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Ayatollah Sayyid Mohammad Bahr al-Uloom (Arabic: محمد بحر العلوم‎; 17 December 1927 – 7 April 2015) was an Iraqi political figure and Twelver Shi'a Islamic leader who served as the President of the Governing Council of Iraq (43rd Prime Minister of Iraq).

Biography

Bahr al-Uloom was born in Najaf in 1927 to Ali Bahr al-Uloom. He grew up and studied in Najaf, under his father, as well as other notable scholars of the religious seminary of Najaf.

He was a long time opponent of the rule of Saddam Hussein. By 1992, he had moved to London where he opposed Saddam's rule for many years. He was an active member of London's Shi'a community and was the head of AhlulBayt Centre in South London. In November 1992, at the Salahuddin gathering, within the safety of the southern air exclusion zone, along with Masoud Barzani and Colonel Hassan al-Naqib, he was one of the three men to be appointed to the presidential council by the Iraqi National Congress. Mohammad Bahr al-Uloom continued to live in London prior to the 2003 Iraq invasion.

After the United States deposed Saddam Hussein in 2003, as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Bahr al-Uloom was appointed to the Iraq interim governing council. He agreed to participate in the interim government and was appointed to the nine-member rotating presidency. He was the first president of the council, in an interim capacity, serving in that position from 13 July 2003 until 1 August 2003.

In August 2003, Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, a friend of Bahr al-Uloom, was killed in a car bombing. Shortly after, Bahr al-Uloom announced his voluntary suspension from the council, citing the failure of the council's ability to maintain law and order in post-war Iraq. He later returned to the council, and became president again on 1 March 2004, serving until 1 April 2004.

Personal life

Bahr al-Uloom was married to the great-granddaughter of Mirza Shirazi. They had four daughters and three sons. His son, Ibrahim, was the Oil Minister of Iraq from September 2003 to June 2004, and again during 2005. His son, Muhammad-Husayn, served as the Ambassador of Iraq to the United Nations in the years 2018-2022.

Death

Bahr al-Uloom died in 2015 died from kidney disease.

References

1. "Who's Who in Post-Saddam Iraq". BBC News. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
2. "Chinese President meets with Bahr Al-Aloom". Bahrain News Agency. 26 March 2004. Archived from the original on 24 June 2007. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
3. ^ "Smahat al-Allamah Diktor Sayyid Muhammad Bahr al-Ulloom". Heritage of Sayyid Bahraluloom Centre. Archived from the original on 24 January 2021. Retrieved 7 February 2022.
4. Andrew Finkel and Hazhir Teimourian. Turkey claims victory after forces pursue Kurds deep into Iraq, The Times, 2 November 1992.
5. Revolutionary and dissident movements of the world (4th ed.). London: Harper. 2004. p. 208. ISBN 978-0-9543811-2-7. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
6. Al-Shahroudi, Nur al-Din (1992). Usrat al-Mujjadid al-Shirazi [Family of the Mujjadid al-Shirazi] (in Arabic). Al-Fikr Al-Islami.
7. "Bio". rudaw.net.

External links

• Bahraluloom Charitable Foundation

v t e Prime ministers of Iraq (list)
Mandatory Iraq (1920–1932)	al-Gillani al-Sa'dun al-Askari al-Hashimi T. Suwaidi N. Suwaidi al-Said
Kingdom of Iraq (1932–1958)	Shawkat al-Gaylani al-Midfai al-Ayyubi al-Hashimi Sulayman al-Said al-Hashimi H. Pachachi T. Suwaidi Arshad al-Umari Jabr al-Sadr Muzahim al-Pachachi Mustafa al-Umari Mahmud al-Jamali Arshad al-Umari Mirjan Baban
Iraqi Republic (1958–1968)	Qasim al-Bakr Yahya ar-Razzaq al-Bazzaz Talib Arif Yahya
Ba'athist Iraq (1968–2003)	an-Naif al-Bakr Hussein Hammadi Zubeidi as-Samarrai Hussein
Iraqi Governing Council (2003–2004)	al-Ulooum al-Jaafari Chalabi Allawi Talabani al-Hakim A. Pachachi Hamid al-Uloom Barzani Salim al-Yawer
Republic of Iraq (since 2004)	Allawi al-Jaafari al-Maliki al-Abadi Abdul-Mahdi Al-Kadhimi Al Sudani
interim military

• 1927 births
• 2015 deaths
• British people of Iraqi descent
• Iraqi ayatollahs
• Iraqi Shia Muslims
• Islamic Dawa Party politicians
• Prime ministers of Iraq