Noor's journey began when Georgia National Guard members raided her family's home in Baghdad looking for weapons. As Noor's parents nervously watched the soldiers searching their home, the girl's grandmother -- unfazed -- thrust Noor at the Americans, showing them a purple pouch protruding from her back. (Watch Noor steal the guardsmen's hearts -- 2:11)
"I saw this child as the first-born child of the young mother and father, and really, all I could think of was my five children back at home and my young daughter," Lt. Jeff Morgan said. "And I knew if I had the opportunity whatsoever to save my daughter's life, I would do everything possible."
So the guardsmen began devising a plan to get Noor the help she needs, first by visiting the family under the cover of night so the family wouldn't be punished by insurgents for speaking to American soldiers.
They sneaked Noor to a U.S. military base for medical examinations and called American charities and their own friends back home to solicit help for the little girl. Even Sen. Saxby Chambliss, R-Georgia, got involved, working to expedite the family's visas.
