BAGHDAD -

The capital, Baghdad, recently witnessed the inauguration of the "Martyr" memorial site after years of closure, and it is one of the most prominent architectural monuments in Iraq. It was built during the Iran-Iraq war in the eighties of the last century in memory of those who rose to defend the country.

Observers called for the monument to be shown in a manner befitting its great stature, with the need to urgently repair, arrange, and rehabilitate the damaged parts in an appropriate manner.

The names of thousands of dead in the Iran-Iraq war were inscribed by hand (communication sites) on the walls of the "Martyrs" monument.

The story of the historical monument

Work began on the construction of the "Martyrs" monument in 1983, and it represents all the country's martyrs who sacrificed their lives to preserve the dignity of Iraqis.

Al-Saadi believes that the monument to the "martyr" is a cultural, social and humanitarian icon in all its meanings (Al-Jazeera)

Al-Saadi shows - in his speech to Al-Jazeera Net - that many Iraqis and tourists visit this monument to see its architectural beauty and "symbolism of the Iraqi martyr," explaining that the one who implemented its design was the engineer Saman Asaad Kamal, and his dome was the brainchild of the artist Ismail Fattah Al-Turk, and companies contributed to building it. Foreign, especially Japanese, and the architectural design of the radial monument consists of 3 basic units: the dome, the banner that represents the Iraqi martyr, and the fountain that represents the perpetuation of sacrifice for this country that always makes sacrifices to preserve this land, the sanctities, and the dignity of Iraqis.

This is how Baghdad


is the monument of the martyr, one of the most prominent tourist attractions in the Iraqi capital 🇮🇶 pic.twitter.com/sHXADQIWuP

- Ali Muhanna Mashhai Al-Khalifawi (@Ali1ooo1Ali) May 9, 2022

Regarding the touristic status of this monument, Al-Saadi believes that it comes from the sanctity of the "martyr" and a large percentage of Iraqis revere the value of the "martyr" because he gave his soul for the sake of the Iraqis and to preserve them and their safety, and points out that the monument is a cultural, social and humanitarian icon in all the meaning of the word And its beauty stems from the wonderful idea inspired by the Iraqi artist in terms of the idea of ​​the dome as an Islamic heritage, and the use of turquoise, a color used in Islamic domes in general.

Al-Saadi adds that the monument consists of many units and occupies a large area, as there are lakes on both sides of the dome from the right and left, in addition to the presence of the trench that houses the museum and contains the collections of the "martyrs" and their exploits and heroisms, in addition to the paintings drawn for this purpose, so the visitor stands in amazement in front of this The monument to the meanings of the human extreme.

He describes the city of Baghdad as the capital of the Arab world and the Islamic world, because of its human values ​​and a great Islamic and human heritage throughout history, and the monument to the "martyr" is an extension of the many cultural landmarks that this country includes.

Shawqi attributes the reasons for neglecting the monument of the "martyr" to the lack of a real will to enhance the value of archaeological and memorial sites (Al-Jazeera)

years of neglect

The monument of the "martyr" was subjected to neglect and deliberate and unintentional sabotage, as is the case of any civilized witness or memorial in Iraq after 2003, according to journalist and activist Afrah Shawqi.

Shawqi revealed to Al Jazeera Net that the monument was suffocated when the Ministry of Transport began constructing a high building for it that covered a large part of the monument from the side of the Mohandessin neighborhood, and then turned the monument into a garage for large transport buses, in addition to neglect and lack of maintenance of the surrounding facilities and green spaces that withered due to thirst.

And she continues: In addition, the "Martyrs" Foundation, which is administratively concerned with it, transferred it to one of its service departments, and unjustly cut its building from the bottom with the aim of building caravans and iron cans that abused the monument space.

As for the reasons for closing the monument for years, Shawky stresses that no one knows the reason, but part of the confusion in government departments affected most museums and archaeological and heritage sites, because of vandalism and the lack of maintenance they intended to cover these matters by closing it.

The reasons for neglecting the monument are attributed to the lack of a real national will to enhance the value and importance of most archaeological and memorial sites in Iraq, because politicians believe that most of these monuments, sites and memorials belong to the regime of the late President Saddam Hussein. They want to erase all traces of that regime while all countries of the world It preserves the remnants of the features of any political systems it passes through as part of the present evidence.

Salman confirmed that the "martyr" monument is today considered a cultural, heritage and economic wealth (Al-Jazeera)

design genius

The memorials are one of the most important architectural monuments that carried clues and symbols that expressed topics of cultural and social significance that are often not devoid of a political character, and they have accompanied the lives of peoples since ancient times until the present day, says Assistant Professor of Archeology, Dr. Kazem Jabr Salman.

Salman adds to Al-Jazeera Net that the monument of the "martyr" is behind a lively and attractive image of martyrdom and the spirit of the "martyr" during the last decades of the last century, as it embodied the most beautiful description of what martyrdom carries in all its meanings.

He points out to the genius of the design that was used in its construction, which is based mainly on the idea of ​​optical illusion in the monument, which is built on a wide open land, so that those who are riding in the car around the monument can enjoy very impressive optical illusions, and it is one of the characteristics of the architecture that the Iraqi architecture has been accustomed to since The dawn of civilization in this country.

Salman explains that the two sides of the dome seem closed at the beginning of the street, and then they open one to the other slowly as we approach them so that the view looks like a gate that opens in preparation for the exit of something, and as soon as we reach inside the monument until we find ourselves in front of an architectural edifice in which features are embodied National symbolism and sanctity.

The monument is located on a circular platform with a diameter of 190 meters, above which is a dome divided in half, 40 meters high (communication sites)

He points out that the artist was inspired by the features of the dome from the style of open Baghdad domes in its golden age during the period of the Abbasid Caliphate and was at a height of 40 meters. Abbasid dome.

The monument stands - according to Salman - on a circular platform with a diameter of 190 meters, carrying a dome divided into two halves, 40 meters high.

The building is surrounded by a large artificial lake, as well as the trench and the “martyrs’ wall” at the bottom of the edifice. Thus, the designer presents an idea whose content expresses a battlefield in which the fighters stand in the forefront of sensing the danger and their “martyrdom” there to keep it away from the homeland and its residents. The trench was permeated by a wall built of marble and stone panels from the inside. Outside, more than 150,000 names were engraved on it manually with inscriptions of palm trees and running water as symbols of civilization for the Iraqi environment.

The "Martyr" monument opened its doors to visitors recently (Al-Jazeera)

important teacher

Salman shows that the monument was receiving government attention before 2003 as it represented one of the 3 main places used by the state in the official celebration, but things changed after this year, as it was largely neglected after it became a military barracks for the First Armored Division in the US Army, and was closed to visitors and the general public like him. All cultural and tourist sites and facilities in Iraq.

The monument is also of great importance to the residents of Baghdad, as it has become part of the culture of the city’s residents, because of its aesthetic aspect, as well as other aspects, the most important of which is that it was built in memory of the Iraqi soldiers who were killed in the war with Iran.

He points out that the monument is seen today as a cultural, heritage and economic wealth at the same time, and the state should take care of it because of its great importance to the majority of Iraqis, especially after the number of "martyrs" doubled since the first design of the monument to this day.