Iraqi immigrants

The architectural style of Iraq is close to that of Iran. Shia mosques, in particular, have almost the same style. The dome in Bazane is also very close to the interior style of Isfahan, Iran.

On the contrary, from the architectural style and culture, I feel that the difference between Iraq and Saudi Arabia is greater than that between Iraq and Iran.

Even Iraqis can speak Arabic. I also think that the Arab world should be divided into two parts.

first part

Gulf Arab countries: Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates. The cultures of these six countries are the most conservative among the Arab countries. Women are completely isolated, and drinking is strictly forbidden among their own.

Customs and institutions belong to fundamentalist Arabia.

Because these countries are rich in resources, this primitive lifestyle has not been shaken by external forces.

Gulf countries, such as Saudi Arabia, are the regions that discriminate against women the most so far. Even though the law has abolished the prohibition of women going out alone, most women still maintain the cultural inertia of not going out alone in cultural inheritance. This kind of pressure not only appears in the family, but also suppresses women's autonomy in the whole mainstream society.

In short, it is the most conservative region-Gulf countries.

the second part

Arab countries outside the Gulf: Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia, Villa, Algeria, Morocco and Egypt. ...

Generally speaking, these non-Gulf Arab countries are much more secular than Gulf countries.

Even my Lebanese friend Xiaoying once said, I feel that the difference between Lebanese and Turks is far smaller than that between Lebanese and Saudis.

In fact, just look at the dresses of the first ladies in these secular countries. The famous wives of King Jordan, Syrian Bashar al-Assad and Moroccan King are basically not much different from western women. Even if their civilians dress conservatively, at least the public's acceptance of secular ways is much higher than that of Gulf countries.

In short, a slightly open Arab country-Levant+Maghreb Arab countries (non-Gulf Arab countries).

In a bookstore in the old city of Baghdad, the walls on both sides of the stairs are covered with old photos of Iraq.

I am very interested in old photos, because they can look back at history and make your understanding of this country more multidimensional.

We can see one of the most famous celebrities in Iraq, a British-born Iraqi female designer, hanging on the wall. She has designed many excellent architectural works all over the world. At home, I remember that she designed the soho building in Beijing.

On the photo wall, we can see Iraq 50 years ago. In this era, women's style and dress are very open, which is very different from the women's dress on the streets of Baghdad now. In fact, I have been to many msl countries, including Egypt, Iran, Lebanon and Turkey, and they all had a very secular period. But the magic wand can quickly control power, and then religiousization will soon begin again.

The same is true in Iraq. During Saddam Hussein's period, there were few sectarian conflicts, and Shiites and Sunnis often married.

However, after the Iraq war, the power vacuum in Iraq made this "dual" state power tilt in the opposite direction, and the Shiites quickly took power and kicked out all Sunni forces. ...

This sectarian opposition plunged the whole of Iraq into endless sectarian conflicts.

In a word, the contradictions between the two factions in Iraq are irreconcilable at present.

In the process of sectarian conflict, Iran and Saudi Arabia supported each other's sectarian forces behind their backs, which led to more and more paranoid emphasis on their sectarian attributes. As a result, both Shiites and Sunnis have become more and more devout (except Kurds). I will talk about the Kurdish issue in detail later. This nation is very interesting.

In the old city of Baghdad, I saw many restaurants hanging all kinds of old photos. So I found two different restaurants.

The first store can see photos from the Ottoman period to the post-World War II period, to the Saddam period and now. Among them, there is also a photo of a Swiss leader visiting the store.

The second store also has a large number of photos from the Ottoman period to the later. The boss pointed to this row of photos and said that the photos of these people are all Iraqi "emperors" sorted by year, and they also saw Saddam Hussein.

Many readers have asked me whether Iraqis like the current government or Saddam Hussein ... Let me interview the local people's views.

I will certainly uphold the spirit of seeking truth and interview Iraqis of different sects. I think different sects have different views.

I haven't started chatting with local people yet, but my own expectation is that Iraqis' views on Saddam Hussein are greatly influenced by sects, and Sunnis generally miss Saddam Hussein.

However, the Shiites were greatly suppressed during Saddam's time, so I think the Shiites may have different views on Saddam and the United States. (However, I haven't started talking to real Iraqis yet. These are my preconceived stereotypes. )