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Alia Muhammad Baker

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Alia Baker


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The Librarian of Basra - A True Story from Iraq


Alia Muhammad Baker (also spelled "Baqer") was the chief librarian in the Al Basrah Central Library, Basra, Iraq. Baker saved an estimated 30,000 books from destruction during the Iraq War, including a biography of Muhammad from around 1300.

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Baker had worked at the library for 14 years. As war with the US and UK loomed, government officials denied her requests that the books be moved to safety. She started to smuggle books out of the library.

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With a Shi'ite population relatively unsupportive of the Hussein regime, Basra was one of the first targets in the 2003 invasion of Iraq beginning in March. Coalition forces met with more resistance than expected. Most of the invading American troops moved northwards, leaving Basra under a multi-week siege led by the British. The city was soon suffering from a "humanitarian crisis" in which residents lacked both water and electricity.

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The invading forces (including the Royal Australian Air Force) used bombing and psychological warfare during the siege. Eventually, a large column of Iraqi tanks was destroyed by RAF bombs and 300 prisoners were taken in a battle outside the city. British troops occupied the city on 6 April.

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Baker enlisted the help of locals to smuggle the remaining books over the library's seven foot wall and into the dining room of the restaurant next door. Before the library was destroyed, Baker had rescued 70% of the library's collection: 30,000 books, including English and Arabic books and a Spanish language Koran.

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The library was rebuilt in 2004 and Baker was reinstated as chief librarian.

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The story of how Baker rescued the library books has inspired two children's books: Alia's Mission and Jeanette Winter's The Librarian of Basra (Harcourt 2005). Some of the money raised from sales has been donated to the library.

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References

Alia Muhammad Baker Wikipedia