Nuri was a controversial figure with many enemies and had to flee Iraq twice after coups. At the overthrow of the monarchy in 1958, he was very unpopular. His policies, regarded as pro-British, were believed to have failed in adapting to the country's changed social circumstances. Poverty and social injustice were widespread, and Nuri had become a symbol of a regime that failed to address the issues, choosing a course of repression instead, to protect the interests of the well off.
