Riyad al-Maliki (; born 31 May 1955) is a Palestinian politician and former minister of information, government spokesperson, and

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, ...

of the

Palestinian National Authority The Palestinian Authority (PA), officially known as the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), is the Fatah-controlled government body that exercises partial civil control over the Palestinian enclaves in the Israeli-occupied West Bank as a c ...

in its 13th government. He also resumed office as foreign affairs minister from the 14th to the 18th government.

Biography

He was born on 31 May 1955 in

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

, and earned a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from

Pontifical Xavierian University The Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (English: Xavierian Pontifical University) is a private university in Colombia founded in 1623. It is one of the oldest and most traditional Colombian universities, directed by the Society of Jesus, with its ...

in Colombia in 1978 and a PhD in civil engineering at the

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

. He started working as a lecturer in the Civil Engineering Department of

Birzeit University Birzeit University () is a public university in the West Bank, Palestine, registered by the Palestinian Ministry of Social Affairs as a charitable organization. It is accredited by the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education, Mini ...

in 1981 and served as the head of the department from 1993 to 1996. He also founded and headed Panorama, the Palestinian Center for the Dissemination of Democracy and Community Development, an active non-governmental organization. He also served as spokesman for the

Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP; ) is a secular Palestinian Marxist–Leninist organization founded in 1967 by George Habash. It has consistently been the second-largest of the groups forming the Palestine Liberation ...

. He was awarded the European Peace Prize in 2000 in Copenhagen and the Italian Peace Prize (Lombardi) in 2005. He is the coordinator of the Arab Program to Support and Develop Democracy, which is an alliance of more than 12 civil society institutions. He is also a visiting professor in several European universities. In 2007, al-Maliki was one of three government ministers who investigated the circumstances of Palestinians who were stranded on the Egyptian side of the border along the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip, also known simply as Gaza, is a small territory located on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea; it is the smaller of the two Palestinian territories, the other being the West Bank, that make up the State of Palestine. I ...

, because the only border crossing available to them was Israeli-controlled and they feared interrogation or arrest. His VIP travel card was confiscated by Israeli border security in 2021 as per the instructions of Benjamin Netanyahu. This was done after he returned from a meeting of the International Criminal Court. The Palestinians had asked the International Court of Justice for an opinion on the legal consequences of Israel's occupation of Palestinian Territories.

References

External links

, - 1955 births Living people 20th-century engineers Academic staff of Birzeit University American University alumni Foreign ministers of the Palestinian National Authority 21st-century Palestinian diplomats Palestinian civil engineers People from Bethlehem Pontificia Universidad Javeriana alumni Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine members 21st-century Palestinian politicians {{Palestine-bio-stub

Biography

See also

References

External links