The impact of World War II (1939-1945) on the political situation in Iraq

Abstract

During World War II (1939-1945), Iraq witnessed significant political events. The political situation at the time was marked by extreme turmoil, especially after the assassination of King Ghazi and the appointment of Abdul-Ilah as regent of the Iraqi throne, as King Faisal II was a minor. In the midst of these events, World War II broke out, the global situation worsened greatly, and events began to escalate rapidly. Great Britain declared war on Germany in September 1939, which led to disruption of political and economic life in various regions of the world, including Iraq, especially those that had an impact on Iraqi politics. The Iraqi arena witnessed important events, including the Rashid Ali al-Kilani movement in 1941 AD, the formation of Jamil al-Madfai’s government, then the National Defense Government, and the transformation of the Middle East, including Iraq, into a battlefield between colonial powers. The Iraqi government’s decision to enter the war on the side of Great Britain, which was dictated by Iraq’s commitment to the Iraqi-British Alliance Treaty of 1930 AD, led to the division of Iraqi politicians into two groups: a group that supported it and a group that rejected cooperation with the British side, which called for neutrality due to those omens generated by the circumstances of the war, which affected the Iraqi political reality, which we will shed light on in this research, which consists of an introduction, three chapters, and a conclusion. The first chapter dealt with political developments before World War II ( 1930-1939) while the second section dealt with political developments during World War II (1939-1945) and the third and final section was entitled Political Developments in Iraq after World War II