Bisher Al-Khasawneh ( ar, بشر الخصاونة; born 27 January 1969) is a Jordanian politician and diplomat who is serving as the 43rd Prime Minister of Jordan and

Minister of Defence 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 ...

since 12 October 2020. Al-Khasawneh was an ambassador of Jordan to

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

African Union The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling for the establishment of the Africa ...

League of Arab States League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * '' The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact foo ...

, and to

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

. He also served as Coordinator General and Director of the Peace Process and Negotiations Bureau in Jordan. He served as Minister of State for Foreign Affairs between 2016 and 2017. He subsequently was Minister of State for Legal Affairs between 2017 and 2018. He served as the adviser to

King Abdullah II Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein ( ar, عبدالله الثاني بن الحسين , translit=ʿAbd Allāh aṯ-ṯānī ibn al-Ḥusayn; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of t ...

for Communication and Coordination at

The Royal Hashemite Court The Royal Hashemite Court (RHC) ( ar, الديوان الملكي الهاشمي, ''Al-Diwan Al-Malaki'' ''Al-Hāshimy''), which is historically known as Al-Maqar ( ar, المقر, ), is the administrative and political link between the King of Jor ...

between April 2019 and August 2020. Until his appointment as Prime Ministerm Al-Khasawneh served as the adviser to the King for policies.

Life and career

Al-Khasawneh's father Hani was a leader of the

Ba'ath Party The Arab Socialist Baʿath Party ( ar, حزب البعث العربي الاشتراكي ' ) was a political party founded in Syria by Mishel ʿAflaq, Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Bītār, and associates of Zaki al-ʾArsūzī. The party espoused B ...

. He studied at the

School of Oriental and African Studies SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury ar ...

and then obtained a doctorate in law from the

London School of Economics and Political Science , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

. His doctoral thesis, dated 2007, was titled "An appraisal of the right of return and compensation of Jordanian nationals of Palestinian refugee origin and Jordan's right, under international law, to bring claims relating thereto, on their behalf to and against Israel and to seek compensation as a host state in light of the conclusion of the Jordan-Israel peace treaty of 1994"''.'' From June 2012 until September 2016, Khasawneh served as Jordanian ambassador to Egypt. On 28 September 2016 he was named Minister of State for Foreign Affairs in

Hani Mulki's cabinet The Prime Minister of Jordan, Hani Al-Mulki, was tasked with forming a cabinet on 29 May 2016. The new cabinet was sworn in by King Abdullah II on 1 June 2016. After the September 2016 general election, Mulki formed a new cabinet. The Cabinet co ...

. On 15 January 2017 he was named Minister of State for Legal Affairs in a cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister

Hani Mulki Hani Fawzi Mulki (also known as Hani Mulki; ar, هاني الملقي; '; born 15 October 1951) is a Jordanian politician that held several ministerial and diplomatic positions, and he was Chief Commissioner of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Au ...

. Al-Khasawneh was sworn in as Jordan's Ambassador to France on 31 August 2018. On 23 April 2019 he was named adviser for Communication and Coordination to King

Abdullah II Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein ( ar, عبدالله الثاني بن الحسين , translit=ʿAbd Allāh aṯ-ṯānī ibn al-Ḥusayn; born 30 January 1962) is King of Jordan, having ascended the throne on 7 February 1999. He is a member of t ...

. On 18 August 2020 he was named as adviser to the king for policies. Upon his appointment as Prime Minister on 8 October 2020 King

instructed him to improve the capabilities of the state in the

COVID-19 pandemic in Jordan The COVID-19 pandemic in Jordan is part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). On 2 March 2020, the Ministry of Health confirmed the first case in Jordan. As so ...

. He was also tasked with overseeing the November 2020 parliamentary elections. His cabinet, in which he also serves as

, was sworn in on 12 October 2020. Al-Khasawneh stated he wanted to overhaul the Jordan economy, while focusing on developing a public safety net and planning a realistic government budget. Al-Khasawneh declared in a speech to the Jordan parliament in January 2021 that Jordan would receive 1 million doses of

COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Prior to the COVID19 pandemic, an e ...

from

BioNTech BioNTech SE ( ; or short for Biopharmaceutical New Technologies) is a German biotechnology company based in Mainz that develops and manufactures active immunotherapies for patient-specific approaches to the treatment of diseases. It develops ...

Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfizer ...

and 2 million doses from the

COVAX COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access, abbreviated as COVAX, is a worldwide initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines directed by the GAVI vaccine alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and the World Hea ...

initiative led by the

Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization GAVI, officially Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance (previously the GAVI Alliance, and before that the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization) is a public–private global health partnership with the goal of increasing access to immunization ...

(GAVI), the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

(WHO), and the

Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) is a foundation that takes donations from public, private, philanthropic, and civil society organisations, to finance independent research projects to develop vaccines against emerging ...

(CEPI).

Education

* Bachelor degree in Law from

University of Jordan The University of Jordan ( ar, الجامعة الأردنية), often abbreviated UJ, is a public university located in Amman, Jordan. Founded in 1962 by royal decree, it is the largest and oldest institution of higher education in Jordan. ...

. * Executive Diploma in counter-radicalization and

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, business, and intelligence agencies use to combat or el ...

from

National Defense University The National Defense University (NDU) is an institution of higher education funded by the United States Department of Defense, intended to facilitate high-level education, training, and professional development of national security leaders. As ...

. * Executive Diploma in Public Policies from

John F. Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. * Master degree in International Affaires, Diplomacy and Economics from

SOAS, University of London SOAS University of London (; the School of Oriental and African Studies) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury are ...

. *

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

in International Law and

Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

in Law from the

Positions

* President of the Legal Committee Council of Ministers of Jordan. * Member of Economic Development and Services and Social Affairs Committees Council of Ministers of Jordan. * Part time Lecturer at the Faculty of Law at the

and Jordanian Institute of Diplomacy. *

Director General A director general or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'' ) or general director is a senior executive (government), executive officer, often the chief executive offi ...

of Jordan Information Centre. * Advisor at the

Prime Ministry of Jordan A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...

at the Bureau of Legislation at the Prime Ministry.

Awards

Order of the Star of Jordan The Order of the Star of Jordan (Wisam al-Kawkab al-Urduni) or The Order of Hussein ibn Ali (Wisam al-Hussein ibn Ali) is an award and military decoration of the sovereign state of Jordan and is awarded for military or civil merit. It was founde ...

(Third Class). *

Order of Independence Order of Independence or Independence Order ( vi, Huân chương Độc lập) is a Vietnamese decoration. Criteria The Vietnamese government states that the decoration "shall be conferred or posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthum ...

(First and Second Class).

References

External links