Iskan, Al Iskan or Al-Iskan (/ɑːlɪskɑːn/) Arabic: الإسكان, are a series of cities built and founded by the 24th prime minister of Iraq, the late Abdul-Karim Qasim. He built an Al-Iskan in each of the 18 provinces of Iraq as a bid to help implement a number of positive domestic changes that benefited Iraqi society, thus; oversaw the building of 35,000 residential units to house the poor and destitute of Iraq.[2]

Iskan
الإسكان
Housing City
City of Al-Iskan in the Karbala Governorate
Picture of Masjid Al Rahman located within central Al-Iskan, Karbala Governorate.
Picture of Masjid Al Rahman located within central Al-Iskan, Karbala Governorate.
Map
Interactive map of Iskan
Coordinates: 32°35′23.9136″N 44°1′22.8792″E / 32.589976000°N 44.023022000°E / 32.589976000; 44.023022000
CountryIraq
GovernorateKarbala
CityAl-Iskan
Created1959–1961
Founded byAbd al-Karim Qasim[1]

In the 1950s and 60s, poverty and hardship were widespread across Iraq[3] and to combat this issue, Abd al-Karim Qasim built these cities to house the poor and homeless of Iraq meaning that all the residents of Al-Iskan in each governorate come from an impoverished and deprived background, due to this – these cities are seen as rough neighbourhoods where kidnapping, murder and other major crimes are rife compared to other areas of Iraq.[4][5]

Provinces where an Iskan was built

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See also

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References

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  1. Marr, Phebe (2004). The Modern History of Iraq. Westview Press. ISBN 9780813336152. pg 164
  2. Farouk–Sluglett, Marion; Sluglett, Peter (2001). Iraq Since 1958: From Revolution to Dictatorship. I.B. Tauris. pp. 76–78. ISBN 9780857713735
  3. "Hunger and Poverty in Iraq, 1991" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 August 2010.
  4. Glanz, James (3 April 2005). "Iraq's Dislocated Minorities Struggle in Urban Enclaves". The New York Times.
  5. "Iraq: Events of 2018". English. 17 January 2019.