Mosul, Nineveh Governorate, Iraq

🇮🇶 Mosul is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second largest city in Iraq in terms of population and area after the capital Baghdad. Mosul is approximately 400 km (250 mi) north of Baghdad on the Tigris river. The Mosul metropolitan area has grown from the old city on the western side to encompass substantial areas on both the "Left Bank" (east side) and the "Right Bank" (west side), as locals call the two riverbanks. Mosul encloses the ruins of the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on its east side.

Mosul and its surroundings have an ethnically and religiously diverse population; a large majority of its population are Arabs, with Assyrians, Turkmens, and Kurds, and other, smaller ethnic minorities comprising the rest of the city's population. Sunni Islam is the largest religion, but there are a significant number of Christians, as well as adherents of other sects of Islam and various other minority religions.

Mosul is considered to be among the larger and more historically and culturally significant cities of the Arab World. Due to Mosul's strategic location it has traditionally serving as a hub of international commerce and travel. The North Mesopotamian dialect of Arabic, commonly known as Moslawi, is named after the city of Mosul and is widely spoken in the region.

Historically, important products of the area include Mosul marble and oil. Mosul is home to the University of Mosul and its renowned Medical College, one of the largest educational and research centres in the Middle East.

Together with the nearby Nineveh Plains, Mosul is one of the historic centres of the Assyrian people.

Infrastructure The Mosul Dam was built in the 1980s to supply Mosul with hydroelectricity and water. Despite this, water supply cuts are still common.

Five bridges cross the Tigris in Mosul, known from north to south as: • Al Shohada Bridge (or "Third Bridge") • Fifth Bridge • Old Bridge (or "Iron Bridge", or "First Bridge") • Al Huriya Bridge (literally "Freedom Bridge", also known as "Second Bridge") • Fourth Bridge.

Mosul is served by Mosul International Airport.

Education Mosul has several universities and colleges. These include the University of Mosul, which is the largest university in Mosul, Ninevah University, Al-Hadbaa University College, and the Northern Technical University.