Editing Basra (section)

==History==
{{see also|Timeline of Basra}}
[[File:Ministry of Information First World War Official Collection Q25671.jpg|thumb|Ashar Creek and bazaar, c. 1915]]

===Foundation by the Rashidun Caliphate (632–661)===
[[File:Mss Eur F111 33 1492.jpg|thumb|The ‘Ashshār creek in Basrah Town]]
The city was founded at the beginning of the Islamic era in 636 and began as a garrison encampment for [[Arab]] tribesmen constituting the armies of the [[Rashidun Caliph]] [[Umar]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Basra, Iraq |url=https://www.meherbabatravels.com/location-gallery/iraq/basra-iraq/ |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=meherbabatravels jimdo page! |language=en-US}}</ref> A [[Tell (archaeology)|tell]] a few kilometers south of the present city still marks the original site which was a military site.<ref>{{Cite web |title=David Shepherd, military, Basra |url=https://www.davidshepherd.com/military-basra.html |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=www.davidshepherd.com}}</ref> While defeating the forces of the [[Sassanid Empire]] there, the Muslim commander [[Utbah ibn Ghazwan]] erected his camp on the site of an old Persian military settlement called ''Vaheštābād Ardašīr'', which was destroyed by the Arabs.<ref>''[[Encyclopædia Iranica]]'', [[Ehsan Yarshater|E. Yarshater]], [[Columbia University]], p851</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Utbah ibn Ghazwan {{!}} Companion of the Prophet {{!}} Islamic History {{!}} Sahaba Story |url=https://www.alim.org/history/prophet-companions/52/ |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=www.alim.org |language=en}}</ref> While the name Al-Basrah in Arabic can mean "the overwatch", other sources claim that the name actually originates from the Persian word Bas-rāh or Bassorāh, meaning "where many ways come together".<ref>See Mohammadi Malayeri, M. ''Dil-i Iranshahr''.</ref>

In 639, Umar established this encampment as a city with five districts, and appointed [[Abu Musa Ashaari|Abu Musa al-Ash'ari]] as its first governor.<ref>{{Cite web |title=erickbonnier-pictures - Iraq - Basra souk |url=https://www.erickbonnier-pictures.com/reports-travels/iraq-basra-souk/ |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=www.erickbonnier-pictures.com |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Utbah ibn Ghazwan (ra) {{!}} The Humble Governor {{!}} The Firsts Shorts |url=https://yaqeeninstitute.ca/watch/series/utbah-ibn-ghazwan-ra-the-humble-governor-the-firsts-shorts |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research |language=en}}</ref> The city was built in a circular plan according to the [[Sasanian architecture|Partho-Sasanian architecture]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Arce |first1=Ignacio |title=Umayyad Building Techniques and the Merging of Roman-Byzantine and Partho-Sassanian Traditions: Continuity and Change |journal=Late Antique Archaeology |date=1 January 2008 |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=494–495 |doi=10.1163/22134522-90000099|issn=1570-6893}}</ref> Abu Musa led the conquest of [[Khuzestan]] from 639 to 642, and was ordered by Umar to aid [[Uthman ibn Abi al-As]], then fighting Persia from a new, more easterly ''miṣr'' at [[Tawwaj]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Robinson |first=Chase F. |title=The Conquest of Khūzistān: A Historiographical Reassessment |date=2017-05-15 |work=The Expansion of the Early Islamic State |pages=287–312 |url=https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315239767-18 |access-date=2025-05-17 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-315-23976-7}}</ref> In 650, the Rashidun Caliph [[Uthman]] reorganised the Persian frontier, installed ʿAbdullah ibn Amir as Basra's governor, and put the military's southern wing under Basra's control.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Morony |first1=Michael G. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uhjSiRAwGuEC&dq=abdullah+ibn+aamir+persia+conquest&pg=PA207 |title=Iraq After the Muslim Conquest by Michael G. Morony citing Baladhuri, Jahshiyari, and Tabari |publisher=Gorgias Press |year=2005 |isbn=9781593333157 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151118133622/https://books.google.com/books?id=uhjSiRAwGuEC&hl=en |archive-date=November 18, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Ibn Amir led his forces to their final victory over [[Yazdegerd III]], the Sassanid [[Shah|King of Kings]].<ref name="Sahaby">{{Cite web |title=Abdallah ibn Amir ibn Kurayz ibn Rabi'a ibn Habib ibn Abd Shams |url=http://www.sahaba.rasoolona.com/Sahaby/11850/%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D9%87-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%B1-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D9%83%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%B2-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B1%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%B9%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%AD%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%A8-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF-%D8%B4%D9%85%D8%B3-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF-%D9%85%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%81-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D9%82%D8%B5%D9%8A |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805020635/http://www.sahaba.rasoolona.com/Sahaby/11850/%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D9%87-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%B1-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D9%83%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%B2-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B1%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%B9%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%AD%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%A8-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF-%D8%B4%D9%85%D8%B3-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF-%D9%85%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%81-%D8%A8%D9%86-%D9%82%D8%B5%D9%8A |archive-date=2020-08-05 |access-date=2021-04-02 |language=ar}}</ref> In 656, Uthman was murdered and [[Ali]] was appointed Caliph.<ref name=":12">{{Cite web |last=Edu |first=World History |date=2025-02-05 |title=Ali: The 4th Caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate |url=https://worldhistoryedu.com/ali-the-4th-caliph-of-the-rashidun-caliphate/ |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=World History Edu |language=en-US}}</ref> Ali first installed Uthman ibn Hanif as Basra's governor, who was followed by ʿAbdullah ibn ʿAbbas.<ref name=":12" /> These men held the city for Ali until the latter's death in 661.<ref name=":12" /> 

