Rushdi al-Kikhya (; 1899 – 14 March 1987) was a Syrian political leader who founded the People's party in 1948. Kikhya was elected as a Speaker of the Parliament of Syria between 1949 and 1951, and he was elected five terms as a member of the Syrian Parliament (MP) (1936, 1943, 1947, 1949 and 1954). Kikhiya also served as minister of interior in 1949.

Career

Rushdi al-Kikhya was born and raised in

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 ...

. His grandfather, Ahmed, was a member in the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

. He was educated at the Islamic College in

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

, followed by studying law at the Sorbonne in Paris, before his return to Syria in 1922. He later became a member in the National Bloc, and was elected to the Syrian Parliament in 1936. In 1939, Kikhya clashed with the Bloc leadership, however, over their failure to prevent Turkey's annexation of the Sanjak of Alexandretta, territory in northern Syria that had once been part of the Ottoman Empire. Kikhya joined Nazem al-Qudsi, also from Aleppo, and campaigned against the election of Shukri al-Quwatli, the National Bloc candidate for the presidency in 1943. In 1948, Kikhiya founded the People's party with Nazem al-Qudsi and Mustafa Bey Barmada. Kikhya supported the coup that ousted Husni al-Za'im in August 1949 and allied himself with Syria's new leader, President Hashim al-Atasi. Kikhya became minister of interior in a cabinet headed by Atasi himself that lasted from August to December 1949. Kikhya then became chairman of the Constitutional Assembly that drafted a new constitution for Syria. In September, he became a deputy for Aleppo and was elected speaker of the parliament. The leadership of the People's Party including Kikhya pushed to form a union with

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 ...

, to curb any future Israeli eastward expansion. However, Kikhya withdrew from the political life upon the formation 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 ...

in 1958. He died on 14 March 1987 in

Nicosia Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capi ...

, Cyprus, and was buried there.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kikhya, Rushdi 1899 births 1987 deaths Syrian Sunni Muslims People's Party (Syria) politicians National Bloc (Syria) politicians Politicians from Aleppo 20th-century Syrian politicians Sorbonne University Speakers of the People's Assembly of Syria University of Paris alumni