Ahmad Jarba ( ar, أحمد عوينان العاصي الجربا), born in the city of Qamishli in 1969, is a

Syrian opposition The Syrian opposition ( ar, المعارضة السورية ', ) is the political structure represented by the Syrian National Coalition and associated Syrian anti-Assad groups with certain territorial control as an alternative Syrian gover ...

member and former political prisoner. He is a public opponent of

Bashar al-Assad Bashar Hafez al-Assad, ', Levantine pronunciation: ; (, born 11 September 1965) is a Syrian politician who is the 19th president of Syria, since 17 July 2000. In addition, he is the commander-in-chief of the Syrian Armed Forces and the ...

and between 6 July 2013 and 11 July 2014 he was President of the

Syrian National Coalition The National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces ( ar, الائتلاف الوطني لقوى الثورة والمعارضة السورية), commonly named the Syrian National Coalition (SNC) ( ar, الائتلاف الو ...

, which is the main coalition of opposition groups in the Syrian Civil War, as well as being a member of the

Syrian National Council The Syrian National Council (SNC; ar, المجلس الوطني السوري, ''al- Majlis al-Waṭanī as-Sūri'', french: Conseil national syrien), sometimes known as the Syrian National Transitional Council or the National Council of Syri ...

. His election took place in the second round of voting of a three days meeting organized by the Coalition in order to renew its board. He obtained 55 votes, three more than his rival Mustafa Sabbagh, who was supported by

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...

. According to a July 2013 article in

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Econo ...

, "there is little reason to believe he will wield more influence than his predecessor,

Moaz al-Khatib Ahmad Moaz Al-Khatib Al-Hasani ( ar, أحمد معاذ الخطيب الحسني, born 1960) is a former president of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces. He is also a former imam of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascu ...

." Jarba was re-elected on 5 January 2014, with 65 votes, defeating his only opponent Riyad Farid Hijab by 13 votes. Jarba is the president of the

Syria's Tomorrow Movement The Syria's Tomorrow Movement ( ar, تيار الغد السوري) is a Syrian opposition party founded in March 2016 in Cairo by Ahmad Jarba, a Syrian National Council member. The party is backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates and coope ...

, a member of the

Shammar The tribe of Shammar ( ar, شَمَّر, Šammar) is a tribal Arab Qahtan confederation, descended from the Yemeni tribe of Tayy as they originated in Yemen before migrating into present day Saudi Arabia, It is the biggest branch of Tayy tribe. I ...

tribe. On 13 September Ahmad Jarba met with the leader of the Movement for a Democratic Society, representing the de facto autonomous administration of the Federation of Northern Syria - Rojava, in order to form an agreement to participate in the governing of northeastern Syria. They issued a joint statement that "the monist powers insisting on one party, one flag and one nation are doomed to fail, and peoples are trying to realize their dreams for a democratic, pluralist and united Syria." By extension his forces the

al-Nukhbat Brigade The Syria's Tomorrow Movement ( ar, تيار الغد السوري) is a Syrian opposition party founded in March 2016 in Cairo by Ahmad Jarba, a Syrian National Council member. The party is backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates and coopera ...

also joined the

Syrian Democratic Forces , war = the Syrian Civil War , image = Flag of Syrian Democratic Forces.svgborder , caption = Flag , active = 10 October 2015 – present , ideology = DemocracyDecentralizationSecularism ...

References

1969 births American University of Beirut alumni Living people People from Qamishli Syrian National Council members Syrian Sunni Muslims National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces members {{Syria opposition-stub