Hoshyar Mahmud Mohammed Zebari, or simply Hoshyar Zebari (also spelled ''Hoshyar Zibari'', Kurdish: ''Hişyar Zêbarî''; born 23 September 1953) is an

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 ...

i -

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish language ** Northern Kurdish (Kurmanji) **Central Kurdish (Sorani) **Southern Kurdish ** Laki Kurdish *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern ...

politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the country in 2014 and as

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 ...

until 2016. He was

Minister of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and foreign relations, relations, diplomacy, bilateralism, ...

from 2003 to 2014.

Biography

Zebari was born to a Kurdish Iraqi family in

Aqrah Akre (, , ) is a city located in Kurdistan Region of Iraq. It is disputed by the Nineveh Governorate and the Duhok Governorate which both partially claim it. Akre is known for its celebrations of Newroz. History The city was built in ...

, a city in

Duhok Governorate Duhok Governorate (, , ) is a governorate in the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Its capital is the city of Duhok. It includes Zakho, near the Ibrahim Khalil border crossing with Şırnak Province, Turkey. It borders the Al-Hasakah Gove ...

, and grew up in

Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...

. He earned a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

Sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

from 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 1976. He also obtained a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in Sociology of Development from the

University of Essex The University of Essex is a public university, public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass university, plate glass universities. The university comprises three camp ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in 1980. While studying in Britain, he led the Kurdish Students Society in Europe and served as the

chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the Overseas Student Committee from 1978 to 1980. Zebari joined the

Kurdistan Democratic Party The Kurdistan Democratic Party (), usually abbreviated as KDP or PDK, is the ruling Political party, party in Iraqi Kurdistan and the senior partner in the Kurdistan Regional Government. It was founded in 1946 in Mahabad in Iranian Kurdistan. ...

(KDP) in 1979. In the 1980s, he fought as a member of the

Peshmerga The Peshmerga () are the internal security forces of Kurdistan Region. According to the Constitution of Iraq, regional governments are responsible for "the establishment and organization of the internal security forces for the region such as p ...

in the

Iraqi–Kurdish conflict The Iraqi–Kurdish conflict consists of a series of wars, rebellions and disputes between the Kurds and the central authority of Iraq starting in the 20th century shortly after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I. Some put the marki ...

against the government of

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 ...

. He went on to become a member of the KDP's Central Committee and its Political Bureau. In 1988, he was put in charge of its foreign relations and represented the party in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and the UK. In 1992, he was appointed a member of the executive committee 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 ...

and was made part of its Presidential Council in 1999. After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Zebari was appointed a member of the

Iraqi Governing Council The Iraqi Governing Council (IGC) was the provisional government of Iraq from 13 July 2003 to 1 June 2004. It was established by and served under the United States-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). The IGC consisted of various Iraqi ...

. He was made foreign minister in September 2003. In July 2012, he said that

al-Qaeda in Iraq Al-Qaeda in Iraq (; AQI), was a Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization affiliated with al-Qaeda. It was founded on 17 October 2004, and was led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi until its disbandment on 15 October 2006 after he was killed in a targ ...

members had gone to Syria, where the militants previously received support and weapons. On 11 July 2014, Zebari was replaced as foreign minister by Hussain al-Shahristani, Iraq's deputy prime minister, who assumed the position in an acting capacity after Kurdish politicians withdrew from the government of

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

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 ...

. On 8 September 2014, he was appointed a Deputy Prime Minister under the government of the new premier,

Haider al-Abadi Haider Jawad Kadhim al-Abadi (; born 25 April 1952) is an Iraqi politician who was Prime Minister of Iraq from September 2014 until October 2018. Previously he served as Minister of Communication from 2003 to 2004, in the first government afte ...