Basra's infrastructure was planned.<ref name=":13">{{Cite journal |last=Petersen |first=Andrew |last2=Northedge |first2=Alastair |last3=Stremke |first3=Frank |last4=Bates |first4=Martin |last5=Edwards |first5=Ifan |date=2023-11-30 |title=Discovering Early Islamic Basra: the Origins and Development of Iraq’s Southern Metropolis |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/mcmw/4/1/article-p119_6.xml?language=en&srsltid=AfmBOord5-w5bCX8HzTzLo_ah6T3VrelHuW_MCfH9zKOzLgPYKXCXrVQ |journal=Journal of Material Cultures in the Muslim World |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=119–142 |doi=10.1163/26666286-12340042 |issn=2666-6278}}</ref> Why Basra was chosen as a site for the new city remains unclear.<ref name=":13" /> The original site lay 15km from the [[Shatt al-Arab]] and thus lacked access to maritime trade and, more importantly, to fresh water.<ref name=":13" /> Additionally, neither historical texts nor archaeological finds indicate that there was much of an agricultural hinterland in the area before Basra was founded.<ref name=":13" /> 

Indeed, in an anecdote related by [[al-Baladhuri]], [[al-Ahnaf ibn Qays]] pleaded to the caliph Umar that, whereas other Muslim settlers were established in well-watered areas with extensive farmland, the people of Basra had only "reedy salt marsh which never dries up and where pasture never grows, bounded on the east by brackish water and on the west by waterless desert. We have no cultivation or stock farming to provide us with our livelihood or food, which comes to us as through the throat of an [[ostrich]]."<ref name="Kennedy">{{cite journal |last1=Kennedy |first1=Hugh |title=The Feeding of the five Hundred Thousand: Cities and Agriculture in Early Islamic Mesopotamia |journal=Iraq |date=2011 |volume=73 |pages=177–199 |doi=10.1017/S0021088900000152 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Nevertheless, Basra overcame these natural disadvantages and rapidly grew into the second-largest city in Iraq, if not the entire Islamic world. Its role as a military encampment meant that the soldiers had to be fed, and since those soldiers were receiving government salaries, they had money to spend.<ref name=":14">{{Cite journal |date=2023-11-30 |title=Discovering Early Islamic Basra: the Origins and Development of Iraq’s Southern Metropolis |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/org/science/article/pii/S266662782300018X |journal=Journal of Material Cultures in the Muslim World |language=en-US |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=119–142 |doi=10.1163/26666286-12340042 |issn=2666-6278}}</ref>  

Thus, both the government and private entrepreneurs invested heavily in developing a vast agricultural infrastructure in the Basra region.<ref name=":14" /> These investments were made with the expectation of a profitable return, indicating the value of the Basra food market.<ref name=":14" /> Although African [[Zanj]] slaves from the [[Indian Ocean slave trade]] were put to work on these construction projects, most of the labor was done by free men working for wages.<ref>{{Citation |last=Richardson |first=Seth |title=Mesopotamian Slavery |date=2023 |work=The Palgrave Handbook of Global Slavery throughout History |pages=17–39 |editor-last=Pargas |editor-first=Damian A. |url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-13260-5_2 |access-date=2025-05-17 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-031-13260-5_2 |isbn=978-3-031-13260-5 |editor2-last=Schiel |editor2-first=Juliane}}</ref> Governors sometimes directly supervised these projects, but usually they simply assigned the land while most of the financing was done by private investors.<ref name="Kennedy" /> The result of these investments was a massive irrigation system covering some 57,000 hectares between the Shatt al-Arab and the now-dry western channel of the Tigris.<ref name=":15">Development of Water Rating Curve in Basra River</ref> This system was first reported in 962, when just 8,000 hectares of it remained in use, for the cultivation of [[date palm]]s, while the rest had become desert.<ref name=":15" /> This system consists of a regular pattern of two-meter-high ridges in straight lines, separated by old canal beds.<ref name=":15" /> The ridges are extremely saline, with salt deposits up to 20 centimeters thick, and are completely barren.<ref name=":15" /> The former canal beds are less salty and can support a small population of salt-resistant plants.<ref name=":15" /> 

