ABSTRACT
AT DAWN ON 14 JULY 1958, the Middle East was shaken: a coup Ad’état1 had taken place in Iraq. The coup was led by a group of officers under the command of Colonel Abd Al-Karim Qassem. The battalions involved in the coup were originally to be sent to Jordan in order to reinforce King Hussein’s vulnerable position, but instead they entered the Iraqi capital at 4.30 a.m., surrounded the royal palace and took possession of key installations in Baghdad. The same morning, the King, the Prince and other members of the royal family were executed.2 The only survivor was Nuri el-Said, the Premier, but he was caught the following day when walking in the street dressed as a woman. Baghdad Radio announced the following day that Nuri had been captured and killed.3 Nuri’s body was brutally abused by the public in the streets of Baghdad.
