Hoshyar Zebari

Hoshyar Mahmud Mohammed Zebari,[2] also simply known as Hoshyar Zebari (also spelled Hoshyar Zubari/Zibari, Kurdish: Hişyar Zêbarî; born 1953) is an Iraqi politician who formerly served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq in 2014 and also as the Minister of Finance until 2016. He was Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2003 until 2014.

Hoshyar Zebari
Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq
In office
8 September 2014 – 18 October 2014
Prime MinisterHaider al-Abadi
Preceded byHussain al-Shahristani
Rowsch Shaways
Succeeded byRowsch Shaways
Minister of Finance
In office
18 October 2014 – 21 September 2016
Prime MinisterHaider al-Abadi
Preceded byNajeeba Najeeb (acting)
Succeeded byAbdul Razzaq al-Issa (acting)
1st Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
September 2003 – 11 July 2014
Prime MinisterAyad Allawi
Ibrahim al Jaafari
Nouri al-Maliki
Preceded byGhassan Muhsen (as Chairman of the Steering Committee)
Succeeded byHussain al-Shahristani (acting)
Personal details
Born1953 (age 67–68)
Akre, Iraq
NationalityIraq
Political partyKurdistan Democratic Party
Alma materUniversity of Essex

Biography

Zebari was born to a Kurdish family in Aqrah, a city of Duhok Governorate, Iraq and grew up in Mosul.[2] He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from The University of Jordan in 1976. He also earned a Master of Arts in Sociology of Development from the University of Essex, United Kingdom in 1980. While studying in United Kingdom, he led the Kurdish Students Society in Europe and also served as the chairman of the Overseas Student Committee from 1978 to 1980.[3]

He joined the Kurdistan Democratic Party in 1979. In the 1980s, he fought as a member of the Peshmerga against the Iraqi government under Saddam Hussein. He went on to become a member of KDP's Central Committee as well as its Political Bureau. In 1988, he was given the charge of its foreign relations and represented the party in United States of America and United Kingdom. In 1992, he was appointed as a member of the executive committee of the Iraqi National Congress, as well as its Presidential Council in 1999.[4][5]

After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, he was appointed as a member of the Iraqi Governing Council.[6] He was appointed Foreign Minister of Iraq in September 2003.[7] In July 2012, Zebari said that al-Qaeda in Iraq members went to Syria, where the militants previously received support and weapons.[8]

On 11 July 2014, Zebari was replaced as foreign minister by Hussain al-Shahristani, Iraq's deputy prime minister, who assumed the position in an acting capacity, after Kurdish politicians withdrew from the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.[9] On 8 September 2014, he was appointed as a Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq under the government of the new Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.[10]

On 18 October 2014, he was appointed as the Minister of Finance of Iraq[11] while Rowsch Shaways was appointed as the new Deputy Prime Minister in his place.[12] On 21 September 2016, he was dismissed from his position as Finance Minister after losing a no-confidence motion over allegations of corruption.[13]

Personal life

Zebari is an Iraqi Kurd and a Sunni Muslim.[14] His father was Mahmud Agha Zebari. He is also the uncle of Massoud Barzani, the current President of Iraqi Kurdistan. His sister Hamael Mahmoud Agha Zebari married Mustafa Barzani and gave birth to Massoud.[15][16] He holds dual citizenship, being a citizen of both Iraq and United Kingdom.[17]

References
  1. Iraq Investment and Business Guide Volume 1 Strategic and Practical Information. IBP Inc. 23 June 2015. p. 34. ISBN 9781329244313.
  2. "Hoshyar Zebari, a consensus candidate for Iraqi presidency: Diplomat". Kurd Net. 12 May 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  3. "H.E. Hoshyar Zebari". The University of Jordan. November 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  4. Historical Dictionary of Iraq. Scarecrow Press, Inc. 2013. pp. 678, 679. ISBN 9780810879423.
  5. Zand, Bernhard (30 June 2014). "Iraq Is Facing a Mortal Threat". Der Spiegel. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  6. Zand, Bernhard (14 July 2003). "Ruling council in symbolic first step". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  7. After Saddam: Prewar Planning and the Occupation of Iraq. Rans Corporation. 2008. p. 170. ISBN 9780833044587.
  8. "Iraq warns of al-Qaeda influx to Syria". RT. 6 July 2012.
  9. "Tensions mount between Baghdad and Kurdish region as Kurds seize oil fields". Washington Post. 11 July 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  10. Bradley, Matt (8 September 2014). "Iraqi Parliament Approves New Cabinet, Raising Hopes for Unity". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  11. Hamza Mustafa (18 October 2014). "Iraq parliament approves new Defense, Interior ministers". Asharq al-Awsat. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  12. Hamza Mustafa (19 October 2014). "Iraq parliament approves new Defense, Interior ministers". Asharq al-Awsat. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  13. Stephen Kalin (21 September 2016). "Iraqi finance minister sacked, risking economic fallout". Reuters. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  14. Priyanka Boghani (28 October 2014). "In Their Own Words: Sunnis on Their Treatment in Maliki's Iraq". PBS. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  15. Chiman Zebari (2015). My Life, My Food, My Kurdistan. Xlibris Corporation. p. 20. ISBN 9781503573062.
  16. "Massoud Barzani's mother passes away in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan". Kurd Net. 28 July 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  17. "Iraq seeks to bar top officials from dual citizenship". Millenial Media. 16 July 2013. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
Political offices
Preceded by
Ba'athist Iraq: Naji Sabri
Iraq: Ghassan Muhsen (Chairman of the Steering Committee)		 Minister of Foreign Affairs
2003–2014		 Succeeded by
Hussain al-Shahristani
Preceded by
Hussain al-Shahristani		 Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq
2014–present		 Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by
Rowsch Shaways		 Minister of Finance
2014–2016		 Succeeded by
Abdul Razzaq al-Issa
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