Contemporary authors recorded how the Zanj slaves were put to work clearing the fields of salty topsoil and putting them into piles; the result was the ridges that remain today.<ref name=":16">{{Cite web |last=Winterhalter |first=Elizabeth |date=2021-02-04 |title=What Was the Zanj Rebellion? |url=https://daily.jstor.org/what-was-the-zanj-rebellion/ |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=JSTOR Daily |language=en-US}}</ref> This represents an enormous amount of work: [[H.S. Nelson]] calculated that 45 million tons of earth were moved in total, and with his extremely high estimate of one man moving two tons of soil per day, this would have taken a decade of strenuous work by 25,000 men.<ref name="Kennedy" /> Ultimately, Basra's irrigation canals were unsustainable, because they were built at too little of a slope for the water flow to carry salt deposits away.<ref name=":16" /> This required the clearing of salty topsoil by the Zanj slaves in order to keep the fields from becoming too saline to grow crops.<ref name=":16" /> After Basra was sacked in by Zanj rebels in the late 800s and then by the Qarmatians in the early 900s, there was no financial incentive to invest in restoring the irrigation system, and the infrastructure was almost completely abandoned.<ref name=":16" /> Finally, in the late 900s, the city of Basra was entirely relocated, with the old site being abandoned and a new one developing on the banks of the Shatt al-Arab, where it has remained ever since.<ref name="Kennedy" />

===Umayyad Caliphate: 661–750===
The [[Sufyanids]] held Basra until [[Yazid I]]'s death in 683.<ref>{{Cite web |last=J |first=Nabeela |date=2018-10-09 |title=Was Rabi’a Basri – The Single Most Influential Sufi Woman – A Feminist? |url=https://feminisminindia.com/2018/10/10/rabia-basri-sufi-woman-feminist/ |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=Feminism in India |language=en-GB}}</ref> The Sufyanids' first governor was Umayyad ʿAbdullah, a renowned military leader, commanding fealty and financial demands from Karballah, but poor governor.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Basra, Iraq |url=https://www.meherbabatravels.com/location-gallery/iraq/basra-iraq/ |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=meherbabatravels jimdo page! |language=en-US}}</ref> In 664, [[Mu'awiya I]] replaced him with [[Ziyad ibn Abi Sufyan]], often called "ibn Abihi" ("son of his own father"), who became infamous for his draconian rules regarding public order.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Muawiya: The Ramadan series about an early Islamic ruler that’s causing a stir |url=https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/muawiya-series-about-early-islamic-ruler-causing-stir |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=Middle East Eye |language=en}}</ref> On Ziyad's death in 673, his son [[Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad|ʿUbayd Allah ibn Ziyad]] became governor. In 680, Yazid I ordered ʿUbayd Allah to keep order in [[Kufa]] as a reaction to [[Husayn ibn Ali]]'s popularity as the grandson of the [[Islamic prophet]] [[Muhammad]].<ref name=":17">{{Cite web |title=IRAQ i. IN THE LATE SASANID AND EARLY ISLAMIC ERAS |url=https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/iraq-i-late-sasanid-early-islamic/ |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=Encyclopaedia Iranica |language=en-US}}</ref> 'Ubayd Allah took over the control of [[Kufa]].<ref name=":17" /> Husayn sent his cousin as an ambassador to the people of Kufa, but ʿUbaydullah executed Husayn cousin [[Muslim ibn Aqil]] amid fears of an uprising.<ref name=":17" /> ʿUbayd Allah amassed an army of thousands of soldiers and fought Husayn's army of approximately 70 in a place called [[Karbala]] near Kufa.<ref name=":18">{{Cite web |last=Khan |first=Syed Muhammad |title=Battle of Karbala |url=https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1645/battle-of-karbala/ |access-date=2025-05-17 |website=World History Encyclopedia |language=en}}</ref> ʿUbayd Allah's army was victorious; Husayn and his followers were killed and their heads were sent to Yazid as proof.<ref name=":18" />

Ibn al-Harith spent his year in office trying to put down Nafi' ibn al-Azraq's [[Kharijites|Kharijite]] uprising in [[Khuzestan Province|Khuzestan]]. In 685, Ibn al-Zubayr, requiring a practical ruler, appointed [[Umar ibn Ubayd Allah ibn Ma'mar]]<ref>(Madelung p. 303–04)</ref> Finally, Ibn al-Zubayr appointed his own brother Mus'ab. In 686, the revolutionary [[al-Mukhtar]] led an insurrection at Kufa, and put an end to ʿUbaydullah ibn Ziyad near [[Mosul]]. In 687, Musʿab defeated al-Mukhtar with the help of Kufans who Mukhtar exiled.<ref>(Brock p.66)</ref>

[[Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan]] reconquered Basra in 691, and Basra remained loyal to his governor al-Hajjaj during Ibn Ashʿath's mutiny (699–702). However, Basra did support the rebellion of Yazid ibn al-Muhallab against [[Yazid II]] during the 720s.

