The story in relation to me…about, I mean, Iraq itself, how the Jews left and such.

Going back to my personal life. So after I finished the doctorate, I worked at a chemical engineering company, a big company. From there, as a chemical engineer, I switched to commercial things…in the company.

Later, I went to banks and became a manager…a merger and acquisitions manager in English.

In 1995 I came to Israel, I worked at an agricultural and land company. In about 1998, 1999 I started working in investment things in high-tech. And from that time I worked in those things.

In recent years I’ve started being more involved in the history of Jews of Iraq. For example, here in…the faithful…as in the ones responsible for the museum, from the area of the…administration of the museum. It’s called “neemanim”.

I am head of the organisation of the association of Jewish university graduates from Iraq. 

This organisation […] Jews of Iraq, about their history and…for example poetry or stories or things that were written. In recent years, I’ve become very involved in the subject of Jews of Iraq and the heritage of the Jews of Iraq.

After…in (19)72, I left Baghdad and went to England. I had a full scholarship there. In truth, I finished high school in (19)66, before the Six Day War. We entered university. I entered Baghdad University, in the engineering faculty. I started studying chemical engineering there. I finished the Baccalaureus of chemical engineering in Baghdad. I’ll tell you the story of the rest who finished in (19)67 and (19)68 - they didn’t let them (those who finished in 1967 and 1968) enter university. Life was different in terms of the government. So for example, between (19)50 and (19)58 after…there was the royal era. The Jews were stable. There were restrictions. For example, they couldn’t go to university either. But they didn’t suffer physically. As in, they didn’t kill them or torture them. There were many (Jews) in the prisons, accused of communism or accused of Zionism. So the courts before…in (19)50, (19)48…and when the sentence finished, they left. 

So I personally left in (19)72. I left with a passport. Passport. About at that time, they had started giving passports bit by bit. And because my father knew people who had left and got passports from the security services. But my exit was even harder maybe than smuggling, from travel. Smuggling is…travelling informally. It’s called smuggling in…part the word is Turkish. As in, smuggling…they say someone left “smuggling”. Meaning they left without a passport. Or someone escaped…he escaped by smuggling, they call it.

So I…they took me out […] of the security services. Of the security services. After, from the security services you go to the interior ministry. The interior ministry. Which was automatic. As in, a few weeks later you’d go out […] the security services was the main thing.

We…this story was September 1971. We were waiting and waiting to leave. (The outcome we received said) “You are forbidden from leaving. You are forbidden from travelling.” We didn’t understand what the story was. 

I went back to the security services. They saw it and said “okay”. Naturally, I was finishing as an engineer at college. So I will tell you another story about…I was working at…we’ll go back to that story.

After finishing…I was still in university, in the last year of chemical engineering. It was after (19)69. As in 69, 70, that year. The school principal of our Frank Einy and Shamash Jewish school came to me and a few students who had been at the school. He said, “look, your teachers…the teachers which were Muslim and Christian, some of them have left. So (can) you come and help the students (at the school)?”. So I was in my last year of university. I would go to the school and teach a chemistry class. And the year after that I finished too. I mean, (19)70, 71. I taught a few classes at the school.

So I didn’t work as an engineer. There was no work. It was forbidden. You’re Jewish - you can’t work. So I worked at the Jewish school. As a teacher. 

At the same time, I started trying to be accepted…to finish my masters abroad. So I received acceptance from a few universities in England. So I could finish…I mean, study a masters. At the same time also, there was…a few years after that, a special scholarship…a scholarship…for Iraqi Jews for the school to send them. But it was stopped for a few years. At the same time, I could obtain one of those scholarships…in England. And now I have permission at the university, and I have a scholarship…for example how would I leave Iraq?

I told you some of them had fled. My father was a bit scared of that topic. Scared not of the […] how to escape. But he had his reputation. As in, he was famous and patriotic and such things. And his son would leave? He said “I will try to help you and get you out. I know scapegoats and they can help you and get you a passport.”

In truth, my story was up to the Council of Ministers. Because I was Salim Basson’s son. Salim Basson, after my father. Famous, patriotic, and such and such. And his son…had permission at university. They […] he wanted to travel.

And so the issue got to the security services. And the security services gave permission. We said (to ourselves), “it’s over”. (But actually,) this was the start. 

