diff --git a/src/core/backup_reader.py b/src/core/backup_reader.py
index 622eb40..e3af158 100644
--- a/src/core/backup_reader.py
+++ b/src/core/backup_reader.py
@@ -884,8 +884,8 @@ class BackupReader:
         self._member_map[uid] = stub
         return stub
 
-    def _load_channel_messages(self, channel_id: int) -> list[dict]:
-        """Loads the messages array from a channel JSON file."""
+    def _load_channel_messages_data(self, channel_id: int) -> list[dict]:
+        """Loads the raw messages array from a channel JSON file."""
         bp = self.backup_path / "message_backup"
         
         # Primary: message_backup/{channel_id}/messages.json
@@ -957,6 +957,7 @@ class BackupReader:
         channel_id: int,
         limit: int = None,
         after_id: int = None,
+        inclusive: bool = False
     ) -> AsyncGenerator["BackupMessage", None]:
         """Yields BackupMessages from the backup, respecting after_id and limit."""
         messages = self._load_channel_messages(channel_id)
@@ -964,8 +965,11 @@ class BackupReader:
 
         for m in messages:
             msg_id = int(m["messageID"])
-            if after_id and msg_id < after_id:
-                continue
+            if after_id:
+                if inclusive and msg_id < after_id:
+                    continue
+                if not inclusive and msg_id <= after_id:
+                    continue
 
             yield self._hydrate_message(m, channel_id)
             count += 1
diff --git a/src/core/discord_reader.py b/src/core/discord_reader.py
index b3dd586..6b28cf3 100644
--- a/src/core/discord_reader.py
+++ b/src/core/discord_reader.py
@@ -213,13 +213,15 @@ class DiscordReader:
                 return message
         return None
 
-    async def fetch_message_history(self, channel_id: int, limit: int = None, after_id: int = None) -> AsyncGenerator[discord.Message, None]:
+    async def fetch_message_history(self, channel_id: int, limit: int = None, after_id: int = None, inclusive: bool = False) -> AsyncGenerator[discord.Message, None]:
         """Yields messages from a given channel, optionally handling pagination."""
         channel = await self.get_channel(channel_id)
         if isinstance(channel, discord.TextChannel) or isinstance(channel, discord.Thread):
-            # Discord's 'after' is exclusive. To make it inclusive, we use after_id - 1.
-            after = discord.Object(id=after_id - 1) if after_id else None
-            logger.info(f"Fetching message history for {channel.name} ({channel.id}) oldest_first=True after={after_id}")
+            # Discord's 'after' is exclusive. To make it inclusive, we use after_id - 1 if requested.
+            after = None
+            if after_id:
+                after = discord.Object(id=after_id - 1) if inclusive else discord.Object(id=after_id)
+            logger.info(f"Fetching message history for {channel.name} ({channel.id}) oldest_first=True after={after_id} inclusive={inclusive}")
             # To avoid exploding RAM, we yield items one by one
             async for message in channel.history(limit=limit, oldest_first=True, after=after):
                 yield message