of martyrdom) in red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band; green is the color of Islam and also represents growth, white symbolizes honesty and peace, red stands for bravery and martyrdom | three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; the Takbir (Arabic expression meaning "God is great") in green Arabic script is centered in the white band; the band colors derive from the Arab Liberation flag and represent oppression (black), overcome through bloody struggle (red), to be replaced by a bright future (white); the Council of Representatives approved this flag in 2008 as a compromise replacement for the Ba'thist SADDAM-era flag note: similar to the flag of Syria, which has two stars but no script; Yemen, which has a plain white band; and that of Egypt, which has a golden Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band |
| National anthem | name: "Soroud-e Melli-ye Jomhouri-ye Eslami-ye Iran" (National Anthem of the Islamic Republic of Iran) lyrics/music: multiple authors/Hassan RIAHI note 1: adopted 1990; Iran has had six national anthems; the first, entitled Salam-e Shah (Royal Salute) was in use from 1873-1909; next came Salamati-ye Dowlat-e Elliye-ye Iran (Salute of the Sublime State of Persia, 1909-1933); it was followed by Sorud-e melli (The Imperial Anthem of Iran; 1933-1979), which chronicled the exploits of the Pahlavi Dynasty; Ey Iran (Oh Iran) functioned unofficially as the national anthem for a brief period between the ouster of the Shah in 1979 and the early days of the Islamic Republic in 1980; Payandeh Bada Iran (Long Live Iran) was used between 1980 and 1990 during the time of Ayatollah KHOMEINI note 2: a recording of the current Iranian national anthem is unavailable since the US Navy Band does not record anthems for countries from which the US does not anticipate official visits; the US does not have diplomatic relations with Iran | name: "Mawtini" (My Homeland) lyrics/music: Ibrahim TOUQAN/Mohammad FLAYFEL note: adopted 2004; following the ouster of SADDAM Husayn, Iraq adopted "Mawtini," a popular folk song throughout the Arab world; also serves as an unofficial anthem of the Palestinian people |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt |
| National symbol(s) | lion; national colors: green, white, red | golden eagle; national colors: red, white, black |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Iran dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Iraq dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years |
Source: CIA Factbook
