Basrah Governorate
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Basra Governorate محافظة البصرة Basra Province |
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| Governorate | |||
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| Coordinates: 30°22′N 47°22′E / 30.367°N 47.367°ECoordinates: 30°22′N 47°22′E / 30.367°N 47.367°E | |||
| Country |
 Iraq
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| Capital | Basra | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 19,070 km2 (7,360 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2011 Estimate) | |||
| • Total | 4,700,000 | ||
| Website | basrahgov.com | ||
Basra Governorate (Arabic: محافظة البصرة Muḥāfaẓa al-Baṣra) (or Basra Province) is a governorate in southern Iraq, bordering Kuwait to the south and Iran to the east. The capital is the city of Basra. Other districts of Basra include Al-Qurnah, Az Zubayr, Al Midaina, Shatt Al Arab, Abu Al Khaseeb and Al Faw located on the Persian Gulf.
In 1920, after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I, the United Kingdom took over the former Ottoman vilayets of Basra, Baghdad and Mosul which had together formed the historical region of Irak Arabi or Irak Babeli, and called it the British Mandate of Mesopotamia. The mandate was succeeded by the Kingdom of Iraq in 1932.
The Shiite population suffered long and hard under Saddam's rule. The city of Basra had suffered considerably during the eight-year war with Iran and Allied bombardment and in 1991 during the Gulf War, the governorate ventured into an uprising after the United States promised them aid. It was started in Basra by angry soldiers, according to popular legend after they fired at a giant public portrait of Saddam Hussein. Mass support on the streets followed, shouting slogans, executing Ba'ath party members, leaders and secret police, and destroying pictures and monuments of Saddam Hussein. The participants had expected support from American troops. but the Allied army at the time was occupied despite the 24th Infantry Division stationed only several miles from the city. The city of Basra didn't completely succumb to the rebels; a counterattack by some 6,000 loyalists from the Republican Guard held out against 5,000 defectors of the Iraqi army. After about three days, the Republican Guard began to gain control, destroying "everything in front of them", killing many of the rebels in the streets and conducting mass executions on the public squares.
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Wikipedia