Jamil Al Midfai

Jamil Al Midfai (Arabic: جميل المدفعي; (1958 – 1890)) was an Iraqi politician. He served as the country's prime minister on five separate occasions.

Jamil Al Midfai
جميل المدفعي
Prime Minister of Iraq
In office 9 November 1933 – 27 August 1934
Monarch	Ghazi I
Preceded by	Rashid Ali al-Gaylani
Succeeded by	Ali Jawdat Al-Ayyubi
In office 4 March 1935 – 17 March 1935
Monarch	Ghazi I
Preceded by	Ali Jawdat Al-Ayyubi
Succeeded by	Yasin al-Hashimi
In office 17 August 1937 – 25 December 1938
Monarch	Ghazi I
Preceded by	Hikmat Sulayman
Succeeded by	Nuri al-Said
In office 4 June 1941 – 10 October 1941
Monarch	Faisal II
Regent	Prince Abdullah
Preceded by	Rashid Ali al-Gaylani
Succeeded by	Nuri al-Said
In office 29 January 1953 – 17 September 1953
Monarch	Faisal II
Regent	Prince Abdullah
Preceded by	Nureddin Mahmud
Succeeded by	Muhammad Fadhel al-Jamali
Personal details
Born	1890 (1890) Mosul, Ottoman Iraq
Died	26 October 1958(1958-10-26) (aged 67–68) Iraq
Nationality	Iraqi citizenship

Biography

Born in the town of Mosul, Midfai served in the Ottoman army during World War I, but deserted in 1916 to take part in the nationalist Arab Revolt. After the war, he was an aide to the Emir Faisal during his brief reign in Syria. He returned to Iraq in 1920, but was soon forced into exile in Transjordan because of his anti-British nationalist activities. Upon his return in 1923, he served in various senior provincial capacities and finally joined the cabinet in 1930.^{[citation needed]}

He was elected as the president of the Chamber of Deputies from December 1930 to November 1931, and from November 1931 to November 1933.^[1][2]

As a seasoned politician and two-time prime minister, he was asked to form a new government in August 1937, following the assassination of General Bakr Sidqi, who had ruled the country as a military dictator for almost a year. A staunch monarchist, Midfai was again forced into exile to Transjordan following the short-lived pro-Axis coup by Rashid Ali al-Kaylani in 1941.

Upon his return to Iraq, he served in various senior capacities including President of the Senate of Iraq in the 1950s,^[3] and briefly as prime minister after the suspension of political activities during the Iraqi Intifada. He died on 26 October 1958 suffering from lung cancer.^[4]

Fourth Ministry

When the Crown Prince 'Abd al-Ilah came back to Baghdad in 1 June 1941, He summoned Midfai to Him and after careful consultations, the opinion settled on Midfai to form a new government, so the Prince sent Him the following letter:

My most luxurious minister Jamil al-Midfai, Based on the dissolution of the government, and given the current circumstances, and depending on your knowledge and sincerity, We have entrusted you to head the new government, Provided that you elect your associates and present their names on us, and God is the Guardian of success.

— Abd al-Ilah^[5]

The circumstances in which Al-Madfai was tasked with forming his fifth cabinet were strict and required the appointment of ministers and determining their responsibilities so quickly that he could not think about the extent of the cooperation that would take place between him and his associates in the management of state affairs in these circumstances.

And accordingly, the royal will was issued on the second day of June 1941 to appoint:^[6]

1. Jamil Al-Midfai: the Prime Minister
2. Ali Jawdat al-Aiyubi: Minister of Foreign Affairs
3. Mustafa Mahmud al-Umari: Minister of Interior
4. Nadhif Al-Shawi: Minister of Defense
5. Ibrahim Kemal: Minister of Finance and Minister of Justice
6. Jalal Baban: Minister of Works and Communications
7. Nasrat al-Farisi: Minister of economy
8. Mohammed Ridha Al-Shabibi: Minister of Knowledge.