British soldiers destroyed the Ba'ath Party headquarters and battled Iraqi soldiers and Fedayeen fighters mainly in fortified houses and pillboxes, but lost three killed (Privates Christopher Muzvuru and Kelan Turrington and Lance-Corporal Ian Malone) in the process. It soon became obvious that the Iraqi defences were falling apart as Iraqi forces abandoned their positions, the brigade fought more than 300 militia at the College of Literature for 3 hours, eventually securing it, breaking the back of the Fedayeen resistance in Basra  Also on the 6 April, 42 Commando supported by a squadron of Challenger IIs from the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards assaulted the city from the south, they took the Iraqis by surprise, M company secured 5 bridges in the city whilst the Fedayeen fled into the city. 539 Assault Squadron RM and U.S. Navy SEALs attempted a waterborne approach to the city via the Shatt al-Arab waterway but were intercepted by Iranian patrol craft and did not want engage them so they withdrew. As J company approached the presidential palace, a USMC harrier dropped a 1,000-pound bomb on a compound that controlled access to the palace forcing the Iraqi forces guarding the palace to flee, the company secured the palace, which was considered the symbol of Ba'athist party domination of the inhabitants for more than 20 years. U.S. Navy SEAL teams headed to "Chemical Ali's" house with SSE teams to find traces of chemical weapons. In early April the British began a series of devastating yet limited raids against Iraqi positions using Warrior Armored Fighting Vehicles equipped with 30-mm cannons. British recon forces launched a highly successful probe into northern Basra on the morning of April 6 and decided to move into Basra in force. At 11:00am on April 6 British troops moved into the city, despite heavy fighting the British suffered only three soldiers killed, and by the evening of April the 7th were in complete control of the city of Basra. About nine days into the British occupation, Basra's library was burned down. 70% of its collection, however, had been moved into safer places under the leadership of its librarian Alia Muhammad Baker. On the 7 April, the Parachute regiment moved into the old town, meeting very little resistance. On the 20 April, Basra residents gathered for a Shia religious festival, that under Ba'athist rule was not allowed to be celebrated, it was the first time they celebrated it in more than 20 years. By the 23 April 2003, oil was flowing through pipelines from the Basra area.