The Wire

Far from a war-torn desert, the Mesopotamian Marshes in Iraq are rich in flora, fauna and history. Set between the Tigris and Eurphrates rivers, the area has been inhabited for thousands of years, and served as a backdrop to the rise of agriculture, writing, and the three great monotheisms. But in the 1990s Saddam Husein drained the marshes and set them on fire, almost destroying a vital aspect of the region’s ecosystem. Over the past few years the Wetlands have been brought back to life and have now become Iraq’s first National Park.