As Iraq Concrete Jungle Swelters, Ancient Stone Houses Stay Cool

Stone houses dominate in the Kurdish town of Akre, 500 kilometers north of Iraq's capital Baghdad SAFIN HAMED AFP
Stone houses dominate in the Kurdish town of Akre, 500 kilometers north of Iraq's capital Baghdad SAFIN HAMED AFP
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As Iraq Concrete Jungle Swelters, Ancient Stone Houses Stay Cool

Stone houses dominate in the Kurdish town of Akre, 500 kilometers north of Iraq's capital Baghdad SAFIN HAMED AFP
Stone houses dominate in the Kurdish town of Akre, 500 kilometers north of Iraq's capital Baghdad SAFIN HAMED AFP

As the sun beats down on Iraq, most people swelter in their concrete homes -- but not the inhabitants of one mountain town known for its ancient and cool stone houses.

Tracing its roots back 2,700 years, the picturesque Kurdish town of Akre says it is better adapted to the modern-day perils of climate change than other parts of Iraq, AFP said.

"Stone houses are far more resistant" to the rising temperatures and also preserve the town's unique character, said Mayor Baland Reda Zubair.

"Cement radiates heat, raises temperatures and affects the environment," said Zubair of the building material that is allowed only in outlying neighborhoods.

Many of Akre's narrow alleyways can only be navigated by donkeys and wind through a historic city center bathed in the pale yellow and brown hues of the locally quarried stone.

Oil-rich Iraq is the world's fifth-most vulnerable country to the effects of climate change, according to the United Nations.

The Kurdistan region where Akre lies suffers from heat and water scarcity like the rest of the country.

Akre, a city of 100,000 residents about 500 kilometers (311 miles) north of Baghdad, believes sticking with the old ways will help it adapt.

Since 1991, when Kurdistan gained de facto autonomy from Iraq, it has declared concrete off limits for construction and renovation in the old city of Akre.

- No air-con -
An impressive building welcomes those entering the old city. Dating to 1853, it is a remnant of the Ottoman Empire that once ruled the area.

"It's an old military barracks," said Jamil Siddik, a 63-year-old engineer who oversees renovation works in the city.

The limestone used for renovation is sourced from the mountains that surround Akre, he explained. For its residents, "limestone is easy to use. It's cheap and available," Siddik said.

It also provides great insulation. "Concrete blocks may only be 20 centimeters (7.9 inches) wide, while the stones are 40 or 60 centimeters wide," he said.

Bewar Majeed, 37, lives in the old city. By his doorstep, kittens were playing in the sun, as the temperature reached 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).

But inside the house, the rooms are nice and cool thanks to its limestone walls.

"I don't need an air conditioner," he said. "I have a small air cooler, which is enough for me, and it's less expensive."

The city's policy promoting stone over concrete relies on public financing.

For years after 2011, public funds paid for the renovation of 25 old houses and a mosque. In 2014, however, funding was suspended "because of the financial crisis", said Mayor Zubair.

Now, he added, old city residents may renovate or build with their own money, so long as they avoid concrete, or "eventually cover it with stone".

- Tourist draw -
On top of the environmental benefits, Akre's conservation efforts aim to preserve its heritage value and attract tourism.

According to the regional tourism board, 1.7 million visitors came to Iraqi Kurdistan during the first quarter of 2022, the vast majority of them Iraqis.

The autonomous region has cultivated an image of stability, distancing itself from the violence that has engulfed other parts of Iraq in recent years.

Still, Kurdistan hasn't been entirely spared the sounds of battle.

Neighboring Türkiye regularly carries out military operations there in its fight against the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has been designated a "terrorist" group by Türkiye and its Western allies.

In July, artillery bombardment several dozen kilometers away from Akre killed nine civilians, most of them Iraqi holidaymakers. Baghdad blamed Ankara, which denies the Iraqi claim.

But Akre's residents shy away from politics.

Ali, an ice cream vendor, said tourists who are drawn to the town bring him "joy".

"We get Iraqis, Germans and French," he added. "They like our historic city center."



Melania Trump Meets with Patients, Visits Garden at Washington Children’s Hospital

 US First Lady Melania Trump takes part in an activity with children during a visit at Children's National Hospital in Washington, DC on July 3, 2025. (AFP)
US First Lady Melania Trump takes part in an activity with children during a visit at Children's National Hospital in Washington, DC on July 3, 2025. (AFP)
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Melania Trump Meets with Patients, Visits Garden at Washington Children’s Hospital

 US First Lady Melania Trump takes part in an activity with children during a visit at Children's National Hospital in Washington, DC on July 3, 2025. (AFP)
US First Lady Melania Trump takes part in an activity with children during a visit at Children's National Hospital in Washington, DC on July 3, 2025. (AFP)

US First Lady Melania Trump visited with sick patients at Children’s National hospital in Washington on Thursday as the children made Fourth of July arts and crafts ahead of the holiday.

Trump, continuing a tradition of support by first ladies for the pediatric care center, also stopped by the hospital's rooftop “healing” garden she dedicated during the first Trump administration to first ladies of the United States.

The first lady decorated rocks for the garden with the children, drawing a red heart on one. A few kids played with stretchy slime while Trump engaged them in questions.

“Wow, that’s a big slime!” she told one child that was more focused on stretching the sticky goo.

Trump gave each of the children gift bags with blankets and teddy bears that had shirts reading, “Be Best,” her campaign focused on children’s well-being.

She quizzed the kids on their favorite sports, what music they like and how they’re feeling. Trump also took an informal poll, asking the kids whether they like chocolate and ice cream.

Most of the hands shot up, including the first lady’s.

“I like it too,” she said.

She then took the children out to the Bunny Mellon Healing Garden, where they placed small American flags and patriotically-colored pinwheels into the soil.

The garden, decked out in decorations for Independence Day on Friday, was named to honor Rachel “Bunny” Mellon, a friend of first lady Jacqueline Kennedy.

Mellon was a philanthropist and avid gardener who designed the Rose Garden and other White House gardens during the Kennedy administration.

The garden was dedicated to America’s first ladies because of their decades-long support for the hospital and its patients, including a traditional first lady visit at Christmastime that dates back to Bess Truman.

Trump, along with chief White House groundskeeper Dale Haney, inspected a new yellow rose bush donated by the White House and planted earlier in the week at the hospital garden.

After, the first lady visited the heart and kidney unit at the hospital and met privately with a 3-year-old patient.

Later Thursday, the first lady joined President Donald Trump in the Oval Office where they met with Edan Alexander, the last living American hostage in Gaza, who was released in May.