Photos: No politics please for Baghdad bikers aiming to unite Iraq

At nearly-400 strong, members of ''Iraq Bikers', the country’s first motorcycle club regularly ride their cruisers and hot rods through the streets of Baghdad, aiming to help heal Iraq's deep sectarian rifts through a shared brotherhood built on a love of beefy motorcycles. They follow one simple rule and that is not discussing anything about politics. Although many bikers can’t afford the aspirational Harley Davidson bikes, a crafty team of riders and mechanics have managed to alter what’s available, flying the Iraqi flag from the panniers of their machines.

Updated on: Jan 23, 2019 10:45 AM IST

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A member of “Iraq Bikers”, the first biker group in the country, drives with an Iraqi flag in Baghdad. Roaring along Baghdad’s highways, Iraq Bikers are doing more than showing off their love of outsized motorcycles and black leather: they want their shared enthusiasm to help heal Iraq’s deep sectarian rifts. (Thaier Al-Sudani / REUTERS)

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Weaving in and out of traffic, only the lucky few ride Harley Davidsons - a rare and expensive brand in Iraq - while others make do with bikes pimped-up to look something like the “Easy Rider” dream machines. (Thaier Al-Sudani / REUTERS)

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The Iraq Bikers - who now number 380 - are men of all ages, social classes and various faiths. “Our goal is to build a brotherhood,” said Bilal al-Bayati, 42, a government employee who founded the club in 2012 with the aim of improving the image of biker gangs and to promote unity. (Thaier Al-Sudani / REUTERS)

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That is why the first rule of his bikers club is: you do not talk about politics.”It is absolutely prohibited to talk politics among members,” Bayati said as he sat with fellow bikers in a shisha cafe. “Whenever politics is mentioned, the members are warned once or twice and then expelled. We no longer have the strength to endure these tragedies or to repeat them,” he said, referring to sectarian violence. (Thaier Al-Sudani / REUTERS)

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But while their style is unmistakably US-inspired - at least one of Bayati’s cohorts wears a helmet emblazoned with the stars and stripes - these bikers fly the Iraqi flag from the panniers of their machines. “It is a miniature Iraq,” said member Ahmed Haidar, 36, who works with an international relief agency. (Thaier Al-Sudani / REUTERS)

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Some of the members are in the military, the police and even the Popular Mobilization Forces, a grouping of mostly Shiite militias which have taken part in the fight to oust Islamic State from Iraq in the last three years. (Thaier Al-Sudani / REUTERS)

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One of their most recent events was taking part in Army Day celebrations. But riding a chopper through Baghdad is quite different from Route 101. The bikers have to slow down at the many military checkpoints set up around the city to deter suicide and car bomb attacks. (Thaier Al-Sudani / REUTERS)

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And very few in the group can afford a top bike. “We don’t have a Harley Davidson franchise here,” said Kadhim Naji, a mechanic who specializes in turning ordinary motorbikes into something special. “So what we do is we alter the motorbike, so it looks similar ... and it is cheaper.” (Thaier Al-Sudani / REUTERS)