Taha al Hashimi

Taha al-Hashimi was an Iraqi politician and served as the minister of defense from 1938 to 1940 and the prime minister of Iraq in 1941. He was born in Baghdad in 1888 to a prominent family of political and intellectual leaders. His father, Mohammed Hadid, was a cabinet minister and a founding member of the Iraqi National Democratic Party. His brother, Yasin al-Hashimi, was also a prime minister of Iraq twice. He graduated from the Military College in Istanbul and became an officer in the Ottoman army. He later joined the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I and fought alongside Faisal I, the future king of Iraq. He became a close adviser and friend of Faisal and helped him establish the Iraqi state. He held various positions in the Iraqi government, such as the minister of finance, the minister of interior, and the minister of defense. He was appointed as the prime minister by the regent, Abd al-Ilah, after the first coup attempt by Rashid Ali al-Gaylani in 1941. He tried to maintain the pro-British stance of the Iraqi government and resist the pressure from the Axis powers. However, he resigned after two months when Abd al-Ilah fled the country and al-Gaylani returned to power. He went into exile in Iran and then in the United Kingdom. He continued to write and publish several books on world, Arab, and Iraqi history and culture. He died in London in 1961. He is remembered as one of the most influential Iraqi politicians and statesmen of his time.