Unlikelihood of a Shiite-Majority Cabinet in Iraq: 1939

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
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