In ancient times Alexandria stood halfway between Babylon (the place of Alexander's death) and Seleucia on the Tigris (the capital of the Seleucid Empire, very near to modern Baghdad).

The Al Qaqaa State Establishment, located in the town, is believed to have been put in charge of developing the non-nuclear components for a nuclear weapon.

It was subsequently inspected by United Nations weapons inspectors and officials from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

In 1989, the British journalist Farzad Bazoft was arrested there after visiting Alexandria to check reports that an explosion at the Al Qaqaa plant had killed 7000 people.

On June 19, 2003, a soldier from the 804th Medical Brigade was killed when the military ambulance in which he was traveling was hit by a rocket propelled grenade near Alexandria.