The Librarian Who Outsmarted Al-Qaeda to Save 350,000 Ancient Manuscripts When jihadist groups seized Timbuktu in 2012, one man quietly organized one of the most daring cultural rescue missions of modern times. Abdel Kader Haidara, a local librarian and scholar, led a covert operation to save around 350,000 priceless manuscripts—some dating back to the 11th century—from almost certain destruction. A Treasure of Global Knowledge These manuscripts were far more than fragile old books. They contain