Baghdad Celebrates with Flowers, Presenting a New Spirit after Years of Violence and Conflict

Baghdad, Iraq – 23 April 2018 - Showcasing the new spirit of Baghdad, that of peace and security after years of terrorism and violence, the city launched a flower festival at the Iraqi capital’s sprawling Al Zawraa Park, a striking exhibit of flowers and plants festooned in various shapes and colours for the occasion.

It is not the first time Baghdad Mayoralty puts on such a display – in fact this is the 10 International Flower Festival in Baghdad which continued through the dark days. But this year’s is like no other. The terrorist Dae’sh group which has ravaged parts of this country with its indiscriminate attacks and cruel rule, has been largely defeated. So it is befitting for the organisers to have this year’s festival under the theme “Baghdad: Victory, Flowers and Creativity.”

“These flowers are offered as wreaths for the martyrs and bouquets for the heroes,” the Secretary-General of the Council of Ministers, Dr. Mehdi Al-Allaq, told the hundreds of Baghdadis, invited guests and diplomats who converged on the park on a clear spring day for the inauguration.

The Mayor of Baghdad, Thikra Alwash, echoed the same theme. “Our flowers today are the crowns over the heads of the heroes,” she said at the ceremony.

The opening event included a show of traditional Iraqi dresses that were displayed to the tune of Baghdadi Oud string and other traditional Arabic music.