Fouad Siniora (; born 19 July 1943) is a Lebanese politician. He served as the 12th

prime minister of Lebanon The prime minister of Lebanon, officially the president of the Council of Ministers, is the head of government and the head of the Council of Ministers of Lebanon. The prime minister is appointed by the president of Lebanon, with the consen ...

from 2005 to 2009. He served as minister of Finance from 2000 to 2004.

Early career

In the 1970s, Sanioura worked for

Citibank Citibank, N.A. ("N. A." stands for "National bank (United States), National Association"; stylized as citibank) is the primary U.S. banking subsidiary of Citigroup, a financial services multinational corporation, multinational corporation. Ci ...

and taught at the

American University of Beirut The American University of Beirut (AUB; ) is a private, non-sectarian, and independent university chartered in New York with its main campus in Beirut, Lebanon. AUB is governed by a private, autonomous board of trustees and offers programs le ...

, his alma mater, and at the

Lebanese University The Lebanese University (LU; ) is the only state-funded public university in Lebanon. It was established in 1951. The university's main campus was originally located in Beirut, but a few satellite campuses were opened due to travel restriction ...

Member of National Assembly

He served as Minister of State for Financial Affairs from 1992 to 1998, and as Minister of Finance from 2000 to 2004.

Prime minister

After the victory of the anti-Syrian opposition in

parliamentary 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 ...

held in May and June 2005, Fouad Siniora was asked by President Émile Lahoud on 30 June 2005 to form a government. He resigned from the chairmanship of Group Méditerranée (a banking holding controlled by the Hariri family). After laborious negotiations with the President and the different political forces, Siniora formed a government on 19 July 2005.

2006 Lebanon War

On 12 July 2006, Hezbollah launched a deadly cross-border attack against Israel, who subsequently started a 33-day heavy bombardment and land invasion of Lebanon, also known as the

2006 Lebanon War The 2006 Lebanon War was a 34-day armed conflict in Lebanon, fought between Hezbollah and Israel. The war started on 12 July 2006, and continued until a United Nations-brokered ceasefire went into effect in the morning on 14 August 2006, thoug ...

. On 27 July 2006, Siniora, seeking to end the conflict, presented a seven-point Siniora Plan at a 15-nation conference in Rome. Siniora also called for an

Arab League The Arab League (, ' ), officially the League of Arab States (, '), is a regional organization in the Arab world. The Arab League was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945, initially with seven members: Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt, Kingdom of Iraq, ...

meeting in Beirut. During a televised address at the conference, he famously "sobbed" as he described the effects of the war on the Lebanese people.

Events leading to the Doha Agreement

On 13 November 2006, Shiite ministers backed by

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 ...

and Amal resigned from Siniora's cabinet. This took place on the eve of the day when the

Special Tribunal for Lebanon The Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), also referred to as the Lebanon Tribunal or the Hariri Tribunal, was a tribunal of international character that was active between 2009 and 2023. It applied Lebanese criminal law under the authority of ...

trying the murderers of Rafik Hariri was to be discussed in a cabinet meeting. Although there were only six resigning ministers, nearly 40% of the Lebanese MPs are in the opposition. Siniora Bush

The Lebanese opposition claimed that this resignation meant that the Siniora Government was not a legitimate one because it did not represent all religious groups in Lebanon, namely the Shiite Lebanese. According to the constitution, the government is legal as long as it has two-thirds of the ministers, and so the majority believed the Siniora government was still a totally legal cabinet. On 1 December 2006, the parliamentary minority, primarily the pro-Syrian parties of Amal, Hezbollah and the Free Patriotic Movement of Michael Aoun launched a campaign of street demonstrations with the goal of getting veto power in the government. The country was further put into paralysis when the opposition refused to attend the parliament and vote for a new president, after Emile Lahoud's presidential term expired. This meant the Fuad Siniora was an acting president until the new president was voted in. On 7 May 2008, Hezbollah, Amal and the

Syrian Social Nationalist Party The Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP; ) is a Syrian nationalist party operating in Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan. It advocates the establishment of a Greater Syrian nation state spanning the Fertile Crescent, including present-day Syria, Leb ...

, among others, launched an armed strike against Beirut. The

Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport (, , previously known as Beirut International Airport) () is the only operational commercial airport in Lebanon. It is located in the Dahieh, Southern Suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, from the Beirut Cen ...

, the Government's Grand Serail, and houses of majority leaders, Saad Hariri and

Walid Jumblatt Walid Kamal Jumblatt (; born 7 August 1949) is a Lebanese politician who was the leader of the Progressive Socialist Party from 1977 until 2023. A Druze and former militia commander, Jumblatt led the Lebanese National Resistance Front, allying ...

, were all put under siege. Mount Lebanon was also attacked in the operation. Revenge attacks broke out in other areas of Lebanon.

Post-premiership

Siniora has continued to criticise Hezbollah's influence in Lebanon, saying that "Practically, Lebanon as a state has been kidnapped by Hezbollah. And behind Hezbollah is Iran". In 2024, he opposed Lebanon being dragged into the war in Gaza, saying that the country "cannot afford, in principle, to get involved".

Personal life

Siniora is known for his interest in Arab literature and poetry.

Notes

References

External links

Official Website: Fuad Siniora

Profile: Fuad Siniora
''BBC News'', 28 May 2008
Siniora reappointed as Lebanon PM
''BBC News'', 28 May 2008 * Siniora, Fua

''Washington Post'', 9 August 2006 , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Siniora, Fouad 1943 births American University of Beirut alumni Finance ministers of Lebanon Future Movement politicians Living people Members of the Parliament of Lebanon People from Sidon Prime ministers of Lebanon 20th-century Lebanese politicians 21st-century Lebanese politicians