Al-Firdos Square () is a public open space in central

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. It is named after the Persian word ''Ferdows'', meaning 'paradise'. The site has been the location of several monumental artworks. Al-Firdos Square is located in the middle of al-Sa'doun Street and between Tahrir and Kahramana squares and in front of the 17th of Ramadan Mosque. The square is also located opposite the Abu Nawas Street which overlooks the Tigris River. Two of the best-known hotels in Baghdad, the Palestine Hotel and the Sheraton Ishtar, are located on the square. The square is infamous for the toppling of the statue of Saddam Hussein during the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. The image of the toppling was shown across the world and became a symbol of victory in Iraq. At the same time, became a symbol of American propaganda. The square is also the site of the killing of two journalists in the Palestine Hotel on the 8th of April.

History

The

roundabout A roundabout, a rotary and a traffic circle are types of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junct ...

in the center of al-Firdos Square has been the site of several monuments beginning with the completion of the monumental arch ''The Unknown Soldier'' in 1959. It was subsequently replaced by the statue of

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

that was removed by U.S. coalition forces during the invasion of Iraq in 2003. A green, abstract

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

by Bassem Hamad al-Dawiri was commissioned to replace the Saddam statue. In 2009, the architect of the Monument to the Unknown Soldier Rifat Chadirji expressed interest in rebuilding the monument on its original site. As of 2013, the al-Dawiri statue and the surrounding columns have been removed from al-Firdos Square.

Statue of Saddam Hussein

In April 2002, a statue, designed by Iraqi sculptor, Khalid Ezzat, was erected in honor of

's 65th birthday. In 2003, the statue was pulled down by Iraqi citizens, with the help of American forces during the invasion of Iraq in front of a crowd of around a hundred Iraqis. The event was widely televised, and some of this footage was criticized for exaggerating the size of the crowd.

Robert Fisk Robert William Fisk (12 July 194630 October 2020) was an English writer and journalist. He was critical of United States foreign policy in the Middle East, and the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians. As an international correspo ...

described it as "the most staged photo opportunity since

Iwo Jima is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands, which lie south of the Bonin Islands and together with them make up the Ogasawara Subprefecture, Ogasawara Archipelago. Together with the Izu Islands, they make up Japan's Nanpō Islands. Although sout ...

Replacement statue

The site of statue now houses a green, abstract sculpture intended to symbolize freedom, designed by sculptor Bassem Hamad al-Dawiri and built by a group of artists calling themselves Najin (The Survivors). The replacement sculpture was constructed quickly and completed within months of its predecessor's removal. Of necessity, the statue makes use of basic construction materials and methods. It is made of painted plaster, in height, and includes a symbolic Iraqi family holding aloft a crescent moon, which represents

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, and the sun represents the ancient Sumerian civilization."New Statue Replaces Saddam", BBC News, 30 May 200
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2005 protest

On April 9, 2005, the second anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, the square was the center of a large-scale demonstration from tens of thousands of Iraqis protesting the American occupation. The demonstration was organized by

Muqtada al-Sadr Muqtada al-Sadr (; born 4 August 1974) is an Iraqi Shia Muslim cleric, politician and militia leader. He inherited the leadership of the Sadrist Movement from his father, and founded the now dissolved Mahdi Army militia in 2003 that resisted ...

, a

Shi'a Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor ( caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community ( imam). However, his right is understoo ...

cleric, and supported by Sheikh Abd al-Zahra al-Suwaid, a follower of the Green Party. Suwaid was quoted as stating to the gathered "The rally must be peaceful. You should demand the withdrawal of the occupation forces and press for quicker trials for Saddam Hussein and his aides before an Iraqi court."

Reconstruction of the square

The square remained an empty desert for years despite the large sums of money that entered the country. There was many attempts by the Municipality to rehabilitate the square until recently in 2020, the Iraqi private sector, through the Association of Iraqi Private Banks and in cooperation with the Central Bank, completely reconstructed the square and opened it to the public in hopes to leave behind its past and transform it into a cultural hub.

References