King Faisal II no centralized leadership The Iraqi Intifada (Arabic: انتفاضة العراق) was a series of national strikes and violent protests against the ruling Hashemite monarchy and the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty.

Inspired by the Egyptian Revolution and Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh's nationalization of oil, the revolutionaries wanted to force Faisal II's abdication, transform the state into a republic, and assert Iraq's full independence from Britain by assuming control over its own foreign affairs.

[2] Though the protesters were emphatically anti-monarchical, they were positively disposed to the military, a symbol of national unity and Iraqi independence.

Protesters denounced Mahmud and demanded his resignation in favor of the National Democratic Party's Kamil al-Chadirchi, who had briefly served as Bakr Sidqi's Economic Minister after the 1936 revolution.

[4] Mahmud cracked down, instituting martial law and a curfew, shutting down political parties and newspapers, and detaining leading protesters.