Home/Iraq
    National Paranormal Archive

    Haunted Places in Iraq

    Cataloging 10 documented supernatural hotspots across Iraq. Examine verified accounts, historical eras, and intensity scores.
    Share:View Saved

    Filter Records

    Refine search parameters
    1+ / 5 intensity

    10 spectral locations cataloged

    Mosque
    4/5

    Al-Hadba Minaret & Great Mosque of al-Nuri

    MosulIraq12th Century

    The Great Mosque of al-Nuri and its iconic leaning minaret, Al-Hadba ('The Hunchback'), was constructed in 1172 CE by Nur ad-Din Zengi in the heart of Mosul's Old City. Standing 45 meters tall with a famous 2.5-meter tilt caused by thermal expansion and gypsum mortar settling, the intricate brickwork minaret endured as the beloved symbol of Mosul for over eight centuries. Devastated in June 2017 during the Battle of Mosul, the sacred site and its surrounding historic ruins are now undergoing major international reconstruction. Local residents and night guards report eerie encounters around the site, including phantom calls to prayer, shadowy figures pacing the rebuilt foundations, and unearthly echoes reverberating through the Old City alleys.

    MapDetails
    Historic House
    5/5

    Al-Muta'afi Haunted House

    BaghdadIraq1930s

    The Al-Muta'afi House, often referred to in local Iraqi urban folklore as 'Dar al-Mawt' (The House of Death), is a legendary abandoned 1930s residential mansion situated in the historic Al-Adhamiya district of northern Baghdad. Constructed during the Iraqi Monarchy era by a wealthy merchant family, the grand yellow-brick villa became notorious following a tragic sequence of mysterious deaths, unexplained illness, and sudden family ruin that left the residence permanently abandoned by the mid-20th century. Renowned across Baghdad as one of the country's most actively haunted urban locations, the crumbling mansion is feared for violent poltergeist activity, disembodied screams, and malevolent shadows seen pacing its overgrown iron balconies.

    MapDetails
    Fortress
    4/5

    Al-Ukhaidir Fortress

    KarbalaIraq8th Century

    The Fortress of Al-Ukhaidir, also known as the Abbasid Palace of Ukhaidir, is a colossal 8th-century stone castle standing isolated in the desert plain 50 kilometers southwest of Karbala, Iraq. Built around 775 CE by Isa ibn Musa, nephew of the Abbasid Caliph Al-Mansur, this massive rectangular stronghold features imposing 19-meter-high defensive walls, round corner towers, vaulted halls, and elaborate interior court residential suites. Abandoned shortly after its construction due to shifting trade routes, the solitary fortress spent over a millennium empty in the desert, giving rise to local bedouin legends of trapped jinn, ghostly caravan guards, and unearthly echoes resounding through its subterranean vaulted corridors.

    MapDetails
    Archaeological Site
    4/5

    Ruins of Babylon & Saddam's Palace

    HillahIraq23rd Century BCE

    Babylon, situated along the Euphrates River roughly 85 kilometers south of Baghdad, stands as one of the most famous ancient cities in human history. Once the capital of the Neo-Babylonian Empire under King Nebuchadnezzar II, home to the Hanging Gardens and the grand Ishtar Gate, the ancient city was reduced to mounds of mud-brick ruins over centuries of conquest and decay. In the late 1980s, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein built an extravagant, highly controversial presidential palace atop an artificial hill directly overlooking the ancient ruins. Today, this surreal juxtaposition of ancient royal downfall and modern totalitarian collapse is renowned for ghostly sightings of Babylonian warriors, phantom military footsteps, and eerie apparitions wandering the hollow palace halls.

    MapDetails
    Archaeological Site
    4/5

    Arch of Ctesiphon (Taq Kasra)

    Salmān PākIraq6th Century

    Taq Kasra, also known as the Arch of Ctesiphon, is a colossal 6th-century Sasanian monument situated in Salmān Pāk, roughly 35 kilometers southeast of central Baghdad along the Tigris River. Built as the grand audience hall (Iwan) of the Sasanian imperial palace complex at Ctesiphon, it features the largest single-span unreinforced brick vault in the world, towering 37 meters high and spanning 26 meters across. As the sole surviving monument of the legendary Persian imperial capital, Taq Kasra's majestic yet solitary ruin is renowned in Iraqi folklore for phantom royal assemblies, haunting whispers of fallen emperors, and glowing apparitions seen beneath its towering vault.

    MapDetails
    Archaeological Site
    4/5

    Ancient Ruins of Hatra

    HatraIraq3rd Century BCE

    Hatra is a monumental ancient ruined city situated in a desolate desert basin 110 kilometers southwest of Mosul, Iraq. Founded in the 3rd century BCE as a religious and trading center under the Seleucid Empire, Hatra grew into the capital of the first Arab Kingdom under Parthian influence, famed for withstand monumental Roman military sieges led by emperors Trajan and Septimius Severus. Surrounded by massive circular double walls, its central sacred temple enclosure (Temenos) features colossal stone iwans blending Greek, Roman, and Persian architecture. Renowned as a UNESCO World Heritage site, the isolated ruins are legendary for phantom Roman legionnaires, shadowy desert guardians, and unearthly wailing echoing across the ruins.

    MapDetails