Iraq’s Dama board game struggles to survive in digital era

In Iraq, a 5,000-year-old board game is in danger of being forgotten.

Dama is a traditional strategy game, played around the world and one that used to bring people out to watch street tournaments in Erbil.

But now, the Iraqi version is struggling to survive the digital era.

Dama is failing to get the attention of youth who are growing up with video games – while the social aspect of gaming lives on, young Iraqis are drawn to games where they can compete against anyone in the world who has an internet connection.

Al Jazeera’s Imran Khan reports.