The earliest paper that can be traced is al-Zawra, which was first issued in 1869 at the time of the Ottoman governor, Midhat Pasha. al-Nahdha (The Revival) first released in 1913 and several other newspapers were published up to the time of departure of the Ottomans and arrival of the British in 1917, when the newspaper al-'Arab appeared. al-'Arab was primarily the instrument of the British authorities in Baghdad, and Razzuq Ghannam was appointed as its first editor. Ghannam went on to publish a sister paper to al-'Arab entitled al-'Iraq. Later, with the establishment of a National Government, he ceased to be the voice of the British forces, although his papers retained a largely pro-British slant.[1]