After, they wouldn’t […] give them permission to travel. With a passport, with a passport.

I told you, my status was forbidden (to travel) from the interior ministry. We didn’t understand what the story was. I went back to the security services. The security services said we were successful. They wrote, again, that we were successful.

I went back to the interior ministry. Each of these occasions were a few weeks apart. I went back to the interior ministry. They said, “you are not successful”. We didn’t understand what…the interior ministry, the interior ministry, how…what they weren’t agreeing for. About what. I mean, the security services (said we were) successful, so how could they say we weren’t successful?

I came again again, for the third time, to the security services. They said, “but you are successful What’s the story?”. So now we thought we would return to the interior minister. The same thing happened.

I wrote letters. I mean, I wrote a letter to the interior minister. My mother was a bit stubborn. I mean, she didn’t get scared. She took the letter in her hand and went to the ministry. At that time the interior minister was Saadoun Ghaidan from the army. His car came out and she stopped in front of him like this. She stopped the car! She stopped the car until he…you know, everyone had machine guns and stuff. I mean, weapons. But he wound down the window and said to her, “what is it, my sister?”. As in, “what’s wrong with you?”. She went like this to him and had the letter. She said to him, this is my son and so and so, and they’re holding up his application at the interior ministry.

He said to her, “I remember such a name”. She said to him, “yes, but they won’t give him permission.” We took this…he took the letter and signed it for her. Now, the interior minister had signed - that’s the end of the story. As in, the interior ministry agreed. Whoever had interfered now stopped.

Afterwards, we understood the story. There was some person, a minor employee, at the interior ministry. He wanted to make a lesson out of me. A lesson, as in a lesson. What was the lesson? Look at this person - he can get approval from the security service, but I can stop it. Okay? Play your money. As in, give him a bribe, or give him some type of bribe.

The outcome was that the approval was given and the issue was finished.

Now we had to go to the office of travel and citizenship, which gave out passports. That also was the story as such. My mother took the thing and stopped in front of…in the queue. She came and arrived at the…what’s it called? The door. There was someone, a guard. He saw a Jewish woman, sent her away (and said) “go over there”. And this (happened) one, two, three times - the same thing. She didn’t know the story. Why…they were doing something not nice to her because she was Jewish.

Later she also…she didn’t get scared of these things. She went searching for the office of the manager, knocked on the door of his office and went inside. This manager was sitting - around him were sheikhs and such, who knows. He said “ah, what is it, my sister?”. She said to him, “I’m a Jewish woman.” He said to her, “yes? Welcome!”. She said to him, “I want to know…are we different, us Jews?” He said to her…like he was embarrassed. He said “what? What is it?”. She said to him, “such and such is the story. I came to the door and that man took me out.” He said to her, “ah, what happened? Bring this, bring that. I’ll sign it.” My mother returned again and stood in the queue. She arrived to that person - the same person. He said to her, “didn’t I tell you to go over there!”. This (was said) in the Muslim Baghdadi dialect. “You Jew, go there”. She picked up the signature and went like this with it in his face. So he saw the signature of the manager. He said to her, “we’ve finished”.

I obtained a passport. Okay? Supposedly, I was about to travel. After all that, at the same time, it had been three months since I’d taken the position at the university. And I didn’t…I still hadn’t travelled. So I wrote to them “I have a problem with…as in…I can’t come at this time.” They said to me, “don’t worry. Whenever you come - come.”