===Abbasid Caliphate and its Golden Age: 750–1258===
In the late 740s, Basra fell to [[as-Saffah]] of the [[Abbasid Caliphate]].  During the time of the Abbasids, Basra became an intellectual center and home to the elite [[Grammarians of Basra|Basra School of Grammar]], the rival and sister school of the [[Grammarians of Kufa|Kufa School of Grammar]].  Several outstanding intellectuals of the age were Basrans; Arab [[polymath]] [[Alhazen|Ibn al-Haytham]], the [[Arabic literature|Arab literary]] giant [[al-Jahiz]], and the [[Sufi]] mystic [[Rabia Basri]]. The [[Zanj Rebellion]] by the agricultural slaves of the lowlands affected the area. In 871, the Zanj sacked Basra.<ref name=AndreWink>Andre Wink, ''Al-Hind: The Making of the Indo-Islamic World'', Vol.2, 17.</ref> In 923, the [[Qarmatians]], an extremist Muslim sect, [[Sack of Basra (923)|invaded and devastated]] Basra.<ref name=AndreWink />

From 945 to 1055, the Iranian [[Buyid dynasty]] ruled Baghdad and most of Iraq. Abu al Qasim al-Baridis, who still controlled Basra and [[Wasit]], were defeated and their lands taken by the Buyids in 947. [['Adud al-Dawla|Adud al-Dawla]] and his sons [[Diya' al-Dawla]] and [[Samsam al-Dawla]] were the Buyid rulers of Basra during the 970s, 980s and 990s.  Sanad al-Dawla al-Habashi ({{circa|921}}–977), the brother of the Emir of Iraq [[Izz al-Dawla]], was governor of Basra and built a library of 15,000 books.
[[File:Basra in a drawing by the Portuguese late 16th century .png|thumb|Basra designed by the Portuguese at the end of the 16th century, according to the representation of the "Lyvro de plantaforma of the fortresses of India" codex of São julião da Barra]]

The Oghuz Turk [[Tughril Beg]] was the leader of the Seljuks, who expelled the [[Shiite]] Buyid dynasty. He was the first Seljuk ruler to style himself Sultan and Protector of the Abbasid Caliphate.

The Great Friday Mosque was constructed in Basra. In 1122, [[Imad ad-Din Zengi]] received Basra as a fief.<ref>Penny Encyclopedia</ref> In 1126, Zengi suppressed a revolt and in 1129, Dabis looted the Basra state treasury.
A 1200 map "on the eve of the Mongol invasions" shows the Abbasid Caliphate as ruling lower Iraq and, presumably, Basra.

The [[Order of Assassins|Assassin]] [[Rashid ad-Din Sinan|Rashid-ad-Din-Sinan]] was born in Basra on or between 1131 and 1135.

===Mongol rule and thereafter: 1258–1500s===
{{Further|Safavid occupation of Basra}}
In 1258, the Mongols under [[Hulagu Khan|Hulegu Khan]] sacked Baghdad and ended Abbasid rule. By some accounts, Basra capitulated to the Mongols to avoid a massacre. The Mamluk [[Bahri dynasty]] map (1250–1382) shows Basra as being under their area of control, and the [[Ilkhanate|Mongol Dominions]] map (1300–1405) shows Basra as being under Mongol control. In 1290<ref>[[Buscarello de Ghizolfi]]</ref> fighting erupted at the [[Persian Gulf]] port of Basra among the [[Republic of Genoa|Genoese]], between the [[Guelphs and Ghibellines|Guelph and the Ghibelline]] factions.

[[Ibn Battuta]] visited Basra in the 14th century, noting it "was renowned throughout the whole world, spacious in area and elegant in its courts, remarkable for its numerous fruit-gardens and its choice fruits, since it is the meeting place of the two seas, the salt and the fresh."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Battutah |first1=Ibn |title=The Travels of Ibn Battutah |date=2002 |publisher=Picador |location=London |isbn=9780330418799 |pages=60}}</ref> Ibn Battuta also noted that Basra consisted of three-quarters: the Hudayl quarter, the Banu Haram quarter, and the Iranian quarter (''mahallat al-Ajam'').<ref name="BasraIranica">{{cite encyclopedia |title=BASRA |last=Donner |first=F.M. |author-link=Fred Donner |url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/basra |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Iranica, Vol. III, Fasc. 8 |pages=851–855 |year=1988}}</ref> [[Fred Donner]] adds: "If the first two reveal that Basra was still predominantly an Arab town, the existence of an Iranian quarter clearly reveals the legacy of long centuries of intimate contact between Basra and the Iranian plateau."<ref name="BasraIranica" />

