Diyala


Diyala

(dĭyă`lă, –`ə), river, c.275 mi (440 km) long, rising as the Sirvan River in NW Iran and flowing SW through the Zagros Mts. into E Iraq, where it enters the Tigris River S of Baghdad. The Diyala is unnavigable, but its valley is an important trade route between Iran and Iraq. A dam on the lower Diyala provides flood control and irrigates the area NE of Baghdad.

Diyala

 

a river in Iraq (with its sources in Iran), a left tributary of the Tigris River. Length, 231 km (from the junction of the Sirvan and Alwand); basin area, over 30,000 sq km. Its source is in the Zagros Mountains; the mouth is in Mesopotamia, where the river forms a large and fertile delta. In the spring, the river floods. In the summer, the water is at its lowest level; it is high in winter. The average flow at the mouth is 130 cu m per second. The waters are used extensively for irrigation.