So why did I speak (the) Muslim (Baghdadi dialect)? I’m telling you I spoke Muslim. From those friends…our neighbours. They were Muslims. So I grew up with them. I didn’t have a family. In relation to me, the mother…of those Muslim friends of ours…in relation to me, she was like my grandmother. As in, I called her “big mother”. Like “my grandma”. Because…my real grandma - as in my grandmother - was in Israel. So this was my grandmother. The Muslim woman was my grandmother, or my grandmother, or grandmother…nana (lists multiple names in multiple languages for grandmothers). All those names that people call grandmothers. They had three children. One was a police manager, the one I speak about, the police manager was […]. The second one became a doctor. And the third one travelled - went abroad. He went to Germany. Later, the one who was a doctor - a doctor - went to Sweden. And the oldest of their (children), the manager in the police, took his mother and went to Sweden. The relationship (between us) was cut. We are talking about the (19)60s. (19)65, 66 etc. And…they left. They came back…I don’t know…I don’t remember. He came back in about (19)70. This one […] who was the police manager. And eventually we left Iraq and went to Israel. And they…(went to) Germany, Sweden, we don’t know where. Okay? One day, in (19)87, (19)87, my mother got a phone call. My mother (was) here, in Petah Tikva. A phone call. (The person on the phone) said to her, “are you the Basson family?”. She said to him, “yes”. (It was) someone Israeli (on the phone). (He asked,) “Are you the Basson family?”. She said, “yes”. He said, “there’s someone named…Melhem Daoud”. They are from the El-Ani family. The Ani family. My mother didn’t (understand). (The person said,) ”He is looking for you. He is looking for you”. My mother was scared for a moment. Who is this Melhem Daoud? Then she said to herself, “I’m in Israel…why would I be scared?”. She said to him, “okay. Give him our phone number.” (The person on the phone said,” “This Melhem Daoud is looking for you.” Who is Melhem Daoud? He is the youngest childhood of theirs…of that family. My mother…gave him the phone (number). Ten minutes later, (the phone rang and it was) this Melhem.” He said to her, “Umm Khedher? I am Melhem Daoud. Melhem Daoud El-Ani!” He said to her, “I was the…I’ve been searching for you for ten years”. This Muslim family lived in…the son in Germany was looking for us. He said to them, “there’s a man named Salim el Basson and he was a journalist”. To every Israeli who arrived in Germany, he would approach and say “do you know this family? Do you know this family?”. I will explain it to you later if you didn’t understand. I’ll tell you in English what I said. This is the family…now I’ve found you and such. We…my mother came to England. I and my mother and my sisters, all of us, went to see them. And the old mother, the one I called grandmother, was still alive. She remained alive. So this…we met them, I mean, after all those years. We met them.

When I was in…the Anglo Jewish Association, they gave me the address of Hillel House. Hillel House was…they made houses of Jewish students with no contract. I arrived there […] they heard someone is coming from Iraq. A Jew has come from Iraq to Manchester. They imagined someone was coming from Mars. From…a different place. I mean Mars is…*from Mars. From another planet. Okay?* They welcomed me and so on.

One day later it was Friday. That was the first time…we weren’t religious in Iraq. So there was Shabbat, and they did Shabbat songs, and things…I liked it. One or two days later I went to university. I did…I enrolled, and finished the (relevant) things. And they gave me places to go to…where to live. Like apartments of students living in places.

I was a stranger and stuff. Here at Hillel House. A place of Jews and such. And by coincidence there was a spare room. This man said to me, “do you want to live here?”. I said, “yes. I’ll live here, and I’ll be able to meet friends…with something in common.” Jews - even if they were English Jews - but something in common. And I stayed with them for two years. 

About three weeks later I was at that Hillel House. A call came for me. You know, in those days […] there wasn’t a phone (like now). The call would come via the exchange. They would call you and say, “you have a phone call”. I had a phone call from overseas. From another place. I answered the phone. Someone started talking in (the) Jewish Iraqi (dialect). (He said) “How are you Khudur? […] We heard that you left (Iraq).” I said to him, “who are you?”. He said to me, “I am your uncle! I am your father’s brother, Naim.” That was the first time I knew I had…that I knew I had an uncle Naim (on my father’s side). And I (also) have a (paternal) uncle Sḥāq, and I have…so on. But we didn’t have…I told you, we didn’t have any contact with them. They understood that I had left Iraq. And from one person to another, my telephone number got to them and they called me. So that was the first time I spoke to…to my uncle. Then another one came, and said to me “I am your uncle Ṣḥāq.” He also spoke to me. Afterwards, a woman’s voice came, a voice of women, and she started speaking to me in Hebrew. I said to her, “I don’t understand. I don’t know Hebrew.” She said to me, “I am your grandmother! Your grandmother, grandmother!”. Why did she speak to me in Hebrew? She has children here (in Israel). She has grandchildren. Okay? So she speaks with them…I mean, she speaks Hebrew with them. So I am her grandson. I am her grandson, so she also spoke to me in Hebrew. Those were…my first weeks in London…in Manchester. They said to me, “as soon as you are able…we want to see you.”