The Arab Al-Mughamis tribe established control over Basra in the early fifteenth century, however, they quickly fell under influence of the [[Kara Koyunlu]] and [[Ak Koyunlu]], successively.{{sfn|Matthee|2006a|page=57}}{{efn|The Al-Mughamis were a branch of the [[Al-Muntafiq|Banu'l-Muntafiq]] who inhabited the area between [[Kufa]] and Basra.{{sfn|Matthee|2006a|page=57}}}} The Al-Mughamis' control of Basra had become nominal by 1436; ''de facto'' control of Basra from 1436 to 1508 was in the hands of the [[Musha'sha'iyyah|Moshasha]].{{sfn|Matthee|2006a|page=57}}{{efn|The Moshasha were a tribal confederation of radical [[Shia Islam|Shi'ites]] found mainly on the edges of the marshes alongside the Safavid province of [[Safavid Arabestan|Arabestan]] (present-day [[Khuzestan Province|Khuzestan]]). They often acted as Safavid proxies and were led by a Safavid governor. They participated in campaigns against the Arabs of southern Iraq and Basra. Matthee notes that even though they were nominal Safavid subjects, they had a broad scope of autonomy, and their territory served as a buffer between the Ottomans and the Iranians.{{sfn|Matthee|2006a|page=55}}{{sfn|Matthee|2006b|pages=556–560, 561}}}} In the latter year, during the reign of King (''[[Shah]]'') [[Ismail I]] ({{reign}}1501–1524), the first [[Safavid dynasty|Safavid]] ruler, Basra and the Moshasha became part of the Safavid Empire.{{sfn|Longrigg |Lang|2015}}{{efn |according to Floor (2008), a certain Shaykh Afrasiyab (the local ruler of Basra, not to be mistaken with the later Afrasiyab of Basra) came to [[Shiraz]] in 1504 to pledge his allegiance to Ismail I.{{sfn|Floor|2008|page=165}} Ismail I in turn confirmed him in his possessions and position as governor (''[[Vali (governor)|vali]]'') of Basra.{{sfn|Floor|2008|page=165}} Thus, Floor's stance differs slightly.}} This was the first time Basra had come under Safavid suzerainty. In 1524, following Ismail I's death, the local ruling dynasty of Basra, the Al-Mughamis, resumed effective control over the city.{{sfn|Matthee|2006a|page=57}} Twelve years later, in 1536, during the [[Ottoman–Safavid War (1532–1555)|Ottoman–Safavid War of 1532–1555]], the [[Bedouins|Bedouin]] ruler of Basra, Rashid ibn Mughamis, acknowledged [[Suleiman the Magnificent]] as his suzerain who in turn confirmed him as governor of Basra.{{sfn|Longrigg |Lang|2015}} The Arab provinces of the Ottoman Empire exercised a great deal of independence, and they even often raised their own troops.{{sfn|Longrigg |Lang|2015}} Though Basra had submitted to the Ottomans, the Ottoman hold over Basra was tenuous at the time.{{sfn|Matthee|2006b|pages=556–560, 561}} This changed a decade later; in 1546, following a tribal struggle involving the Moshasha and the local ruler of Zakiya (near Basra), the Ottomans sent a force to Basra. This resulted in tighter (but still, nominal) Ottoman control over Basra.{{sfn|Matthee|2006b|pages=556–560, 561}}{{sfn|Matthee|2006a|page=53}}[[File:Persian Gulf Pt8.png|thumb|Purple – [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]] in the Persian Gulf in the 16th and 17th century. Main cities, ports and routes.]]
In 1523, the [[Portugal|Portuguese]] under the command of António Tenreiro crossed from Aleppo to Basra. [[Nuno da Cunha]] took Basra in 1529.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Livermore |first=H. V. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FFCzAAAAMAAJ&q=Nuno+da+Cunha+took+Basra+in+1529 |title=A History of Portugal |date=1947 |publisher=University Press |page=236 |language=en}}</ref> In 1550, the local Kingdom of Basra and tribal rulers trusted the Portuguese against the Ottomans, from then on the Portuguese threatened to invoke an invasion and conquest of Basra several times. From 1595 the Portuguese acted as military protectors of Basra,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://iranicaonline.org/|title=Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica|first=Encyclopaedia Iranica|last=Foundation|website=iranicaonline.org}}</ref> and in 1624 the Portuguese assisted the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] [[Pasha]] of Basra in repelling a Persian invasion. The Portuguese were granted a share of the customs revenue and freedom from tolls. From about 1625 until 1668, Basra and the Delta marshlands were in the hands of local chieftains independent of the Ottoman administration at Baghdad.

