Jamal Suliman () is 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 ...

producer,

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

, and

stage Stage, stages, or staging may refer to: Arts and media Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly Brit ...

. Suliman was born in 1959 in the Syrian capital of

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, then part of the

United Arab Republic The United Arab Republic (UAR; ) was a sovereign state in the Middle East from 1958 to 1971. It was initially a short-lived political union between Republic of Egypt (1953–1958), Egypt (including Occupation of the Gaza Strip by the United Ara ...

. Suliman studied at the acting department of the

Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts (Damascus) The Higher Institute of Dramatic Arts (HIDA, ) was founded in Damascus, Syria, in 1977 by academics such as the playwright Saadallah Wannous, theatre critic Ghassan al-Maleh and professor of theatre at Damascus University, Hannan Kassab Hassan. T ...

. He started his career acting on stage and producing television series. Suliman then continued his studies in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

and obtained a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in theatrical studies from

Leeds University The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed ...

. He is married to Rana Mohammad Salman, daughter of ex-minister of Syria, Mohamad Salman. They have a son named Mohammad.

Career

Suliman returned to Damascus as a professional actor in the mid-1980s, starring in many successful television series, coming into prominence with the 2001 historical television series of '' Salah Al-Din'', depicting the life of the great Muslim leader

Saladin Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub ( – 4 March 1193), commonly known as Saladin, was the founder of the Ayyubid dynasty. Hailing from a Kurdish family, he was the first sultan of both Egypt and Syria. An important figure of the Third Crusade, h ...

. Suliman also had roles in a few films, but has preferred to use the television as his main medium for stardom. Suliman's popularity and fame spread to the wider Arab audience on his selection to play a prominent role in the late Ahmad Zaki's movie ''Halim''. This role in the Egyptian cinema, known as the "Hollywood of the Middle East", gave Suliman further horizons on which to expand on, upon which his starring role in the Egyptian television series ''Hada'eq el-shaytan'' (''Gardens of the

Devil A devil is the mythical personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conce ...

'') has made him an Arab cult hero in terms of television. On the whole, Suliman received rave reviews for his acting in the series, his role involving having to accustom himself to the ''Sa'eedi'' accent and traditions (region of Upper

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

with a distinct dialect of

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

involved). In 1994 he played the role of Dr.Saeed in the film Survivor (Bazmandeh) directed by Seifollah Dad, this film based on the novel "Return to Haifa" written by

Ghassan Kanafani Ghassan Fayiz Kanafani (; 8 April 1936 – 8 July 1972) was a prominent Palestinian literature, Palestinian author and Palestinian militant, militant, considered to be a leading novelist of his generation and one of the Arab world's leading Pa ...

. Despite this, Suliman also received criticism from a number of Egyptian critics, journalists and actors alike, claiming that many Egyptian actors would have happily and effectively taken on this leading role in the Gardens of the Devil. Suliman had been quoted to saying that his determination to act in the Egyptian television had increased ever since criticisms were leveled against him. On a humanitarian level, Suliman was selected as an ambassador of the

United Nations Population Fund The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is a United Nations System, UN agency aimed at improving reproductive health, reproductive and maternal health worldwide. Its work includes developing national healthcare strategies and protocols, incr ...

in 1999. He is a member in the Syria's Tomorrow Movement which is a

Syrian opposition 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 ...

party founded in March 2016 in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. In January 2025, he announced his return to Damascus, a month after the

fall of the Assad regime On 8 December 2024, the Assad regime collapsed during a 2024 Syrian opposition offensives, major offensive by Syrian opposition, opposition forces. The offensive was spearheaded by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and supported mainly by the Turk ...

, marking the end of his absence since the eruption of the Syrian civil war. Suliman has expressed interest in running in the next Syrian presidential election.

References

External links

*
Lahazat Harega
{{DEFAULTSORT:Suliman, Jamal 1959 births Living people Syrian male television actors Actors from Damascus Syrian male film actors Syrian Alawites 20th-century Syrian male actors 21st-century Syrian male actors Syrian dissidents Alumni of the University of Leeds

Career

See also

References

External links