Husni al-Barazi (; 1895–1975) was a

Syrian Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...

politician who served as

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 ...

Origins and youth

Husni al-Barazi was born in the Syrian city of

Hama Hama ( ', ) is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria. It is located north of Damascus and north of Homs. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. With a population of 996,000 (2023 census), Hama is one o ...

into a prominent landowning family of Kurdish origin. He was educated in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

where he attended classes with the Bedir Khan brothers. Later he received a doctorate degree from the Sorbonne.

Political activity

During the French Mandate, Al-Barazi joined the Syrian opposition to French rule, but in 1926 he was arrested for his opposition activities and was exiled to

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

. Upon returning to Syria in 1928, Al-Barazi ran for parliamentary elections and was elected a Member of the Syrian Parliament. He was appointed Minister of Culture from 1934 till 1936, then Governor of Alexandretta (Iskenderun) from 1936 to 1938. In April 1942 he was appointed

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 ...

, but was removed from his position and isolated by the French authorities in January 1943, following which he again moved to Lebanon.

Downfall, exile and death

Al Barazi returned to Syria in 1946 and remained in his position as Member of Parliament during all the military coups that took place from the late forties until the mid fifties. During this period, he was accused of plotting against the state and was arrested several times. However, in 1948 he was Governor of

Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...

, and the following year became deputy to the military governor of Syria under

Husni al-Za'im Husni al-Za'im ( ''Ḥusnī az-Za’īm''; 11 May 1897 – 14 August 1949) was a Syrian military officer of Kurdish origins who served as head of state of Syria in 1949. He had been an officer in the Ottoman Army. After France instituted its co ...

. In Aleppo he co-founded the newspaper ''al-Nass'', which was critical of Egypt's leader

Gamal Abdel Nasser Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein (15 January 1918 – 28 September 1970) was an Egyptian military officer and revolutionary who served as the second president of Egypt from 1954 until his death in 1970. Nasser led the Egyptian revolution of 1952 a ...

. He went into final exile in 1954, when, while he was on a trip to Turkey, he was accused of plotting and conspiring against Syria, and was sentenced to death in absentia. In the late 1960s, al-Barazi was pardoned on account of his old age but never returned to Syria; he remained in exile between Lebanon and Turkey, where he died in 1975.

References

External links

1895 births 1975 deaths Prime ministers of Syria People from Hama Ministers of culture of Syria Members of the People's Assembly of Syria Syrian Kurdish politicians 20th-century Syrian politicians Al-Barazi family Syrian exiles {{Syria-politician-stub