Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah (, born 1945) is an

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

i politician. He was the

Sultanate of Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

's Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs. It is important to clarify that "Ministers in Responsibility" were previously appointed as the Sultan was intended to hold the official position of "Minister of Foreign Affairs" himself.

Early life

Yusuf bin Alawi studied and worked in

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

. In 1970 he met

Sultan Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...

Qaboos bin Said al Said Qaboos bin Said Al Said (, ; 18 November 1940 – 10 January 2020) was Sultan of Oman from 23 July 1970 until his death in 2020. A fifteenth-generation descendant of the founder of the Al Bu Said dynasty, he was the longest-serving leader in ...

for the first time, shortly after his take-over. Alawi had been a dissident and associated with a Dhofar secession movement against the current Sultan's father. However, once Sultan Qaboos acceded power, he encouraged Omani dissidents to come out of overseas exile and assist in the rebuilding of Oman. In the period between 1973 and 1974 Yusuf bin Alawi occupied an

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

role 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 ...

Career

He was appointed as the Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs in 1997 by Royal Decree No. 85/97 and was replaced on 18 August 2020 with Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi (actioned by Royal Decree No. 111/2020) as part of a significant government restructure. Alawi has recently met with the US Secretary of State in Washington to discuss ways to better engage

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. Oman is unusual among

Arab states of the Persian Gulf The Arab states of the Persian Gulf, also known as the Gulf Arab states (), refers to a group of Arab states bordering the Persian Gulf. There are seven member states of the Arab League in the region: Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Saudi ...

in that it has a long history of cordial relations with Tehran, something Washington is keen to make use of in resolving a number of regional security issues.

Canada-Omani relations

*See

Foreign relations of Oman When Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said assumed power in 1970, Oman had limited contacts with the outside world, including neighbouring Arab states. A special treaty relationship permitted the United Kingdom close involvement in Oman's civil and mi ...

. In September 2016, Oman played an important role in securing the release of

Homa Hoodfar Homa Hoodfar () is a Canadian-Iranian sociocultural anthropologist and professor emerita of anthropology at Concordia University in Montreal. While she is most widely known for her work on Western perceptions of the veil or hijab in its varied form ...

, an Iranian-Canadian citizen and professor at

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

. She had been held prisoner in Iran's

Evin Prison Evin Prison () is a prison located in the Evin neighborhood of Tehran, Iran. The prison has been the primary site for detaining Iran's political prisoners since 1972, before and after the Iranian Revolution, in a purpose-built wing nicknamed "E ...

since 6 June 2016. This happened soon after a secretive meeting between

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

's prime minister,

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...

, and Alawi.

Hacking

In 2019, it was revealed that Yusuf bin Alawi had been targeted by

Project Raven DarkMatter Group is a computer security company founded in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2014 or 2015. The company has described itself as a purely defensive company; however, in 2016, it became a contractor for Project Raven, helping the ...

; a

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...

clandestine surveillance and hacking operation targeting other governments, militants and human rights activists critical of the UAE monarchy. Using a "sophisticated spying tool called Karma", they managed to hack a device belonging to Yusuf bin Alawi.

Honours

* Sultan Haitham bin Tarik honoured Alawi with the highest civilian award (Royal Commendation Order – First Class) for his contributions to Oman.

Foreign honour

*: Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese honors system, Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge feat ...

(10 May 2022).

References

External links

OMAN - Yusef Bin Alawi Bin Abdullah.
AllBusiness.com, February 21, 2000
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Sultanate of Oman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abdullah, Yusuf Alawai 1945 births Living people Omani Muslims Ambassadors of Oman to Lebanon Foreign ministers of Oman People from Salalah People of the Dhofar War 20th-century Omani people 21st-century Omani politicians Grand Cordons of the Order of the Rising Sun