Samir Jassem: teaches diving to orphans in Baghdad.
Thurayya Hashem: a veterinarian at Baghdad zoo.
Dhikra Sarsam: an artist who kept on painting through good times and bad.
Ta’ayyib is a musician who plays at weddings.
Hassan Ali studied philosophy at Baghdad University. But for the past four years, he’s worked as a municipal garbage collector.
Audio credit: Jim Muir, BBC