Issam Abu Jamra ( ar, عصام أبو جمرا; born 6 February 1937) is a retired Lebanese major general and a politician, who served as

deputy prime minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president ...

in the cabinets of Michel Aoun and Fouad Siniora. Until 2010 he was part of the

Free Patriotic Movement The Free Patriotic Movement ( ar, التيار الوطني الحر, ) is a Lebanese political party. Founded by Michel Aoun in 2005, the party is currently led by Aoun son-in-law Gebran Bassil since 2015. Ideology The Free Patriotic movemen ...

(FPM).

Early life and education

Jamra was born in Kfeir,

Hasbeya Hasbeya or Hasbeiya ( ar, حاصبيا) is a town in Lebanon, situated at the foot of Mount Hermon, overlooking a deep amphitheatre from which a brook flows to the Hasbani. In 1911, the population was about 5000. Hasbaya is the capital of the Wad ...

south Lebanon Southern Lebanon () is the area of Lebanon comprising the South Governorate and the Nabatiye Governorate. The two entities were divided from the same province in the early 1990s. The Rashaya and Western Beqaa Districts, the southernmost distric ...

, into a

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church ( Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also cal ...

family on 6 February 1937. He attended Lebanese army's military academy and graduated as an artillery officer in 1959. In addition, he obtained a bachelor's degree in law from Lebanese University in 1984.

Career

Abu Jamra began his career in Lebanese army in 1956. After serving in different positions in the army and defense ministry, he was appointed deputy prime minister to the interim military government under Michel Aoun on 22 September 1988 and was in office until 13 October 1990. He also served as minister of telecommunications and minister of economy from 22 April 1988 to 25 November 1989. He replaced

Georges Saadeh Georges Saadeh ( ar, جورج سعاده) (November 21, 1930 – November 17, 1998) was a Lebanese politician. He was appointed as a minister in several governments and was the head of the Kataeb Party for twelve years. Early life and education ...

as telecommunications minister. Jamra was succeeded by Joseph El Hachem in the post. Jamra became major general in 1990. He was appointed deputy prime minister to the cabinet headed by

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 i ...

Fouad Siniora on 11 July 2008. He was part of the oppositional share in the cabinet. He was FPM's candidate for Greek Orthodox seat in

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

's first district in the parliament elections held in June 2009. However, he lost his seat to Nayla Tueni.

FPM and exile

Jamra is one of the founders of the FPM and was a parliament member from the party. In 1990, he was exiled to France with Aoun after the latter headed the interim government. They left Lebanon on 30 August 1990, and went first to

Larnaca Larnaca ( el, Λάρνακα ; tr, Larnaka) is a city on the south east coast of Cyprus and the capital of the district of the same name. It is the third-largest city in the country, after Nicosia and Limassol, with a metro population of 1 ...

and then to France. France granted them and their families asylum. They both returned to Lebanon on 7 May 2005 after fifteen years in exile. Although Jamra was a close aide of Aoun, he left the party in 2010.

Personal life

Jamra's spouse died in France while they were in exile there in the 1990s. He has four sons. One of them, Fadi Jamra, is a politician.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jamra, Issam Abu 20th-century Lebanese politicians 1937 births Free Patriotic Movement politicians Deputy prime ministers of Lebanon Greek Orthodox Christians from Lebanon Lebanese University alumni Lebanese exiles Lebanese military personnel Living people People from South Lebanon Members of the Parliament of Lebanon