Unlikelihood of a Shiite-Majority Cabinet in Iraq: 1939

Juan Cole 01/05/2009

A little bit of irony from the British archives on Iraq.

“Muhammad al-Sadr, the President of the Senate, is believed to aspire one day to head a predominantly Shia Cabinet, but,though his name has been mentioned recently in political circles as a possible Prime Minister, the Sunni effendi element is unlikely ever to accept a Shiah ‘alim as Prime Minister. It is also doubtful whether Muhammad al-Sadr could ever succeed in consolidating Shiah opinion behind him.”

Basil Newton, British Ambassodor to Iraq/ Lord Halifax, Foreign Secretary, Baghdad, December 8, 1939
/End

About the Author

Juan Cole is the founder and chief editor of Informed Comment. He is Richard P. Mitchell Professor of History at the University of Michigan He is author of, among many other books, Muhammad: Prophet of Peace amid the Clash of Empires and The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Follow him on Twitter at @jricole or the Informed Comment Facebook Page