===Ottoman and British rule===
{{see also|Basra Eyalet|Basra Vilayet}}
[[File:Ministry of Information First World War Official Collection Q25704.jpg|thumb|Iraqi girls, c. 1917|left]]
Basra was, for a long time, a flourishing commercial and cultural center. It was captured by the [[Ottoman Empire]] in 1668. It was fought over by Turks and [[Persian Empire|Persians]] and was the scene of repeated attempts at resistance. From 1697 to 1701, Basra was once again [[Safavid occupation of Basra (1697–1701)|under Safavid control]].<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=IRAQ iv. RELATIONS IN THE SAFAVID PERIOD |last=Matthee |first=Rudi |url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/iraq-iv-safavid-period |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Iranica (Vol. XIII, Fasc. 5 and Vol. XIII, Fasc. 6) |pages=556–560, 561 |year=2006}}</ref>

The [[Zand dynasty]] under [[Karim Khan Zand]] briefly occupied Basra after a long siege in 1775–9. The Zands attempted at introducing [[Usuli]] form of [[Shia|Shiism]] on a basically [[Akhbari]] [[Shia]] Basrans. The shortness of the Zand rule rendered this untenable.

In 1911, the ''Encyclopaedia Britannica'' reported "about 4000 Jews and perhaps 6000 Christians"<ref name=EB1911>{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Basra |volume=3 |page=489 |short=1 }}</ref> living in Basra Vilayet, but no Turks other than Ottoman officials. In 1884 the Ottomans responded to local pressure from the [[Shi'a]]s of the south by detaching the southern districts of the [[Baghdad vilayet]] and creating a new [[vilayet of Basra]].

[[File:Ministry of Information First World War Official Collection Q25688.jpg|thumb|Turkish prisoners passing along the bank of Ashar Creek, nearing Whiteley's Bridge, Basra 1917.|left]]

During [[World War I]], [[British Empire|British]] forces [[Battle of Basra (1914)|captured Basra]] from the Ottomans, occupying the city on 22 November 1914. British officials and engineers (including [[George Buchanan (engineer, born 1865)|Sir George Buchanan]]) subsequently modernized Basra's harbor, which due to the increased commercial activity in the area became one of the most important ports in the Persian Gulf, developing new mercantile links with [[British Raj|India]] and [[East Asia]].{{fact|date=March 2024}}
[[File:Basra War Cemetery Gate.jpg|thumb|The Gate to the British War Cemetery Basra 2024.]]
The graves of around 5,000 men from WW1 both are at [[Basra War Cemetery]] and a further 40,000 with no known grave are commemorated at [[Basra Memorial]]. Both sites are suffering from neglect with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission having withdrawn from the country in 2007.

===Modern era: 1921–2003===

[[File:Basra Dockyard.jpg|thumb|Model of Basra Dockyard|left]]

During [[World War II]] (1939–1945), Basra was an important port through which flowed much of the equipment and supplies sent to the [[Soviet Union]] by other [[Allies of World War II]].<ref name=":1" />

[[File:Old city of Basra 1954.jpg|thumb|right|[[Shanasheel]] of the old part of Basra city, 1954]]
The population of Basra was 101,535 in 1947,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/products/dyb/1950_round.htm |work=Demographic Yearbook 1955 |publisher=[[Statistical Office of the United Nations]] |location=New York |title=Population of capital city and cities of 100,000 or more inhabitants}}</ref> and reached 219,167 in 1957.<ref>{{cite web |title=National Intelligence Survey. Iraq. Section 41, Population |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/DOC_0001252308.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170123010830/https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/DOC_0001252308.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 January 2017 |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |date=1960}}</ref> The [[University of Basrah]] was founded in 1964. By 1977, the population had risen to a peak population of some 1.5&nbsp;million.<ref name=":1" /> The population declined during the [[Iran–Iraq War]], being under 900,000 in the late 1980s, possibly reaching a low point of just over 400,000 during the worst of the war.<ref name=":1" /> The city was repeatedly [[War of the Cities|shelled]] by [[Iran]] and was the site of many fierce battles, such as [[Operation Ramadan]] (1982) and the [[Siege of Basra]] (1987).<ref name=":1" />

After the war, [[Saddam]] erected 99 memorial statues to Iraqi military officers killed during the war along the bank of the Shatt-al-Arab river, all pointing their fingers towards Iran.{{cn|date=September 2024}} After the 1991 [[Gulf War]] a [[1991 uprising in Basra|rebellion against Saddam]] erupted in Basra.<ref name=":1" /> The widespread revolt was against the Iraqi government who violently put down the rebellion, with much death and destruction inflicted on Basra.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

