![Azzam al-Ahmad](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Azzam_al-Ahmad.jpg)
Azzam al-Ahmad ( ar, عزام الأحمد) (born 1947 in
Rummanah,
Jenin
Jenin (; ar, ') is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank. It serves as the administrative center of the Jenin Governorate of the State of Palestine and is a major center for the surrounding towns. In 2007, Jenin had a population of app ...
) (previously Minister of Public Works and Housing portfolio added on 9 June 2002) received a BA in Economics from
Baghdad University
The University of Baghdad (UOB) ( ar, جامعة بغداد ''Jāmi'at Baghdād'') is the largest university in Iraq, tenth largest in the Arab world, and the largest university in the Arab world outside Egypt.
Nomenclature
Both University ...
. He was the head of the
General Union of Palestinian Students
The General Union of Palestine Students ( ar, الإتحاد العام لطلبة فلسطين) (GUPS) is an organization run by Palestinian students since the early 1920s. It is generally considered one of the first Palestinian institutions start ...
(GUPS) in
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
from 1971-1974, deputy head of GUPS Executive Committee from 1974–1980,
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establ ...
ambassador to Iraq from 1979-1994. He was also a
Fatah
Fatah ( ar, فتح '), formerly the Palestinian National Liberation Movement, is a Palestinian nationalist social democratic political party and the largest faction of the confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and ...
-RC member from 1989 and is a member of the
Palestinian Legislative Council
The Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) is the unicameral legislature of the Palestinian Authority, elected by the Palestinian residents of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. It currently comprises 132 members, e ...
representing the
Jenin Governorate
The Jenin Governorate ( ar, محافظة جنين, Muḥāfaẓat Ǧanīn) is one of 16 Governorates of Palestine. It covers the northern extremity of the West Bank, including the area around the city of Jenin.
During the first six months of th ...
as a Fatah candidate.
Palestinian Government of November 2003
Early life and family
Al-Ahmad was born in the village of Rummanah, located in north of Jenin
Jenin (; ar, ') is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank. It serves as the administrative center of the Jenin Governorate of the State of Palestine and is a major center for the surrounding towns. In 2007, Jenin had a population of app ...
. In 1968, His father, Najeeb al-Ahmad, was deported across the Jordan River
The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...
by the Israeli Army
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branc ...
after its occupation of the West Bank
The West Bank ( ar, الضفة الغربية, translit=aḍ-Ḍiffah al-Ġarbiyyah; he, הגדה המערבית, translit=HaGadah HaMaʽaravit, also referred to by some Israelis as ) is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
. while in exile in Amman after 1967, Najeeb and his family of nine children found fertile grounds for their cause and political activities. Soon after deportation, Najeeb became a prominent member of the Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
ian parliament. Azzam al-Ahmad graduated from high school and joined the Syrian universities but later moved to Baghdad with the coming of the Ba'ath
Ba'athism, also stylized as Baathism, (; ar, البعثية ' , from ' , meaning "renaissance" or "resurrection"Hans Wehr''Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic'' (4th ed.), page 80) is an Arab nationalist ideology which promotes the creation ...
party to power in Iraq in 1969 as a staunch supporter of the Palestinian cause.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmad, Azzam al-
Fatah members
1947 births
Living people
University of Baghdad alumni
Government ministers of the Palestinian National Authority
Members of the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council
Members of the 1996 Palestinian Legislative Council
Members of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization
Central Committee of Fatah members