In Najaf, Iraq lies Wadi As-Salam (Valley of Peace); the world’s largest cemetery. With over 5 million buried with approximately 50,000 per year, the cemetery is as far as the eyes could see.
The number of buried is ironic considering the living population is only 600,000. It began operation 1,400 years ago and is also the world’s longest-running graveyard. It was declared as a UNESCO Heritage Site. The size of the site is 1485.5 acres containing 5 million bodies equal to the whole population of Scotland.
Among the buried are Kings, Princes, Sultans including Prophet Hud, Prophet Saleh as well as the remains of the prince of faithful, Ali Ibn Abi Talib. Shia paramilitary often visits Ali Bin Abi Talib’s golden-domed shrine before heading to the front lines to battle ISIS. The prophets’ tombs as well as buried loved ones attract millions of pilgrims annually. Here lies a majority of Shia Muslims, especially those fallen victims of the Islamic State war.
Mostly built with baked bricks and plaster and decorated with Quranic calligraphy, some graves are underground while others are above-ground tombs, reflecting the wealth of those within. As land becomes scarce, the cost of a standard 25-square-meter family burial lot has risen to about 5 million Iraqi dinars (RM14,241).