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Ghazi ( March 21, 1912 - April 4, 1939) was king of Iraq from 1933 to 1939. He was born in Mecca (in present-day Saudi Arabia), the son of Faisal I, the first king of Iraq. A staunch nationalist, opposed to British interests in his country, Ghazi's reign was characterized by tensions between civilians and the army, which sought control of the government. He supported General Bakr Sidqi in his coup, which replaced the civilian government with a military one. This was the first coup d'état to take place in the Arab world. He died in 1939 in a car accident involving a sports car he was driving. His son Faisal succeeded him.
