Abdul Latif Rashid (; born 10 August 1944), also known as Letif Reshid (), is an Iraqi politician serving as the ninth

president of Iraq The President of the Republic of Iraq is the head of state of Iraq. Since the mid-2000s, the presidency is primarily a symbolic office, as the position does not possess significant power within the country according to the Constitution of Iraq, ...

. He was previously the Minister of Water Resources under the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

Nouri al-Maliki Nouri Kamil Muhammad-Hasan al-Maliki (; born 20 June 1950), also known as Jawad al-Maliki (), is an Iraqi politician and leader of the Islamic Dawa Party since 2007. He served as the Prime Minister of Iraq from 2006 to 2014 and as Vice President ...

. Before that, he served in the same position under both the

Iraqi Transitional Government The Iraqi Transitional Government was the government of Iraq from May 3, 2005, when it replaced the Iraqi Interim Government, until May 20, 2006, when it was replaced by a permanent government. On April 28 it was approved by the transitional ...

and the

Iraqi Interim Government The Iraqi Interim Government was created by the United States and its coalition allies as a caretaker government to govern Iraq until the drafting of the new constitution following the National Assembly election conducted on January 30, 2005 ...

. Rashid was formerly a

spokesperson A spokesperson, spokesman, or spokeswoman is someone engaged or elected to speak on behalf of others. Duties and function In the present media-sensitive world, many organizations are increasingly likely to employ professionals who have receiv ...

for the

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK; ) is a political party active in Kurdistan Region and the Disputed territories of Northern Iraq, disputed territories in Iraq. The PUK describes its goals as self-determination, human rights, democracy a ...

(PUK) in the United Kingdom. Rashid is the fourth non-Arab president of

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

, succeeding

Barham Salih Barham Salih (; ; born 8 September 1960) is an Iraqi Kurdish politician who served as the eighth president of Iraq from 2018 to 2022. He is the former prime minister of the Kurdistan Region and a former deputy prime minister of the Iraqi feder ...

. As Minister for Water Resources from September 2003 until December 2010, Rashid was responsible for a range of issues, including

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...

, municipal and industrial water supply,

hydropower Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, ...

, flood control, and environmental requirements, including marsh restoration.

Professional career

Rashid has been involved with a number of programs and organizations related to engineering and agriculture developments. He previously worked as a senior Project Manager for the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (UNFAO) in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. He has been a member of the Executive Council of the Iraqi National Congress (INC) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan's Representative in the UK since 1986 and a spokesman for the Kurdistan Front. Rashid is a chartered engineer and a fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineering and the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID). He has been a freelance consultant for irrigation and drainage projects and worked with the Water Engineering Administration. In 1992, Rashid was elected vice president and Executive Member of the

Iraqi National Congress The Iraqi National Congress (INC; ) is an Iraqi political party that was led by Ahmed Chalabi who died in 2015. It was formed as an umbrella opposition group of majority Feyli Kurds and shia Arabs, with the aid of the United States' governme ...

(INC), and in 1998, he was elected to the INC's six-member leadership.

Political career

Apart from having technical qualifications and engagements, Rashid has actively participated in Kurdish and Iraqi politics. In 1986, he became the spokesman for the PUK in the United Kingdom. He has attended many conferences and official meetings on behalf of Kurdish political parties and Iraqi opposition groups during Saddam's regime. Rashid has also represented Kurdish politics and Iraqi opposition groups to Saddam in official meetings with various international institutions and governments. In 2003, he became the minister of water resources, a post he kept until 2010. He served as a presidential adviser from 2010.

President of Iraq

Under the power-sharing agreement among the major ethnic and religious groupings in the country, a

Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...

Kurd Kurds (), or the Kurdish people, are an Iranian peoples, Iranic ethnic group from West Asia. They are indigenous to Kurdistan, which is a geographic region spanning southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Iraq, and northeastern Syri ...

is elected as president, a

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

as prime minister, and a

as speaker of parliament. On 13 October 2022, Rashid was elected as the 9th President of Iraq after the fall of the

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

regime. Rashid replaced

as head of state after the two-round vote in parliament, winning "more than 162 votes" against 99 for Salih. Rashid "immediately" appointed politician

Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani Muhammad Shayya al-Sudani (born 4 March 1970) is an Iraqi politician who has been the Prime Minister of Iraq since 27 October 2022. Prior to his premiership, he held a number of ministerial positions; namely, Minister of Labour and Social Affairs ...

as prime minister-designate. This appointment ended the yearlong deadlock. In January 2025, President Rashid filed a lawsuit against Prime Minister

and Finance Minister Taif Sami requesting a court order mandating the uninterrupted and timely payment of salaries for Kurdistan Region’s civil servants.

Foreign policy

Ilham Aliyev met with President of Iraq Abdullatif Jamal Rashid 02

Rashid opposes the normalization of diplomatic relations as long as Turkey violates Iraq's sovereignty. On 8 April 2023, Rashid condemned Turkey's alleged bombardment of an area near

Sulaimaniyah Sulaymaniyah or Slemani (; ), is a city in the east of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and is the capital of the Sulaymaniyah Governorate. It is surrounded by the Azmar (Ezmer), Goizha (Goyje) and Qaiwan (Qeywan) Mountains in the northeast, Barana ...

airport inside Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region. A source from the Turkish Defense Ministry stated to

Agence France Press Agence France-Presse (; AFP) is a French international news agency headquartered in Paris, France. Founded in 1835 as Havas, it is the world's oldest news agency. With 2,400 employees of 100 nationalities, AFP has an editorial presence in 260 c ...

that Turkey's armed forces "undertook no such activity." Speaking on 27 February 2023, Rashid said that the 2003 invasion of Saddam-ruled Iraq by the United States and its allies was "necessary" because of the regime's " brutality." He claimed that "after twenty years," now "peace and security reall over the country." However, long-awaited public projects, especially in the transport sector, have not materialized, a shortcoming he attributed to lingering

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...

. The Iraqi president expressed the belief that "improving relations with neighbors, including Iran, Syria, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Jordan, is a source of strength for Iraq."

Personal life

He is married to

Shanaz Ibrahim Ahmed Shanaz Ibrahim Ahmed () (born 1954) is an Iraqi-Kurdish politician and current First Lady of Iraq. Her husband is President Abdul Latif Rashid. She is a daughter of the Kurdish judge, writer, and politician Ibrahim Ahmed, and novelist Galawezh S ...

, and they are the parents to three children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rashid, Abdul Latif Government ministers of Iraq Living people Iraqi Muslims 1944 births Iraqi civil engineers Patriotic Union of Kurdistan politicians Iraqi National Congress politicians Presidents of Iraq Alumni of the University of Liverpool Alumni of the University of Manchester