So it happened on the holiday of Pesach. I mean, after…*April*, three months after that. I took the plane from London to Tel Aviv. On El Al. I got off the plane…(and there was) a police car. One person in the army. And another…from the police. I…they said to me, “Khudur?”. I was in shock. It felt like going back to Baghdad. The fear of (living in) Baghdad came back to me. Army, police. Those people saw my face, shocked. They said, “no no! I’m your cousin, Sami! I’m your cousin, Shlomo!”. As in, my cousins! 

They took me…in a Jeep. They escorted me to the entrance of the airport. I went outside quickly. And what do I find? One hundred and fifty people waiting for me. In the foyer of Ben Gurion airport. All of them were members of my family. My cousins on my father’s side, cousins on my mother's side, my father’s paternal uncles, his maternal uncles…all of it. From (just) us and my uncle’s family in Baghdad, here (in Israel) all of this was my family. 

They saw…they saw my dad. They didn’t see me. Because when they left (Iraq) I…I was a little boy aged a year and a half old. My dad was also in his twenties - twenty seven (or) twenty eight. That’s how they found my dad coming down. Ok? After…outside of the airport, there were another hundred people waiting for me who were unable to enter the airport. So that was the first thing I saw in Israel. My extended family. Suddenly, I had a family. I have…a family. 

What did I do? I took letters which had English stamps. So I took return…I took letters which had English stamps on them so…whatever happened in Israel, whatever I found, I wrote and sent to my friend in London and he sent them to Iraq. So my mother, father, my sisters were all still in Iraq. Ok? So that was the first time that I (could) tell them (my family) that I had seen (our relatives)…(but) I couldn’t say where I saw them. So I said to them, for example, “I saw them…I saw my grandmother, I mean my grandmother, my grandmother…I saw her in north London. These (people) I saw in south London. As in, those people live…in the south. In the south of Israel. Those people live in the north of Israel. Those people live here. We went to the beach next to…I mean, in England. Not in Israel. I took a picture of them, and I cut it. I cut the picture (so that) only they (our relatives) were visible. There was nothing (else, in the background). For example, (a picture of them) standing…in the beach of…our (beach). Next to Tel Aviv. I didn’t put anything (in the picture that would) show (it was taken) in Tel Aviv. And I sent it (the picture). I said to them, just…for example…I took pictures for them in a park (where) nothing was showing (that could identify the location the pictures were taken in). It wasn’t possible to know where (the pictures were taken). Ok?

So I helped them understand - my family in Baghdad - that their family was present in Israel. Dad’s siblings, his mother was still alive, and all this. They didn’t know (prior to this). We didn’t know (when I was still in Iraq) if they (the family who left Iraq) were alive or not. If they were alive or not alive. (It was) like that. 

So after that, after they understood all that, I went back to England. And I started trying to get them…them to leave. So bit by bit, I convinced them in an indirect way that…they (should) send my two sisters at first. So they left via Istanbul. I came from England in (19)73. I came to Istanbul. I completed their paperwork, put them on a plane, and my uncles took them here in Israel. And then, after…three…they stayed in…Nisan, April (19)73. And after my father and mother left in August (19)73. I mean, three (or) four months later. And that’s the story of…our exodus from Iraq.

I was born in 1949 in Baghdad. My name was Khudur Basson - named after my grandfather Khdurie. My father’s name was Salim and my mother was Mariam. My father was a journalist, considered to be left-wing. When the smear campaign happened in 1951, he didn’t leave. All his family - his mother, his siblings, his grandparents - they all left in 1951 or 1950. On my mother’s side also, her nephews and nieces also left. Her family was smaller than my father’s. And we stayed on our own (in Iraq) - my father, my mother and I. I was a year and a half old when the whole family left. I have an uncle who also remained in Israel - sorry, he stayed in Iraq. And we didn’t have any contact with them from 1951, 1950 - we lost all contact with them. We didn’t have any family abroad, in another place…that could become the communication between us. I studied at a Jewish school, of our community, Frank Eini. I finished primary school and […] and the same applies - I continued…I finished high school at Shamash, Shamash school, which was the same building. When I started I didn’t speak the Jewish dialect - I spoke the Muslim dialect. We had Muslim friends - I’ll tell you their story too. My father, in 1948, before I was born, a month after he was married, he wrote articles against the government, (because) he was a journalist. And the government took him and sent him to Badra, which was a small city or small town on the Iraqi-Iranian border. He was kept away for a period of on year. There, he had to come to register at the police station every day (to confirm) that he was present. After a few weeks, a police manager named Madhat al-Aani came and a friendship was formed with my father (and him). From that time on, he (my dad) didn’t have to come to register (himself) anymore. My mother also came to Badra and she…he adopted her, she became like his daughter. A year or year and a half later, dad came back to Baghdad. They also came back to Baghdad and bought the house neighbouring us. That’s how our friendship was with them. So I was always at their place when I was young. So I learned to speak the Muslim dialect - I mean, in the Iraqi Muslim dialect, not the Jewish Iraqi dialect. And when I went to our Jewish school, some of them thought I was Muslim and not Jewish. With the years we started speaking the Jewish dialect. But most of the time I spoke the Muslim dialect. So even…not like a Jewish Jew…a bit different.

