The Neo-Assyrian Empire (Assyrian cuneiform: mat Aš-šur KI, „Country of the city of god Aššur„; also phonetically mat Aš-šur)[a] was an Iron Age Mesopotamian empire, in existence between 911 and 609 BC,[10][11][12] and became the largest empire of the world up until that time.[13][unreliable source?] The Assyrians perfected early techniques of imperial rule, many of which became standard in later empires.[14] The Assyrians were the first to be armed with iron weapons, and their troops employed advanced, effective military tactics.[15]
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Following the conquests of Adad-nirari II in the late 10th century BC, Assyria emerged as the most powerful state in the world at the time, coming to dominate the Ancient Near East, East Mediterranean, Asia Minor, Caucasus, and parts of the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa, eclipsing and conquering rivals such as Babylonia, Elam, Persia, Urartu, Lydia, the Medes, Phrygians, Cimmerians, Israel, Judah, Phoenicia, Chaldea, Canaan, the Kushite Empire, the Arabs, and Egypt.