Amerli
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Arabic: آمرلي Amirli Turkish: Emirli |
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|---|---|
 Arabic: آمرلي Amirli
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| Coordinates: 34°43′30″N 44°35′15″E / 34.72500°N 44.58750°ECoordinates: 34°43′30″N 44°35′15″E / 34.72500°N 44.58750°E | |
| Country |
 Iraq
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| Governorate | Saladin Governorate |
| District | Tooz District |
Amirli (Arabic: آمرلي; Amirli, Turkish: Emirli) also spelt Amerli is a town in the Tooz District of Saladin Governorate, near the border with Diyala Governorate, in northern Iraq, about 100 km from the Iranian border. It has a population of 42,000, mainly from Iraq's Shia Turkoman ethnic minority. It is the centre of a farming region.
Amerli, along with Altun Kupri, Bashir, Bustamli, Mahalabiyah, Qarah Tappah, Sulaiman Bek, Tal Afar, Taza Khurmatu, Tuz Khormato, and Yankjah, make up the largest Turkmen-majority cities in Iraq, while Mosul, Kirkuk, Kifri, Daquq, Muqdadiyah, Jalawla, and Saadiyah have significant Turkmen minority populations.
The word Amirli (Arabic: امرلي) is an abbreviated version of the phrase "Ali my prince" (Arabic: اميري علي), hence the majority of its population is from the Shia sect of Islam.
On June 7, 2007, a bombing in the marketplace of Amirli killed 165 people and injured 350.
The town, and its nearly 20,000 Shia Turkmen, was besieged by the Islamic State starting in June 2014. It was running out of food, water, and supplies. A U.N. representative stated, "The situation of the people in Amerli is desperate and demands immediate action to prevent the possible massacre of its citizens." On August 31, the Iraqi army, with help from the United States and Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, managed to break the siege and entered the city, much to the rejoicing of its citizens.Iran had reportedly played a "military planning" role in breaking siege of Amirli.
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Wikipedia