Qassim Abdul-Karim

(1914-1963) was born in Baghdad in 1914. He graduated from the Military Academy in Baghdad. After serving in the infantry was appointed instructor of military school. In 1941 he graduated from college Iraq HQ. He took part in suppressing the uprising of Kurds in northern Iraq and the Arab-Israeli War. In 1955 was promoted to Brigadier General. Became leader of the revolutionary movement in the army, which made plans to overthrow the monarchy, based on the experience of the seizure of power by the Egyptian president Abdel Nasser. The night of 13 to 14 July 1958 the brigade Kassem and other military units have carried out a coup d'etat. Qasim became Prime Minister and Minister of Defense.
The foreign policy doctrine of the new government was called 'positive neutrality'. Relations with the United Arab Republic exacerbated in September 1959, when there were reports on the financing of the UAR military uprising in Mosul. The rapprochement with the Communists, as well as the uprising of Kurds in 1961 and the student strikes in 1962 eased Kasem. February 8, 1963 Government Kassem was overthrown in a military coup. Qasim was assassinated in Baghdad on Feb. 9, 1963.