 Farzaneh 54  Vol. 6  No. 11 A Look into the Women’s Movement in Iraq    Keywords Iraq, Iraqi women, women’s history, women’s movement in Iraq, economic sanctions and women, CEDAW and Iraq, status of Iraqi women, human rights of women Abstract Iraqi women, like all women in the world, should have a voice in their country, especially now after the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime. Here in this paper, we try to have a look at the history of women’s activities in Iraq for the promotion of their status, their situation in different periods, and the exiting perspectives for women in Iraq. Introduction Iraq, an ancient land, with a history of several thousands of years, is regarded as the cradle of civilization. Mesopotamia region, being once the civilization of Sumer (around 3000 BC) with its city states and developed systems of irrigation, trade and writing, was of great attraction for any power to invade the region. It was conquered by Cyrus the Great in 538 BC and then by Alexander the Great in 331 BC. In 637, Muslim Arabs defeated the Iranian Sassanids, and Mesopotamia was overtaken after only one year. In that time, Baghdad was changed into one of the main and significant capitals of Islamic world during early Islamic period. Mongols looted Iraq in 1258 and during the centuries, Iraq was conquered by Persian emperors, Ottomans and Turks. During the World War I, the English troops occupied this country. It was in 1920 that United Kingdom received a mandate over Iraq and the period of British colonialism started in Iraq. During the years