As part of the [[Iraqi no-fly zones conflict]], [[United States Air Force]] fighter jets carried out two [[airstrike]]s against Basra on 25 January 1999.<ref name=":1" /> The airstrikes resulted in missiles landing in the al-Jumhuriya neighborhood of Basra, killed 11 Iraqi civilians and wounding 59.<ref name=":1" /> General [[Anthony Zinni]], then commander of U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf, acknowledged that it was possible that "a missile may have been errant."<ref name=":1" /> While such casualty numbers pale in comparison to later events, the bombing occurred one day after Arab foreign ministers, meeting in Egypt, refused to condemn four days of air strikes against Iraq in December 1998.<ref name=":1" /> This was described by Iraqi information minister Human Abdel-Khaliq{{efn|His proper name and position description appears to be in error, in that he appears to have held a more junior role at the time. Humam Abd al-Khaliq Abd al-Ghafur was Iraqi Information Minister between 1997 and 2001. The Iraqi Information Minister between 1991 and 1996 was Hamid Yusuf Hammadi. See [[List of Iraqi Information Ministers]].}} as giving U.S.-led forces "an Arab green card" to continue their involvement in the conflict.<ref>{{cite news |author=Paul Koring |title=USAF air strikes kill 11, injure 59: Iraq |work=[[The Globe and Mail]] |location=Toronto |date=26 January 1999 |page=A8 |quote=These air strikes, by British and USAF warplanes and U.S. cruise missiles, were said to be in response to a release of a report by UN weapons inspectors stating that, as of 1998, the government of Iraq was obstructing their inspection work. Following the four days of bombing in December, the Iraqi government commenced challenging the "no fly zones" unilaterally imposed on the country by the United States, following the 1991 Persian Gulf war. During the month of January 1999, there were more than 100 incursions by Iraqi aircraft and 20 instances of Iraqi surface-to-air missiles being filed. The January bombing of Basra occurred in the context of retaliatory attacks by the United States.}}</ref>

A [[1999 Shia uprising in Iraq|second revolt in 1999]] led to mass executions by the Iraqi government in and around Basra. Subsequently, the Iraqi government deliberately neglected the city, and much commerce was diverted to [[Umm Qasr]].{{cn|date=September 2024}} These alleged abuses are to feature amongst the charges against the former regime to be considered by the [[Iraq Special Tribunal]] set up by the [[Iraq Interim Government]] following the 2003 invasion.{{cn|date=September 2024}} 

===Post-Saddam period: 2003–present===
{{Main|Battle of Basra (2003)|Battle of Basra (2008)}}
[[File:US Navy 030402-N-5362A-004 U.S. Army Sgt. Mark Phiffer stands guard duty near a burning oil well in the Rumaylah Oil Fields in Southern Iraq.jpg|thumb|A U.S. soldier stands guard duty near a burning oil well in the [[Rumaila oil field]], 2 April 2003]]
[[File:1 RRF engage Iraqi Army positions with their 81mm Mortars. Iraq. 26-03-2003 MOD 45142764.jpg|thumb|British soldiers engage Iraqi Army positions with their 81mm Mortars south of Basra, 26 March 2003.]]

In March through to May 2003, the outskirts of Basra were the scene of some of the heaviest fighting in the beginning of the [[Iraq War]] in 2003.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Basra |url=https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Basra/317092 |access-date=2024-09-29 |website=Britannica Kids |language=en-US}}</ref> The British forces, led by the [[British 7th Armoured Brigade|7th Armoured Brigade]], captured the city on 6 April 2003.<ref name=":2" /> This city was the first stop for the [[United States]] and the [[United Kingdom]] during the [[2003 invasion of Iraq|invasion of Iraq]].<ref name=":2" />

On 21 April 2004, a [[21 April 2004 Basra bombings|series of bomb blasts]] ripped through the city, killing 74 people.<ref name=":2" /> The [[Multi-National Division (South-East) (Iraq)|Multi-National Division (South-East)]], under British command, was engaged in [[foreign internal defense]] missions in [[Basra Governorate]] and surrounding areas during this time.<ref name=":2" /> Political groups centered in Basra were reported to have close links with political parties already in power in the [[government of Iraq|Iraqi government]], despite opposition from Iraqi [[Sunni]]s and the [[Kurds]].<ref name=":2" /> January 2005 elections saw several radical politicians gain office, supported by religious parties.<ref name=":2" /> American journalist [[Steven Vincent]], who had been researching and reporting on corruption and militia activity in the city, was kidnapped and killed on 2 August 2005.<ref>{{cite web |title=Steven Vincent |url=https://cpj.org/killed/2005/steven-vincent.php |publisher=Committee to Protect Journalists |date=2005}}</ref>

