Abdul Hamid Karami (23 October 1890 – 23 November 1950) ( ar, عبد الحميد كرامي) was a Lebanese political and religious leader, who had nationalistic Arab inclinations.

Biography

Karami descended from one of the most prominent

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word ''Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagree ...

families in Lebanon. Members of his family traditionally held the position of

mufti A Mufti (; ar, مفتي) is an Islamic jurist qualified to issue a nonbinding opinion ('' fatwa'') on a point of Islamic law (''sharia''). The act of issuing fatwas is called ''iftāʾ''. Muftis and their ''fatwas'' played an important rol ...

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

. Abdul Hamid Karami became mufti of Tripoli, but was removed by the French authorities. He was a leader of the movement to have Lebanon become an independent country, a goal which was achieved by 1943. In 1944, Karami survived an assassination attempt, which was due to a local rivalry in Tripoli. Karami served as

prime minister A prime minister, premier 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. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

and

finance minister A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

of Lebanon for a brief period from 10 January 1945 to 20 August 1945. He also held the post of

defense minister A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

for that time. His sons,

Rashid Karami Rashid Abdul Hamid Karami (30 December 1921 – 1 June 1987) ( ar, رشيد كرامي) was a Lebanese statesman. He is considered one of the most important political figures in Lebanon for more than 30 years, including during much of the Lebane ...

and

Omar Karami Omar Abdul Hamid Karami (last name also spelled Karamé and Karameh) ( ar, عمر عبد الحميد كرامي; 7 September 1934 – 1 January 2015) was the 29th prime minister of Lebanon, who served two separate terms. He was Prime Minis ...

were also important Lebanese politicians who served as prime ministers and leading politicians of Lebanon. Karami died on 3 November 1950.

Controversy

In June 1935, Karami killed Abdul Majid Muqaddam, another prominent Tripoli native, since Muqaddam had beaten him with a stick and knocked off his turban. However, Karami was acquitted due to his claim of self-defense. Karami's lawyer was future president Bishara Khoury.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Karami, Abdul Hamid 1890 births 1950 deaths Prime Ministers of Lebanon Defense ministers of Lebanon Lebanese Sunni Muslims Members of the Parliament of Lebanon Government ministers of Lebanon People from Tripoli, Lebanon Finance ministers of Lebanon