Mohammad Bahr al-Uloom

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.{{Cite web|title=Smahat al-Allamah Diktor Sayyid Muhammad Bahr al-Ulloom|url=http://bahrululoom.org/ar/content/152|access-date=2022-02-07|website=Heritage of Sayyid Bahraluloom Centre|archive-date=2021-01-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124034205/http://bahrululoom.org/ar/content/152|url-status=dead}}

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.Andrew Finkel and Hazhir Teimourian. Turkey claims victory after forces pursue Kurds deep into Iraq, The Times, 2 November 1992. 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.{{cn|date=March 2024}}

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.{{cite book|title=Revolutionary and dissident movements of the world|year=2004|publisher=Harper|location=London|isbn=978-0-9543811-2-7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ncoZAQAAIAAJ&q=Mohammad+Bahr+Al-Aloom|edition=4th|accessdate=1 February 2011|page=208}} He later returned to the council, and became president again on 1 March 2004, serving until 1 April 2004.{{cn|date=March 2024}}

Bahr al-Uloom was married to the great-granddaughter of Mirza Shirazi. They had four daughters and three sons.{{Cite book|last=Al-Shahroudi|first=Nur al-Din|url=http://archive.org/details/20201126_20201126_1226|title=Usrat al-Mujjadid al-Shirazi|publisher=Al-Fikr Al-Islami|year=1992|language=ar|trans-title=Family of the Mujjadid al-Shirazi}} 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.

Bahr al-Uloom died in 2015 from kidney disease.{{cite web|title=Bio|url=http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/070420151|website=rudaw.net}}

{{Reflist}}

• [http://bahar.iq/ Bahraluloom Charitable Foundation]

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{{s-bef|before=Mohsen Abdel Hamid}}

{{s-ttl|title={{nowrap|President of the Governing Council of Iraq}}|years=2004}}

{{s-aft|after=Masoud Barzani}}

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Category:1927 births

Category:2015 deaths

Category:British people of Iraqi descent

Category:Iraqi ayatollahs

Category:Iraqi Shia Muslims

Category:Islamic Dawa Party politicians

Category:Prime ministers of Iraq