1942: Iraq

After passing through a stormy period in 1941, when a pro-Nazi government had to be removed from office by British armies, Iraq enjoyed in 1942 a period of peace under Prime Minister Gen. Nuri es Said. The country stayed faithful to its alliance with Great Britain; the last traces of the abortive coup d'état of Rashid Ali el Gailani were liquidated, he himself was sentenced to death in absentia, and in May an Iraq court martial sentenced some other leaders of the pro-Axis movement to death and to imprisonment. Iraq had been a fertile field for Axis propaganda which had been successfully conducted unhampered for many years. During 1942 regular Arab broadcasts to Iraq and other Arab speaking lands, continued from the Axis-controlled radio stations in Berlin, Bari and Athens. It was only in 1942 that the British, and to a certain extent the Americans, began a counter propaganda. The Soviet resistance to the German armies and the great British victories in the Near East favorably impressed the Arabs who had been convinced that Germany would easily win the war. An Anglo-American Public Relations Council was established to remain in close touch with all classes of the population and find out their reactions to the various broadcasts and information.

The British troops stationed in Iraq and Iran were organized into an army placed under General Sir Claude J. E. Auchinleck. Iraq is of great importance not only because it contains rich oil wells in its northern part, but also because it presents a gateway to the Middle East and the Caucasus. Important war material from India and from the United States was sent to the Middle East and to the Soviet Union through Iraq. The country was also accepted among those able to receive lend-lease aid from the United States. In 1942 Ali Jawdah el Ayoubi was appointed first minister of Iraq to the United States.

The government and the people of Iraq felt a special responsibility for the future of the Arab nation. Iraq had been the first Arab state to become a member of the League of Nations. Iraq had taken the initiative in establishing better relations with Saudi Arabia, a task of some difficulty in view of the rivalry between the two states for the leadership of the Arab world, a rivalry increased by the opposition of the two ruling dynasties. Iraq had also taken the initiative in sponsoring the cause of the Palestinian Arabs. The present Prime Minister has been one of the most active proponents of Arab unity and of the inclusion of Palestine into the future united Arabia. The independence of Syria which had been proclaimed with British help in 1941 had been warmly greeted in Iraq. The cooperation and friendliness of Iraq represented a great strategic asset to the position of Great Britain and of the United Nations in the Middle East.