Bakr Sidqi: The Kurdish General Who Staged the First Military Coup in the Arab World
- Sherko Sabir
- 16 hours ago
- 4 min read
Who Was Bakr Sidqi?
Bakr Sidqi was a Kurdish general in the Iraqi army born around 1890 near Kirkuk who staged the first military coup in the Arab world in October 1936, becoming the most powerful man in Iraq for less than a year before his assassination in Mosul in August 1937.
He was born into a Kurdish family in the Kirkuk area and pursued a military career in the Ottoman army before joining the Iraqi army after Iraq's creation under British mandate in 1921. He rose through the ranks to become a general and the commander of one of the most capable units in the Iraqi army.
His 1936 coup — supported by the civilian reformist politician Hikmat Sulayman — overthrew the government of Yasin al-Hashimi and established a new government with Sidqi as the effective military power behind it. The coup was bloodless, completed within hours, and shocked the Arab political world by demonstrating that the military could seize power without the consent of either the monarch or the constitutional political process.
Key Takeaways
• Bakr Sidqi (1890-1937) was a Kurdish general who staged the first military coup in the Arab world in October 1936.
• He was briefly the most powerful man in Iraq, as the military power behind the post-coup government.
• He was assassinated in Mosul in August 1937 — less than a year after the coup.
• His coup set a precedent for military intervention in Arab politics that would be repeated across the region for decades.
• He represents the Kurdish contribution to Iraqi military history at its most dramatic.
Quick Facts
Table of Contents
Early Life and Origins
Bakr Sidqi was born around 1890 in the Kirkuk area of what was then Ottoman Kurdistan. He pursued a military career in the Ottoman army, developing the professional military skills that would make him one of the most capable officers in the Iraqi army.
After the creation of the Iraqi state under British mandate in 1921, he joined the new Iraqi army and rose rapidly through the ranks. He gained notoriety in 1933 for his brutal suppression of an Assyrian uprising — an act that made him controversial but also demonstrated his military effectiveness in the eyes of the Iraqi state.
Historical Context
Iraq in the 1930s was a newly independent state (formal independence 1932) with fragile political institutions and a military that was increasingly frustrated with parliamentary politics. The murder of King Faisal I in 1933 and the political instability of the following years created the conditions for military intervention.
Bakr Sidqi's 1936 coup was not motivated by Kurdish nationalism — he was acting in collaboration with pan-Arab reformists and had no particular Kurdish political agenda. This makes his case interesting: a Kurdish general staging a coup in an Arab state on behalf of a pan-Arab reformist programme.
Major Achievements and Contributions
First Military Coup in the Arab World (1936)
Bakr Sidqi's October 1936 coup was the first military seizure of power in the Arab world and set a precedent that would be followed by military coups across the region for the following decades — in Syria, Egypt, Iraq again, and eventually across much of the Arab world.
The coup demonstrated that the military, properly organised and led, could overthrow constitutional government and impose its political preferences. This lesson was learned — and repeated — by military officers across the Arab world for the rest of the 20th century.
Timeline and Key Events
Debates, Controversies, and Historical Questions
Bakr Sidqi's Kurdish identity has been both asserted and questioned. He is listed among notable Kurds and is widely identified as Kurdish in both Iraqi and Kurdish sources. His 1933 suppression of the Assyrian uprising — conducted with extreme violence — remains deeply controversial. His 1936 coup, though not motivated by Kurdish nationalism, is treated as part of Kurdish political history because of his Kurdish identity.
Legacy and Cultural Impact
Bakr Sidqi is a fascinating and controversial figure in Kurdish history — a Kurdish general who reached the apex of power in an Arab state, staged the first military coup in the Arab world, and was assassinated less than a year later. His legacy is both as a Kurdish military achiever and as the unwitting originator of the tradition of military coups that would destabilise the Arab world for decades.
Kurdish History Connections
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Bakr Sidqi?
Bakr Sidqi (1890-1937) was a Kurdish general in the Iraqi army who staged the first military coup in the Arab world in October 1936. He was assassinated in Mosul in August 1937.
Was Bakr Sidqi Kurdish?
Yes. He was born near Kirkuk in Kurdish Iraq and is identified as Kurdish in historical sources.
Why was the 1936 coup historically significant?
It was the first military seizure of power in the Arab world and set a precedent for military coups that was followed across the region — in Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and elsewhere — for the following decades.
References and Further Reading
Wikipedia contributors. 'Bakr Sidqi.' Wikipedia. Accessed 2025.
Wikipedia contributors. 'List of Kurds.' Wikipedia. Accessed 2025.
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