Iraqis still reeling from war

As Iraq enters its eighth year since the US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, ordinary Iraqis are still struggling.

Despite some progress in post-war reconstruction, the people are being forced to deal with high unemployment, violence, poverty and a lack of basic services.

The overall security situation has improved since 2008, after a peak in sectarian violence between 2006 and 2007. But peace has still not fully returned to this war-torn land.

According to official statistics, more than 85-thousand Iraqis were killed in violent incidents. 140-thousand were wounded, and 10-thousand went missing between January 2004 and October 2008.

Since US troops withdrew from Iraqi towns last June, a string of car bombings - in August, October, and December - have left hundreds dead. Iraq's official data shows its unemployment rate is 28 percent.

Some seven million people live in poverty, accounting for nearly a quarter of the country's population. Iraq takes more than 80-percent of government revenue from the oil sector. But a lack of investment has slowed growth in the industry.