Ayad Allawi was born into a wealthy Shiite family in Baghdad and studied medicine at a Baghdad medical school, where he initially organized Ba'ath Party meetings before fleeing Iraq in 1971 amid tensions with the regime. In exile in London for nearly 30 years, he specialized as a neurologist and psychiatrist. A secular Shia and former Ba'athist, he founded the Iraqi National Accord (INA) opposition group with ties to the CIA and MI6, aimed at overthrowing Saddam Hussein. He became a key figure after the 2003 invasion, serving as president of the Iraqi Governing Council in 2003 and as interim Prime Minister of Iraq from 2004-2005, emphasizing security and de-Ba'athification though criticized for heavy-handed tactics. He later served as vice president of Iraq from 2014-2015 and 2016-2018. Allawi's career reflects a shift from early Ba'athist involvement to Western-aligned anti-Saddam activism, positioning him as a prominent exile politician who has contested multiple elections, leading coalitions focused on nationalism and countering sectarianism to advocate for a unified Iraq.