Babylon's Ark: the Incredible Wartime Rescue of the Baghdad Zoo

The true adventures of Lawrence Anthony, a South African conservationist, owner of an animal preserve and founder of the Earth Organization. At the beginning of the Iraqi War, with its human bloodshed and destruction of property, little was known about the fate of the Baghdad Zoo, located in the center of the city. Anthony cared about the well-being of the zoo’s inhabitants and traveled to Baghdad in order to rescue those who had survived the gunfire and bombings. The situation was very rough at first, many of the animals having been killed or stolen to sell on the black market. Anthony’s “can-do” attitude and political savvy got Iraqis, members of the U.S. military and international animal lovers working together to overhaul and revitalize the zoo; a project that still is ongoing today. This is an uplifting narrative.