Editing Basra (section)

===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.