I embarked onto the plane…an English plane. After about a quarter, a third of an hour, the…(air) hostess came. She said to me, “we’re organising the plane. Do you want to sit in first class?”. Okay? I said okay. They were organising. As in, to organise…

I sat next to someone. This was my first time on a plane. After our whole story where we weren’t able to leave (Iraq), I couldn’t believe it. As in, (I was scared) they would return the plane when it was already in the air.

I said to the man next to me, “where are we?”. He said to me, “we’re next to…a place, Lake Habbaniya. On the way.”

The plane continued. One hour later I said to him, “where are we now?”. He said to me, “we’re over the mountains of Turkey”. As in, we’d crossed…we were done with Iraq. We’d passed into Turkey. I said to him in English, “thank Gd!”.

He said to me, “what do you mean, thank Gd?”. So I told him the story, as in I couldn’t…up until the last moment, I could still be returned (to Iraq). I was scared like that.

I arrived in London at about two thirty. London in January an hour or hour and a half later becomes dark. Iraq is like Israel - between winter and summer…five to seven. In England, in winter it becomes dark at 3pm and in summer at 10:30pm. So it was a strange thing to me. 

Okay, I got to the airport. What’s the first thing I see? (An) El-Al (plane with) a Magen David. I mean, (it was a) shock seeing a Magen David. Because, in Iraq, we didn’t have any information. They didn’t let us. Imagining such a thing would be a joke. A sheriff, as it׳s called in English.[…]…he has a star here (on his chest). Either five, or a 6 (pointed) star. Cowboy films would come out on TV and someone would sit and erase that (star). It was impossible that a star of David would be seen. And I, by coincidence, see this…a plane with a star on it.

I exited the airport. I said (to myself), “how do I arrive?” Imagine - it was my first time on a plane. I got there. (People) told me, “take a bus which will take you from the station - Heathrow airport - it will take you to Victoria Station in the centre.”

Baghdad wasn’t big. As in, from home to the airport was about a quarter of an hour. Here, the bus was going and going and going. From Heathrow to the centre it took almost an hour and a half. Everything was different. Everything had changed.

I got to the station. Okay. I saw cucumbers - a cucumber of this size. Our cucumbers were small. Okay? For this much money. We would buy a few kilos with the money that…everything was different. A woman was walking wearing a mini skirt. In Baghdad, if a girl walked with a short skirt, they would hassle her.

Okay. So where should I go? I had the phone number of some group in London. Supposedly I would be staying with them for a few days and from there I would go to Manchester.

I called them and nobody answered. I didn’t know what to do. I had no…I had nobody. The other phone number I had, I called them. It turned out to be a hotel which took…(guests for) a week. People who travelled would take a room in the place for a week. They didn’t have daily rooms. I was by myself in London, I had nobody, and I didn’t know what to do. I had a little money in my pocket. So I saw things quickly…money is very expensive. Life is very expensive compared to Iraq.

I walked from street to street for two-three hours not knowing what to do. I didn’t know what to do in the end. In the end I called the first number again. Someone answered. He said to me, “ah, yes. I heard that you were coming but I had gone to Manchester on the weekend and I just came back.” I said to him, “okay. So how do I get to you?”. He said to me, “okay. You go from here and take a taxi. This is the address.” I was in shock. In Baghdad, if someone came - here in Israel too - if someone comes to the airport, they come to the airport to get him. Or to the station to get him. He said to me, “take a taxi and come to the house.” 

