Iraq (/ɪˈræk/, ⁱ/ɪˈrɑːk/, or /aɪˈræk/; Arabic: العراق‎ al-‘Irāq), officially the Republic of Iraq (Arabic:  جمهورية العراق (help·info) Jumhūriyyat al-‘Irāq), is a country in Western Asia encompassing the Mesopotamian alluvial plain, the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, and the eastern part of the Syrian Desert.