Lord Actonasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their estimate of:
- (a) total population of Iraq;
- (b) Shia Arab population of Iraq;
- (c) Sunni Arab population of Iraq; and
- (d) Kurdish population of Iraq. [HL1185]
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanPrecise population figures for Iraq are hard to obtain as the last offical census took place in 1997 under the former regime.
The United Nations Population Division estimates that Iraq's population in 2000 was 23,224,000.
In the absence of accurate figures it is difficult to give a precise breakdown of the Iraqi population by ethnic and religious background. However, population estimates range from 12 to 16 per cent Sunni Arab, 61 to 68 per cent Shia Arab and 20 to 23 per cent Kurdish.
Lord Actonasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their estimate of:
- (a) Sunni Arab, Shia Arab and Kurdish populations of Baghdad; and
- (b) Shia Arab, Sunni Arab and Kurdish populations of Basra. [HL1186]
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanHer Majesty's Government have no accurate figures for the ethnic and religious breakdown of the Iraqi population by city or province. Precise figures have been hard to obtain since the last official census in 1997.