How much did the taxi cost? Three and a half pounds. Four and a half pounds. I did the calculation. I have two hundred, three hundred pounds…this is how much has gone from the two hundred. With these three and a half pounds one would live for two, three days in Iraq. Here, on a taxi, I spent three and a half pounds. After, I took it. I had no other…what’s it called?

I arrived at his house. This was after (19)67, (19)69. Jews were still…after the 6 day war. He opened the door wearing a magen David. A star of David. I was shocked by this too. I sat with him and he said to me, “what would you like to drink?”. I said to him, “tea”. Iraqi Jews bring tea. Now, this man brought a mug…a glass like this, with hot water inside. He didn’t bring tea. He brought something like this and put it in the water. Dunked it in the water. What was he dunking - putting it like this in the water. I said to him, “what is this?’. He said, “this is called a teabag”. 

I said to him, “where are the…my suitcases?”. He said to me, “these…the people responsible for what was in the suitcases asked us, ‘what are these suitcases?’”. I said to them, ‘I don’t know’.” Where were they? They were still at the airport. Okay.

One, the next day was Monday. I went to the place where they had given me the scholarship. It was the first time I had contact with them. The same thing again. I said to him, “how do I get there?”. I also assumed he would come and take me there. He said to me, “you go out of the house, go left, take right, take the train…another train in the underground”.

Think - I was 22 years old but […]…this was the first time I went out of Iraq. And the first time I was coming to the middle of London. Okay? 

So, I also took that (route). Up until now I still remember. I stood on the underground. I put my foot on the ground strongly like this. I said, “Khedher, if you don’t rely on yourself - you’ll lose yourself here”.

I got to that place, at the time it was called “The Anglo-Jewish Association” and the “Jewish Refugees Committee” which was…like an organisation for…Jewish refugees. They said to me, “we allocated the scholarship in September.” They didn’t have a scholarship (for me). So what would I do? They said to me, “no, listen. It’s okay. We’ll make do. As in, we can find something and we’ll make it work.” As in, they’d allocated the thing and were waiting for me. They said to me, “go to Manchester and we’ll look after you…as in, we’ll figure something out for you.”

One day later, I went to the airport. Until then, in Baghdad, who would carry an umbrella? And (then) the skies opened. (Heavy) rain from the roots. I was only wearing a coat, but no…I didn’t have an umbrella or anything else.

I got there and found out that the suitcases weren’t at the airport. They were at another place. I took the suitcases and brought them to the station with the intention of travelling to Manchester the next day.

I met a friend. I’ll tell you a few funny stories from my first days.

I met a friend who had already come by smuggling. He had travelled by…escaped via the north. He was a very…friend to me. He took me to his house, which was in north London. I wanted…we talked and such….and we went back. He said to me, “okay, where is your house?”. I said, “here…in the south”, which is about…between the north of London and south of London is about an hour and a half on the road.

We arrived at the area where I would go down with those (people). He said to me, “Khedher, where is the house?”. I said to him, “I swear it’s…there’s a train, there’s a street, above it is a bridge and the train goes above the bridge.” It was as though I had given (told) him “I mean, it’s right here…there’s a bridge with a train going over it.” He said to me, “Khedher, is this Baghdad!? Here every street has a bridge with a train going above it.”

Afterwards, he took something out for me. He looked for something in it. I said to him, “what is this?”. He said to me, “this has all the streets in it […]…”. I arrived at the place. We arrived. 
On Thursday - I got there on Monday - I took the train to Manchester.

We were religious Jews. There were no non-religious Jews. But not like Ashkenazim. Even the flavour of life […] not every Jewish man (would) go (around) putting…a hat on his head. We were Jews with wisdom. There (were) no non-religious (Jews). At home, we would do the kiddush (blessing over wine) on Shabbat. Yom Kippur (was observed as) Yom Kippur, the Jewish holidays (were observed as) Jewish holidays. And Passover was the best holiday. We would read the haggada in Hebrew and in Arabic. And for two nights! Passover (was) two nights (in Iraq). My poor mother had to prepare food (for) the entire house and (for) guests. The Jews, every holiday, every Shabbat…everyone would pray, and do the blessing over wine, and (sing) the Shabbat songs and Eshet Hayil. And (they) would light the Shabbat candles, which were made of oil…oil and a thread (wick). And people’s lives were normal. And everything changed after the Farhud.