Bahia Hameed Majeed Jaff, who received a letter from the British Royal Family, was born on July 1, 1924, in Halabja and has resided in the United Kingdom for 34 years.
"Ms. Bahia is not acquainted with the royal family, but it is customary for anyone whose age passes 100 years to receive a birthday congratulations from the royal family," a member of her family told Rudaw on Tuesday, relaying the congratulatory message.
According to her relative, Jaff moved to Britain due to her father's passing in 1988 and another family member immigrating to Europe.
In the 1930s, Jaff was among the first girls in Kurdistan to pursue an education in school, attending a boys’ school in Halabja because there were no schools for girls at the time. As demand grew for girls' education, her father rented a two-room house, establishing a girls' school during the same period.
During that time, the school's few teachers instructed all subjects. Today in Kurdistan, it is more common for teachers to specialize in a single subject.
“She dedicated all her life to serving her father, because her father lived nearly 102 years, and she was always worried about her brothers,” her relative explained as to why she has not married.
In 2022, Jaff told Rudaw that “in 1924 [her father] became the mayor of Halabja. In 1933 he was sent to Chamchamal to become the mayor of that city. But at the time, the Iraqi government wanted to bring Arabs to its surrounding areas.”
Jaff, who now lives in London, added that her father opposed the Arabization process and sought to grant farming lands to local people, while he held the position as a form of resistance.
She mentioned that despite her father's prohibition on her involvement in political activities, she took part in gatherings and lighting the fires of Newroz.
The Kurdish new year is celebrated on the vernal equinox between March 19 and 22. Its symbols and traditions represent freedom and resistance.
As a literary person, Jaff composed poems referring to Halabja as “my beloved country” in one of her pieces.
Reporting by Didar Abdalrahman, Diyar Jamil