. On 18 October 2014, Zebari was given the post of

of Iraq, while Rowsch Shaways was appointed the new Deputy Prime Minister in his place. On 21 September 2016, he was dismissed from his position as finance minister after losing a

no-confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a Motion (parliamentary procedure), motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typi ...

motion over allegations of corruption. In October 2017, Iraqi politicians and officials called on the government to investigate Zebari for

nepotism Nepotism is the act of granting an In-group favoritism, advantage, privilege, or position to Kinship, relatives in an occupation or field. These fields can include business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, religion or health care. In ...

after it was revealed that he had appointed his wife and seven of her family members to Iraqi embassies in various

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an countries. Zebari tried to participate as a candidate in the presidential elections in 2022, but was banned by the

Federal Supreme Court of Iraq The Federal Supreme Court of Iraq (FSC) is the highest court of Iraq within the remit of constitutional law, having exclusive jurisdiction to interpret the Constitution of Iraq. In addition to determining the constitutionality of laws and regulat ...

over allegations of corruption against him dating back to 2016. He protested the decision, stating that no court had convicted him.

Personal life

Zebari is an

Iraqi Kurd The Iraqi Kurds (, ) are the second largest ethnic group of Iraq. They traditionally speak the Kurdish languages of Sorani, Kurmanji, Feyli and also Gorani. Historically, Kurds in Iraq have experienced varying degrees of autonomy and marginal ...

and a

Sunni Muslim 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 Musli ...

. His father was Mahmoud Agha Zebari, the chief of the Zebari clan, who was assassinated by the

Iraqi Intelligence Service : The Iraqi Intelligence Service () also known as the Mukhabarat, General Intelligence Directorate, or Party Intelligence, was an 8,000-man agency and the main state intelligence organization in Iraq under Saddam Hussein. The IIS was primarily co ...

in 1981. Three of his older brothers were also killed by Saddam Hussein's regime. His family currently consists of three younger brothers and two younger sisters. He is also the uncle of

Massoud Barzani Masoud Barzani (; born 16 August 1946) is a Kurdish politician who has been leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) since 1979, and was President of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq from 2005 to 2017. Early life and career Barzani was bo ...

, the former

President of Iraqi Kurdistan The president of Kurdistan Region is the head of Autonomous administrative division, semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq. They are part of the Kurdistan Presidency Council. The current president of Kurdistan Region is Nechirvan Bar ...

. His late sister Hamael Mahmoud Agha Zebari had married

Mustafa Barzani Mustafa Barzani (14 March 1903 – 1 March 1979), also known as Mullah Mustafa, was a Kurdish nationalist leader and one of the most prominent political figures in modern Kurdish politics. In 1946, he was chosen as the leader of the Kurdistan ...

and gave birth to Massoud. He holds

dual citizenship Multiple citizenship (or multiple nationality) is a person's legal status in which a person is at the same time recognized by more than one sovereign state, country under its nationality law, nationality and citizenship law as a national or cit ...

, being a national of both Iraq and Britain. Zebari has been married twice. His second wife is Hana Abdul-Sattar al-Dulaimi, the daughter of Abdul-Sattar al-Dulaimi, who was an advisor to Saddam Hussein. His first wife was born in the town of

Amedi Amedi or Amadiye (; ; ) is a town in the Duhok Governorate of Kurdistan Region of Iraq. It is built on a mesa in the broader Great Zab river valley. Amedi is known for its celebrations of Newroz. Etymology According to ibn al-Athir, the Arabic ...

in Iraq's Duhok Governorate.

References

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External links

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Richard Haass meets Hoshyar Zebari

Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on Foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organi ...

(CFR), June 8, 2004
Iraq's Foreign Minister Confirms Support for New US Strategy
VOA, January 14, 2007 {{DEFAULTSORT:Zebari, Hoshyar Members of the Council of Representatives of Iraq 1953 births Living people Alumni of the University of Essex University of Jordan alumni Deputy prime ministers of Iraq Kurdistan Democratic Party politicians Iraqi Kurdish people Ministers of foreign affairs of Iraq Finance ministers of Iraq Kurdish Sunni Muslims Iraqi Sunni Muslims