Sadr City

Sadr City
مدينة الصدر
(Madīnat aṣ-Ṣadr)
District of Baghdad
Sadr City
Sadr City in Iraq
Coordinates: 33°23′20″N 44°27′30″E / 33.38889°N 44.45833°E / 33.38889; 44.45833
CountryIraq
GovernorateBaghdad Governorate
CityBaghdad
Built1957
Founded byAbdul-Karim Qasim
Named afterMuhammad al-Sadr
Area
  Total
13 km2 (5 sq mi)
Population
 (2018)
  Total
1,211,849

Sadr City (Arabic: مدينة الصدر, romanized: Madīnat aṣ-Ṣadr), formerly known as Al-Thawra (Arabic: الثورة, romanized: aṯ-Ṯawra) and Saddam City (Arabic: مدينة صدام, romanized: Madīnat Ṣaddām), is a suburb district of the city of Baghdad, Iraq. It was built in 1959 by Prime Minister Abdul Karim Qassim and named Al-Rafidain District. After the US-led invasion of Iraq and the toppling of Saddam, it was unofficially renamed Sadr City after Ayatollah Muhammad al-Sadr.

Sadr City – or more accurately Thawra District (Arabic: حيّ الثورة, romanized: Ḥayy ath-Thawra) – is one of nine administrative districts in Baghdad. A public housing project neglected by Saddam Hussein, Sadr City holds around 1 million residents.