Najaf itself is one of Iraq’s biggest cities, with a population of nearly 600,000.
Wadi Al-Salam cemetery contains graves built with baked bricks and plaster and it rises at different levels.
Among the tombstones are the room-size family crypts built by the wealthy, often topped by domes.
There are also underground burial vaults that can be get down by ladder.
The Americans cannot get into the area, because it’s full of winding lanes and underground mausoleums.
The local gunmen who knew their way around would hit and then run and hide inside the many tombs.
To this day, piles of wrecked cages from the graves remain stacked on the roadsides.
In recent years, though, its growth has slowed.
Sources:UNESCO,BBC,Gorillasguides,Theshiapedia
