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Glubb, Sir John Bagot

(Encyclopedia)Glubb, Sir John Bagot băgˈət [key], 1897–1986, British soldier. He served in France during World War I and in 1920 was posted to Iraq, where he lived among Arab Bedouins and studied their languag...

Kermanshah

(Encyclopedia)Kermanshah kĕrmänˌshäˈ [key], city (1991 pop. 624,084), capital of Kermanshah prov., W Iran. It is the trade center for a rich agricultural region that produces grain, rice, vegetables, fruits, a...

Mattis, James

(Encyclopedia)Mattis, James, 1950–, American general and secretary of defense (2017–18), b. Pullman, Wash., grad. Central Washington Univ. (1971). Commissioned as a second lieutenant (1972) in the Marines after...

Lagash

(Encyclopedia)Lagash shĭrpo͝orˈlə [key], ancient city of Sumer, S Mesopotamia, now located at Telloh, SE Iraq. Lagash was flourishing by c.2400 b.c., but traces of habitation go back at least to the 4th millenn...

Karbala

(Encyclopedia)Karbala kärˈbələ [key], city (1987 pop. 296,705), central Iraq, at the edge of the Syrian Desert. The city's trade is in religious objects, hides, wool, and dates. Karbala is the site of the tomb ...

Bushehr

(Encyclopedia)Bushehr –shĭrˈ [key], city, SW Iran, on the Persian Gulf. It is one of the chief ports of ...

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Office of the

(Encyclopedia)United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Office of the (UNHCR), established Dec. 14, 1950, by the General Assembly. It superseded the International Refugee Organization. It seeks permanent solut...

Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah

(Encyclopedia)Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah (Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah), 1929–2020, emir of Kuwait (2006–20). He held a number of government posts, including foreign minister (1963–2003) and deputy prime min...

Samarra

(Encyclopedia)Samarra sämärˈrä [key], town, N central Iraq, on the Tigris River. It is on the site of an ancient settlement and has given its name to a type of Neolithic pottery of the 5th millennium b.c. The p...

Qatar

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Qatar or Katar both: kŭˈtər, gŭ–, kətärˈ [key], officially State of Qatar, independent emirate (2015 est. pop. 2,482,000), c.4,400 sq mi (11,400 sq km), E Arabia, coextensive with the ...