Ahmad Lozi (also spelled Ahmad al-Lawzi; 1925 – 18 November 2014) was a Jordanian politician. He served as the

Prime Minister of Jordan The prime minister of Jordan is the head of government of the Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The prime minister is appointed by the List of kings of Jordan, king of Jordan, who is then free to form his own Cabinet of Jordan, Cabinet. Th ...

from 29 November 1971 to 26 May 1973. He succeeded

Wasfi al-Tal Wasfi Tal (; also known as Wasfi Tell; 1920 – 28 November 1971) was a Jordanian politician, statesman and military officer. He served as the 15th Prime Minister of Jordan for three separate terms, 1962–63, 1965–67 and 1970 until his assass ...

who had been assassinated by the

Black September Organization The Black September Organization (BSO; ) was a Palestinians, Palestinian militant organization, which was founded in September 1970. Besides other actions, the group was responsible for the Assassination of Wasfi Al-Tal, assassination of the Jo ...

. In the 1960s he had already served as member of the House of Representatives and the Senate. He also had terms as Minister for Prime ministry affairs, Municipal Affairs and Finance. He served as Chief of the Royal Court from 1979 to 1984. This was followed by the presidency of the Senate for thirteen years, from 1984 to 1997. In 2011 he headed a committee to oversee changes to the

Constitution of Jordan The Constitution of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan was adopted on 1 January 1952. It revised the previous Constitution of 1947 to expand the powers of the legislature and add checks to the executive power of the cabinet. The Constitution defi ...

Early life

Lozi was born in Jubaiha, near

Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...

in 1925. Lozi studied at the Teachers Training College in Baghdad, Iraq, receiving a degree in literature in 1950. From 1950 to 1953 he worked at two schools as a teacher, the

Salt In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...

Secondary School and Al Hussein Secondary School in Amman. He then started working as a civil servant, first for the Royal Court and later the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Political career

In 1956 he was appointed as the head of Royal Protocol. As head of the royal protocol he accompanied King

Hussein of Jordan Hussein bin Talal (14 November 1935 – 7 February 1999) was King of Jordan from 1952 until Death and state funeral of King Hussein, his death in 1999. As a member of the Hashemites, Hashemite dynasty, the royal family of Jordan since 1921, Hu ...

on a world tour between February and May 1959. After work as chief protocol for five years, in 1961, he was elected to the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

for the district of Amman. During his term in office he was supportive of the government positions on the issue of Palestine and the Syrian revolt. He was subsequently re-elected the year after. In 1964 he was Minister for Prime ministry affairs. The same year he was also Minister without portfolio. Lozi was a member of the Senate of Jordan between 1965 and 1967. In 1967 he was named Minister for Municipal Affairs. An appointment to

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

followed in 1970. He started serving as

from 29 November 1971. He succeeded

who had been assassinated the day before by the

. He stayed on as Prime Minister until 1973, he became ill in May and resigned on 26 May 1973. From 1978 to 1979 he was President of the National Consultative Council. Lozi served as Chief of the Royal Court between 1979 and 1984. On 11 January 1984 King

dissolved the senate and replaced it the next day. Lozi was made President of the Senate, he would serve from 1984 to 1997. He resigned on 7 June 1997 and was succeeded the next day by

Zaid al-Rifai Zaid al-Rifai (; 27 November 1936 – 12 August 2024) was a Jordanian politician who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Jordan, prime minister of Jordan, holding office from May 1973 to July 1976 and again from April 1984 to April 1989. His s ...

. Concerning the democratization of Jordan in the 1990s he said that: "on the whole, I don't think that even the Prophets Jesus or Muhammed could bring about a faster movement toward democracy".

Later life

After having resigned from the Senate in 1997 Lozi became chairman of the board of trustees of the

University of Jordan The University of Jordan (), often abbreviated UJ or JU, is a public university located in Amman, Jordan. Founded in 1962, and it is the largest and oldest institution of higher education in Jordan. It is located in the capital Amman in the J ...

in 2000. In his later years he was still involved in politics, albeit not in an official government position. In 2011 King

Abdullah II of Jordan Abdullah II (Abdullah bin Hussein; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of the Hashemites, who have been the reigning royal family of Jordan since 1921, and is traditionally reg ...

asked Lozi to head a committee to oversee possible changes to the

. Lozi said the intended goal of the committee was to make it "more responsive to change and to the development of the democratic process". The committee argued to transfer some of the powers of the King to parliament and to enhance some civil liberties. Critics said the ideas of the committee were not far-enough reaching yet. In June 2014 Lozi opened the Habes Al Majali Museum on Army Day. In August 2014 public figures, including King

met at Lozi's Amman house to talk about challenges to the Jordanian state.

Personal life

Abdul Karim al-Kabariti Abdul Karim al-Kabariti ( ; ; born 15 December 1949) is a Jordanian politician and businessman who was the Prime Minister of Jordan, 30th Prime Minister of Jordan from 4 February 1996 to 9 March 1997. Early life and education Kabariti was born i ...

, who served as Prime Minister of Jordan from February 1996 to March 1997 is the brother-in-law of Lozi.

Death

Lozi died on Tuesday 18 November 2014, aged 89. He was buried in the Royal Cemetery the day after. The ceremony was attended by Prince Feisal bin Al Hussein in his capacity as regent.

Honours and awards

Jordan

Supreme Order of the Renaissance The Supreme Order of the Renaissance (,) is the second-most senior order of merit in the Kingdom of Jordan. History The order was instituted in 1917 by Emir Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca. According to correspondence between the British For ...

, ''Wisam al-Nahda''. * Order of the Star of Jordan, ''Wisam al-Kawkab al-Urdani'', first order. *

Order of Independence Order of Independence or Independence Order () is a Vietnamese decoration. Criteria The Vietnamese government states that the decoration "shall be conferred or posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or med ...

, ''Wisam al-Istiqial'', first order.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lozi, Ahmad 1925 births 2014 deaths Prime ministers of Jordan Members of the House of Representatives (Jordan) Prime ministry affairs ministers of Jordan Members of the Senate of Jordan Municipal affairs ministers of Jordan Finance ministers of Jordan Defence ministers of Jordan Presidents of the Senate of Jordan Recipients of the Order of Independence (Jordan) Recipients of Supreme Order of the Renaissance (Jordan) Recipients of the Order of The Star of Jordan