The main library at Mosul University in Iraq opened in 1921. After a donation from 60 of the city’s libraries in 1967, its collection grew to nearly 1 million books. The library had books on subjects such as literature, science, philosophy, law, culture and contained old maps, writings, and newspapers. Over time, it became the university’s research center, and 1,500 students would visit each day. But that changed when the Islamic State (IS) took over Mosul in June 2014. The militant group forced its way into the library and started breaking equipment and burning books. In early 2015, IS loaded about 8,000 books onto trucks, took them outside of the city and set them on fire. The director general of UNESCO, the United Nations’ cultural organization, called this a “cleansing,” and a “systematic destruction of heritage.” While many books were destroyed, the building itself remained largely undamaged until a nine-month-long battle started in late 2016. By the time the Iraqi military pushed IS from Mosul, thousands of people had died. Many people fled the fighting and thousands of buildings were destroyed, including the library. It was burned by IS and hit by missiles aimed at ousting the group.
Title: The Destruction of a Historic Mosul Library
Content: <div id='article-page'><div id='article-content' data-media-url='//news-app-staging.s3.amazonaws.com' data-base-url='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/A.wav' data-capture-url='//staging.analytics.lingraphica.com/events/capture_news' data-article-title='The Destruction of a Historic Mosul Library' data-article-id='5518'><script src='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/javascripts/getscripts.js'></script><link rel='stylesheet' href='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/stylesheets/article.css' type='text/css' /><div class='article'><p><span data-start-time='0' data-end-time='7979'>The main library at Mosul University in Iraq opened in 1921.</span> <span data-start-time='7979' data-end-time='21438'>After a donation from 60 of the city’s libraries in 1967, its collection grew to nearly 1 million books.</span> <span data-start-time='21438' data-end-time='40604'>The library had books on subjects such as literature, science, philosophy, law, culture and contained old maps, writings, and newspapers.</span> <span data-start-time='40604' data-end-time='52771'>Over time, it became the university’s research center, and 1,500 students would visit each day.</span> <span data-start-time='52771' data-end-time='63063'>But that changed when the Islamic State (IS) took over Mosul in June 2014.</span> <span data-start-time='63063' data-end-time='73250'>The militant group forced its way into the library and started breaking equipment and burning books.</span> <span data-start-time='73250' data-end-time='85354'>In early 2015, IS loaded about 8,000 books onto trucks, took them outside of the city and set them on fire.</span> <span data-start-time='85354' data-end-time='98146'>The director general of UNESCO, the United Nations’ cultural organization, called this a “cleansing,” and a “systematic destruction of heritage.”</span> <span data-start-time='98146' data-end-time='111875'>While many books were destroyed, the building itself remained largely undamaged until a nine-month-long battle started in late 2016.</span> <span data-start-time='111875' data-end-time='120438'>By the time the Iraqi military pushed IS from Mosul, thousands of people had died.</span> <span data-start-time='120438' data-end-time='129458'>Many people fled the fighting and thousands of buildings were destroyed, including the library.</span> <span data-start-time='129458' data-end-time='136792'> It was burned by IS and hit by missiles aimed at ousting the group.</span> </p></div><div class='control-buttons-sticky' style='display:none;'><div class='control-buttons'><button title='Back' class='back' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Play' class='play' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Pause' class='pause' style='display:none;'></button><button title='Forward' class='forward' disabled='disabled'></button><button class='finished-reading' style='display:none;'>Done</button></div></div></div><div id='article-media'><div id='media-image'><img src='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/A.jpg'/></div></div><div id='question-content' style='display:none;'><div class='vocabulary_question question-container' data-question-id=17124 data-hint-location='52771' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/what_does_is_mean_in_this_article.wav'>What does IS mean in this article?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='Islamic State'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/internet_speed.wav'><span>Internet Speed</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/islamic_state.wav'><span>Islamic State</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/international_space_station.wav'><span>International Space Station</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/islamic_secret.wav'><span>Islamic Secret</span></div></div></div><div class='multiple_choice_question question-container' data-question-id=17125 data-hint-location='7979' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/_how_many_books_did_the_library_have_in_1967.wav'> How many books did the library have in 1967?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='1 million '><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/750000.wav'><span>750,000</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/2_million_.wav'><span>2 million </span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/50000.wav'><span>500,00</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/1_million_.wav'><span>1 million </span></div></div></div><div class='sentence_completion_question question-container' data-question-id=17126 data-hint-location='0' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/the_main_library_at_mosul_university_in_iraq_opened_in__blank_.wav'>The main library at Mosul University in Iraq opened in <span class='blank'>1921</span>.</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='1921'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/1951.wav'><span>1951</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/1821.wav'><span>1821</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/1921.wav'><span>1921</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4993/1956.wav'><span>1956</span></div></div></div><div class='question-buttons'><button class='skip-button'></button><button class='hint-button'></button><button class='speak-button'></button></div></div></div>
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