Kurds in Iraq in the context of "Ba'athist Arabization campaigns in northern Iraq"

The Iraqi people (Arabic: العراقيون; Kurdish: گه‌لی عێراق; Syriac: ܥܡܐ ܥܝܪܩܝܐ) are people originating from the country of Iraq.

Iraqi Arabs are the largest ethnic group in Iraq, followed by Iraqi Kurds, then Iraqi Turkmen as the third largest ethnic group in the country. Studies indicate that Mesopotamian Arabs, who make up the overwhelming majority of Iraq's population, are genetically distinct from other Arab populations in the Arabs of the Arabian peninsula.

Ba'athist Iraq, officially the Iraqi Republic (1968–1992) and later the Republic of Iraq (1992–2003), was the Iraqi state between 1968 and 2003 under the one-party rule of the Iraqi regional branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party. The regime emerged as a result of the 17 July Revolution which brought the Ba'athists to power, and lasted until the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

The Ba'ath Party, led by Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, came to power in Iraq through the bloodless 17 July 1968 Revolution, which overthrew president Abdul Rahman Arif and prime minister Tahir Yahya. By the mid-1970s, Saddam Hussein became the country's de facto leader, despite al-Bakr's de jure presidency. Saddam's new policies boosted the Iraqi economy, improved living standards, and elevated Iraq's standing within the Arab world. However, several internal factors were imminently threatening Iraq's stability; the Sunni-dominated Ba'athist government faced Shia religious separatism and Kurdish ethnic separatism. The Second Iraqi–Kurdish War was of great concern to the government as Kurdish rebels received extensive support from Iran, Israel, and the United States. Following the 1974–1975 Shatt al-Arab clashes, Saddam met with Iranian monarch Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and signed the 1975 Algiers Agreement, ceding territory to Iran in exchange for an end to Kurdish support. With the Kurdish rebellion subsequently disadvantaged, the Iraqi military reasserted the federal government's control over Iraqi Kurdistan.

Iraqis (Arabic: العراقيون al-ʿIrāqiyyūn; Kurdish: عێراقییەکان, romanized: 'Êraqiyekan) are the citizens and nationals of the Republic of Iraq. The majority of Iraqis are Arabs, with Kurds accounting for the largest ethnic minority, followed by Turkmen. Other ethnic groups from the country include Yazidis, Assyrians, Mandaeans, and other Mesopotamian Minorities. Approximately 95% of Iraqis adhere to Islam, with nearly 64% of this figure consisting of Shia Muslims and the remainder consisting of Sunni Muslims. The largest minority religion is Christianity at 1%, while other religions collectively represent as much as 4% of the Iraqi populace.

The territory of modern-day Iraq largely overlaps with what was historically known as Mesopotamia, which was home to many noteworthy civilizations, such as Sumer, Akkad, Assyria, and Babylonia. The fall of these native Mesopotamian civilizations, particularly Babylon in the 6th century BC, marked the beginning of centuries-long foreign conquests and rule. Recent studies indicate that the various Iraqi ethnic groups have significant genetic similarities, likely due to the long history of intermingling and assimilation between foreign and indigenous populations in the region.

Iraq has had three vice presidents or deputy presidents serving concurrently.

The office of Vice President was historically largely ceremonial but prestigious. In post-war Iraq, the Constitution of Iraq, in its "Transitional Guidelines," creates a three-member presidency (or presidential) council, consisting of the president of Iraq and two deputy presidents, who must act in unison. The presidency council had three members to accommodate Iraq's three largest groups: Sunni Muslim Arabs, Shiite Muslim Arabs, and the mostly Sunni Kurds. As a unit, the Presidency Council was meant to symbolize the unity of the nation. This arrangement is required by the constitution to continue until the Council of Representatives, enters its second set of sessions. At this point, the Presidency Council would be replaced by a solitary President of the Republic, who would have only one deputy, the vice-president. In any case, the Presidency is appointed by the Council of Representatives. The three-member arrangement was a hold-over from the Iraqi Interim Government and the Iraqi Transitional Government.