Iraq's 23-year-old king and his family were shot in the palace courtyard, and the regent's body was dragged through Baghdad

Faisal II became King of Iraq at three, after his father King Ghazi died in a car crash in 1939. His uncle Abd al-Ilah ruled as regent until 1953. In July 1958 Faisal was 23 and engaged to an Egyptian princess. On the morning of 14 July, army units under Abd al-Karim Qasim surrounded Rihab Palace. The royal family came out into the courtyard. Soldiers opened fire and killed the king, Abd al-Ilah, the regent's mother Princess Nafeesa, his sister Princess Abadiya and members of the household. A crowd took Abd al-Ilah's body, dragged it through the streets and hung it at the Ministry of Defence. Prime Minister Nuri al-Said tried to escape disguised as a woman and was killed the next day; a crowd later dug up his body^†. The republic seized the royal palaces and estates. The Hashemite claim passed to relatives in Jordan, which kept its monarchy. Sharif Ali bin al-Hussein, a cousin, still presents himself as heir to the Iraqi throne^†. No restitution of royal property has been made.