Mohammad Safadi

Mohammad Ahmed Safadi (Arabic: محمد أحمد الصفدي‎; born 28 March 1944) is a Lebanese businessman who served as minister of finance under Najib Mikati.

Mohammad Safadi
Minister of Finance
In office
13 June 2011 – February 2014
Prime MinisterNajib Mikati
Preceded byRaya Haffar El Hassan
Succeeded byAli Hassan Khalil
Minister of Economy and Trade
In office
22 July 2008 – 13 June 2011
Preceded bySami Haddad
Succeeded byNicholas Nahas
Personal details
Born (1944-03-28) 28 March 1944
Tripoli, Lebanon
NationalityLebanese
Political partyTripoli Bloc
Children2
Alma materAmerican University of Beirut
Websitehttp://www.mohammad-safadi.com/

Early life and education

Safadi was born in Tripoli, Lebanon, on 28 March 1944 to Sunni family.[1][2] His family are businesspeople, running their own firm in Tripoli.[3]

He is a graduate of the American University of Beirut where he received a bachelor's degree in business administration in February 1968.[2][4]

Business career

Safadi began his career in the private sector in Lebanon in 1969.[5] In 1975 when the civil war broke out in Lebanon, he began to invest in Saudi Arabia.[3][6] Therefore, he has many business investments in Saudi Arabia.[7]

He expanded his business across the Arab world and into Europe in Saudi Arabia.[1] He also worked as business manager in London for Prince Turki bin Nasser, a member of House of Saud.[3] Safadi established Safadi Group Holding in Lebanon in the 1990s.[8][9]

Political career

Safadi has been a member of the Lebanese parliament since 2000 as part of the Tripoli bloc.[8][10] He served as the minister of public works and transport from 19 July 2005 to July 2008.[1][10] Safadi also served as acting energy and water minister in 2007 and in 2008.[11][12] Next, he was appointed minister of economy and trade on 11 July 2008 to the cabinet headed by Fouad Siniora.[1][5] He was reelected member of parliament in the 2009 elections and he was on the list of the March 14 alliance.[13][14] Safadi was appointed minister of economy and trade to the cabinet of Saad Hariri on 9 November 2009,[15] and his tenure lasted until June 2011.[10]

Safadi did not support for Saad Hariri in the 2011 cabinet formation talks with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman.[7] Instead, he voted for Najib Mikati during cabinet formation consultations in January 2011.[16] Therefore, he broke with his March 14 allies and sided with the Hezbollah-led March 8 coalition along with Mikati.[17] Safadi became an ally of Mikati after this event.[18]

Safadi served as the minister of finance from 13 June 2011 to February 2014 in the cabinet led by Prime Minister Mikati.[6][19][20] Within the cabinet, Safadi is part of the group appointed by the Prime Minister[8] and an independent or non-affiliated minister in the Mikati's cabinet.[21] In October 2012, As Safir reported that Safadi would not participate in the 2013 parliamentary elections in Tripoli possibly due to health concerns.[22]

Safadi chairs the steering committee of the Middle East Regional Technical Assistance Committee (METAC) of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).[23] He is also the head of the Lebanese-German Parliamentary Friendship Committee and a member of the Economy Commission in the parliament.[24]

Safadi's term as finance minister ended in February 2014 when Ali Hassan Khalil was appointed to the post.[25]

In November 2019, amidst the 2019–20 Lebanese protests, Safadi was tapped as the next Prime Minister of Lebanon, to succeed Saad Hariri.[26] Safadi withdrew his candidacy on 16 November, stating that it would have been difficult to form a harmonious cabinet.[27]

Controversy
Main article: Al-Yamamah arms deal

The Guardian reported that Safadi involved in Al Yamama arms deal through an anonymous offshore company, Poseidon.[28] The company was allegedly used to transfer money to Safadi, who was working for Prince Turki bin Nasser, Saudi royal and an air force officer at that time.[28][29]

Personal life

On 5 October 2015, Safadi married Violette Khaïrallah. He has two children from a previous marriage. His son, Ramzi, died in a car crash in England on 10 March 2008.[1]

References
  1. "MP Mohammad Safadi". NOW Lebanon. 2 October 2012. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  2. "Mohammad A. Safadi". Safadi Foundation. Archived from the original on 9 September 2012. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  3. David Leigh; Rob Evans (7 June 2007). "Biography. M. Safadi". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 August 2013.
  4. "Former Ministers". Ministry of Economy and Trade. Archived from the original on 21 February 2013. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
  5. "Meet the government". Now Lebanon. 11 July 2008. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  6. "Mohammad Safadi". Beirut. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  7. Moubayed, Sami (29 January 2011). "Hariri backed wrong horse". Asia Times Online. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  8. "Lebanon announces cabinet line-up". NOW Lebanon. 13 June 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
  9. "Profiles: Lebanon's new government". Lebanonwire. 12 July 2008. Archived from the original on 11 May 2013. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
  10. "Mohammad A. Safadi". Ministry of Finance. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  11. Habib, Osama (20 October 2007). "Lebanon to allow price of oil to float if market rises further". The Daily Star. Beirut. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  12. "Speakers from the Government of Lebanon". The Economist. 15 June 2010. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 7 April 2013.
  13. "Lebanon: Wikileaks cables expose Hezbollah, Syria allies". Ya Libnan. 3 May 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  14. "New parliament composition" (PDF). Lebanese Information Center. Retrieved 21 January 2013.
  15. Ladki, Nadim (9 November 2009). "Lebanon's Hariri forms unity government with Hezbollah". Reuters. Beirut. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
  16. Moubayed, Sami (15 February 2011). "Why Hariri no longer matters". Asia Times Online. Damascus. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  17. Amrieh, Antoine (29 January 2011). "PM-designate camp to counter pro-Hariri rally with 'day of joy'". The Daily Star. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  18. Salem, Paul (15 June 2011). "Lebanon's New Government: Outlines and Challenges". Carnegie Middle East. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  19. El Basha, Thomas (13 June 2011). "Mikati forms 30-member Lebanon Cabinet". The Daily Star. Beirut. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
  20. "The Cabinet". Embassy of Lebanon Washington DC. Archived from the original on 14 April 2013. Retrieved 24 October 2012.
  21. "The New Lebanese Government" (Assessment Report). Lebanese Information Center. July 2011. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
  22. "Safadi not to run in 2013 parliamentary elections, report says". NOW Lebanon. 4 April 2012. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
  23. "Steering Committee". Middle East Regional Technical Assistance Center. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  24. "Equitable Growth". The Business Year. 14 February 2012. Retrieved 22 February 2013.
  25. "Lebanon announces new government after ten month political deadlock". Euronews. 15 February 2014. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  26. "Lebanon's Safadi agrees to be next PM amid economic crisis: Bassil". Reuters. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  27. "Lebanon's Safadi withdraws candidacy to be next prime minister". France24. 16 November 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  28. "BAE files". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  29. Lebanese billionaire is drawn into BAE arms deal inquiry as 'second middleman for Saudis', 2 December 2006, The Guardian
Political offices
Preceded by
Raya Haffar Al Hassan		 Minister of Finance
2011 – 2014		 Succeeded by
Ali Hassan Khalil
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