Fayez Ghosn (; 28 June 1950 – 22 November 2021) was a Lebanese politician who served as a

minister of defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

, and a member of the

Marada Movement The Marada Movement () is a Lebanese political party and a former militia active during the Lebanese Civil War named after the legendary Marada (also called Mardaites) warriors of the early Middle Ages that fought on the external edge of the Byza ...

Early life

Ghosn was from an influential Orthodox Christian family with origins in

Northern Lebanon North Lebanon () is the northern region of Lebanon comprising the North Governorate and Akkar Governorate. On 16 July 2003, the two entities were divided from the same province by former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The division was known as Law ...

. He was born in Kousba on 28 June 1950.

Career

Ghosn was a member of the Lebanon's Christian political party Marada, which is a supporter of

Hezbollah Hezbollah ( ; , , ) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and paramilitary group. Hezbollah's paramilitary wing is the Jihad Council, and its political wing is the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc party in the Lebanese Parliament. I ...

. He first became a parliament member following the 1996 elections. He also won a seat from Koura in the

general elections A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

of 2000. He chaired the

Lebanese Parliament The Lebanese Parliament (, ) is the unicameral national parliament of the Lebanon, Republic of Lebanon. There are 128 members elected to a four-year term in Electoral district, multi-member constituencies, apportioned among Lebanon's divers ...

’s budget and finance committee in 2000. In the 2005 general elections, he was on a list of candidates backed by Michel Aoun. In the general elections of 2009, Ghosn ran for a seat from Koura, but he could not win the election. Ghosn was appointed minister of defense in June 2011. He was part of the 8 March coalition and the Change and Reform bloc in

Najib Mikati Najib Azmi Mikati (born 24 November 1955) is a Lebanese politician and businessman who served as the 52nd prime minister of Lebanon from 2021 to 2025. He previously served in this post as the 48th and 45th prime minister from 2011 to 2014 and i ...

's cabinet. Ghosn's term ended on 15 February 2014, and

Samir Mouqbel Samir Mokbel () (born 13 November 1939) is a Lebanese politician. He was the deputy prime minister and defense minister of Lebanon. Early life and education Mouqbel was born in 1939. He graduated from the American University of Beirut with a ...

replaced him as defense minister. In the

in 2018 he again ran for a seat from Koura and was elected.

Views

Ghosn was a supporter of Iran, arguing that Iran contributes to stability in the Middle East countries. In December 2011, Ghosn claimed that

Al Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...

militants were entering Lebanon under the guise of Syrian opposition members.

Personal life and death

Ghosn married Yona Hakim, the daughter of former lawmaker Bakhos Hakim. They had two children. He died on 22 November 2021.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghosn, Fayez 1950 births 2021 deaths Defense ministers of Lebanon Greek Orthodox Christians from Lebanon 21st-century Lebanese journalists Marada Movement politicians Members of the Parliament of Lebanon People from Koura District