On 19 September 2005, two [[Undercover operation|undercover]] British [[Special Air Service]] (SAS) soldiers were stopped by the [[Iraqi Police]] at a [[roadblock]] in Basra.<ref name=":2" /> The two soldiers were part of an SAS operation investigating allegations of [[Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011)|insurgent]] infiltration into the Iraqi Police.<ref name=":2" /> When the police attempted to pull the soldiers out of their car, they opened fire on the officers, killing two.<ref name=":2" /> The SAS soldiers attempted to escape before being beaten and arrested by the police, who took them to the Al Jameat Police Station.<ref name=":2" /> British forces subsequently identified the location of the two soldiers and [[Basra prison incident|carried out a rescue mission]], storming the police station and transporting them to a safe location.<ref name=":2" /> A civilian crowd gathered around the rescue force during the incident and attacked it; three British soldiers were injured and two members of the crowd were purportedly killed.<ref name=":2" /> The British [[Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Defence]] initially denied carrying out the operation, which was criticised by Iraqi officials, before subsequently admitting it and claiming the two soldiers would have been executed if they were not rescued.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/4262336.stm |title=UK soldiers 'freed from militia' |date=20 September 2005 |publisher=BBC |access-date=17 March 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/09/20/MNGS5EQNGN1.DTL |title=British smash jail walls to free 2 arrested soldiers |date=20 September 2005 |work=San Francisco Chronicle |access-date=17 March 2012}}</ref>

The British transferred control of Basra province to the Iraqi authorities in 2007, four-and-a-half years after the invasion.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7146507.stm |title=UK troops return Basra to Iraqis |date=16 December 2007 |publisher=BBC News |access-date=1 January 2010}}</ref> A BBC survey of local residents found that 86% thought the presence of British forces since 2003 had had an overall negative effect on the province.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7144437.stm |title=Basra residents blame UK troops |date=14 December 2007 |publisher=BBC News |access-date=1 January 2010}}</ref> Major-General Abdul Jalil Khalaf was appointed Police Chief by the central government with the task of taking on the militias.<ref name=":2" /> He was outspoken against the targeting of women by the militias.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7095209.stm |title=Basra militants targeting women |publisher=BBC News |date=15 November 2007 |access-date=1 January 2010}}</ref> Talking to the BBC, he said that his determination to tackle the militia had led to almost daily assassination attempts.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/7148670.stm |title=Basra: The Legacy |publisher=BBC News |date=17 December 2007 |access-date=1 January 2010}}</ref> This was taken as sign that he was serious in opposing the militias.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7145597.stm |title=Uncertainty follows Basra exit |publisher=BBC News |date=15 December 2007 |access-date=1 January 2010}}</ref>

{{anchor|2008}}
In March 2008, the Iraqi Army launched a major offensive, code-named Charge of the White Knights (''Saulat al-Fursan''), aimed at forcing the [[Mahdi Army]] out of Basra.<ref name=":1" /> The assault was planned by General Mohan Furaiji and approved by [[Prime Minister of Iraq|Iraqi Prime Minister]] [[Nouri al-Maliki]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/world/middleeast/27iraq.html |title=Iraqi Army's Assault on Militias in Basra Stalls |work=The New York Times |date=27 March 2008 |access-date=27 March 2008 |first=James |last=Glanz |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081211004906/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/27/world/middleeast/27iraq.html |archive-date=11 December 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> In April 2008, following the failure to disarm militant groups, both Major-General Abdul Jalil Khalaf and General Mohan Furaiji were removed from their positions in Basra.<ref>{{cite news |publisher=BBC News |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7350434.stm |title=Basra security leaders removed |date=16 April 2008 |access-date=1 January 2010}}</ref>

Workers in Basra's oil industry have been involved in extensive organization and labour conflict.{{cn|date=September 2024}} They held a two-day strike in August 2003, and formed the nucleus of the independent [[General Union of Oil Employees]] (GUOE) in June 2004. The union held a one-day strike in July 2005, and publicly opposes plans for privatizing the industry.{{cn|date=September 2024}}

Basra was scheduled to host the [[22nd Arabian Gulf Cup]] tournament in [[Basra Sports City]], a newly built multi-use sports complex.<ref name=":2" /> The tournament was shifted to [[Riyadh]], [[Saudi Arabia]], after concerns over preparations and security.<ref name=":2" /> Iraq was also due to host the 2013 tournament, but that was moved to Bahrain.<ref name=":2" /> At least 10 demonstrators died as they [[2015–2018 Iraqi protests#2018 protests|protested]] against the lack of clean drinking water and electrical power in the city during the height of summer in 2018.<ref name=":2" /> Some protesters stormed the Iranian consulate in the city.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-protests-idUSKCN1LN1M9 |title=Unrest intensifies in Iraq as Iranian consulate and oil facility stormed |work=Reuters|date=8 September 2018}}</ref> In 2023, the city hosted the long scheduled [[25th Arabian Gulf Cup]] where the Iraqi team won.<ref name=":2" />