An Nukhayb ( ar, النخيب, alt. ''Nukhaib'', ''Nkheeb'') is a town in

Al Anbar Governorate Al Anbar Governorate ( ar, محافظة الأنبار; ''muḥāfaẓat al-’Anbār''), or Anbar Province, is the largest governorate in Iraq by area. Encompassing much of the country's western territory, it shares borders with Syria, Jordan, ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

. Prior to the 1940s and during a short period in the 1970s, the town was administered by the Karbala Governorate. There has been conflict regarding to which governorate the town should belong. Nukhayb is located on the Al-Abyad Wadi at the largest road junction in the region, with roads going south to the Saudi Arabian border, north to the

Ramadi Ramadi ( ar, ٱلرَّمَادِي ''Ar-Ramādī''; also formerly rendered as ''Rumadiyah'' or ''Rumadiya'') is a city in central Iraq, about west of Baghdad and west of Fallujah. It is the capital and largest city of Al Anbar Governorate whi ...

–

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

highway, and northeast to

Karbala Karbala or Kerbala ( ar, كَرْبَلَاء, Karbalāʾ , , also ;) is a city in central Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad, and a few miles east of Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorat ...

. Nukhayb is the last Iraqi town before pilgrims cross into Saudi Arabia on their pilgrimage to

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...

. It has two satellite villages to the north, Habbariya (28 km) and Kesrah (51 km). Mudaysis Air Base is located 50 km to the northwest of Nukhayb.

History

During the British Mandate, John Bagot Glubb established a post at the well of Nukhayb to allow the Iraqi government to control its western deserts. Throughout 1929, sections of the Royal Air Force Armoured Cars served outpost duty in Nukhayb. البوركيبة في لواء الدليم

In 1960, Nukhayb was upgraded from village to subdistrict. In 2010, Qatari royal Khalifa bin Abdulla bin Hassan bin Ali al-Thani was killed in Nukhayb when his GMC hit a bump and rolled during a hunting trip. In September 2011, 22 Shia pilgrims en route from Damascus to Karbala were stopped at a fake checkpoint near Nukhayb, and then killed by gunmen. In another false checkpoint attack, 14 Iraqi border guards were killed by militants in June 2013. Reports in summer of 2014 indicated that the Iraqi Army and the

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...

(ISIS) clashed in the town, with government troops "fleeing" towards

. ISIS was reported as having taken control of the town in late June of that year; the Iraqi government forces stated that they regained control of the town in late August of that year.

Climate

In Nukhayb, there is a desert climate. Most rain falls in the winter. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification is BWh. The average annual temperature in Nukhayb is . About of precipitation falls annually.

History

Climate

References

Further reading