Aliyah Khalaf Saleh

Aliyah Khalaf Saleh, known as Umm Qusay in Iraq, is 62 years old and was born in the Iraqi province of Salah al-Din, not far from Tikrit.  Umm Qusay has become a national hero in Iraq despite early challenges such as not having had the opportunity to attend school and being married at the young age of 13.  She is a volunteer humanitarian recognized for her bravery in rescuing young Iraqi military cadets ambushed by ISIS on June 12, 2014, the day of the Camp Speicher Massacre.  Umm Qusay and her family saw the cadets jumping into the river to save themselves and although they were suffering from the recent loss of their own family members at the hands of ISIS, they had the presence of mind to take action.  Umm Qusay rescued 58 recruits over a period of five months.  She hid them in small groups, provided them with I.D. cards from the local university to hide their identities, and prepared their escape routes.  She took care to teach the Shi’a how to pray as Sunnis to avoid coming to the attention of ISIS.  Umm Qusay, a Sunni, believed strongly that each young boy deserved her care whether Christian, Kurd, Turkmen, Yezidi, Sunni, or Shi’a.  Her selfless actions in the wake of ISIS’s terror have already been recognized in Iraq, including by the highest Shi’a religious authorities who bestowed on this Sunni woman the title of “Toa’a Al-‘Asr.” Toa’a today is used to describe women who place the wellbeing of others before themselves.  In July 2015, Prime Minister Abadi presented her with Iraq’s Medal of the State.  Four years on, Umm Qusay continues to receive tribal leaders, military officials, and citizens who want to meet and embrace the Iraqi woman who serves as a beacon of hope for their country in the wake of its liberation from ISIS.  She regularly cooks for soldiers and visits the wounded in hospitals.  In a tribal society where women are often marginalized or forgotten, and sectarianism is generally placed before nationality, Umm Qusay is a vivid embodiment of the message of a common humanity.  In her own words, “We are all created by God. We are all the same.”