Look at a population density map of Iraq

[Neshanic]

I was curious to see where the most people live. Watching television about the latest news, I was struck by the sentence that is always repeated without much variation. "In this area of Iraq".

So when they say "In this area", or "this area has been very violent since the war", I doubt that many people know that the majority of the poulation is centered in "this area". Why are there never problems to the south? Because that area is virtually vacant compared to the population center around Baghdad.