Iraq to build 'tourist city' for archeological sites 

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – An Iraqi antiquity official announced on Monday that the country plans to build a tourist city in the southern province of Dhi Qar, where there are numerous archaeological sites from the Mesopotamian era. 

The mega tourist project will feature hotels, museums, research centers, and souvenir shops, Director of Dhi-Qar Antiquities Ameer Abdul Razzaq told the state-owned media Iraq News Agency on Monday. 

Furthermore, Abdul Razzaq said there are plans for a new railway for transporting tourists to Iraq's southern marshes. 

So far, around 30 billion Iraq dinars (just above $20 million) has been allocated to the giant project. However, it will require more than that, according to Abdul Razzaq. 

Upon its inauguration, the project will be one of the largest tourist sites in the Middle East, he added. 

Dhi Qar province has archaeological sites from several ancient Sumerian civilizations, including Ur, Eridu, Ngirsu, and Lagash. 

The Euphrates River, one of Iraq's twin rivers, flows through the province and into the southern marshes that served as the backbone for human settlements for centuries until the former Baathist regime intentionally drained them. 

International organizations had designated the province as one of the poorest in Iraq, with 32 percent of the population living below the national poverty line.

In his visit to Iraq and the Kurdistan Region in March 2021, Pope Francis and the country's faith leaders convened near the province's archeological sites to deliver a message of peace.