Salim Yasin ( ar, سليم سعيد ياسين; 10 October 1937 – 6 March 2016) was a

Syrian Syrians ( ar, سُورِيُّون, ''Sūriyyīn'') are an Eastern Mediterranean ethnic group indigenous to the Levant. They share common Levantine Semitic roots. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend of both indi ...

economist, academic and former deputy prime minister for economic affairs.

Early life and education

Yasin was born in

Latakia , coordinates = , elevation_footnotes = , elevation_m = 11 , elevation_ft = , postal_code_type = , postal_code = , area_code = Country code: 963 City code: 41 , geocode ...

on 10 October 1937. He received a bachelor's degree from

Damascus University The University of Damascus ( ar, جَامِعَةُ دِمَشْقَ, ''Jāmi‘atu Dimashq'') is the largest and oldest university in Syria, located in the capital Damascus and has campuses in other Syrian cities. It was founded in 1923 through ...

in 1960. He obtained a master's degree in economics from the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

in 1963, and a PhD in 1965.

Career

After his graduation, Yasin began to work as director of the Latakia petroleum installation in 1960 and served there for one year. From 1961 to 1965 he worked as a civil servant. Then he served as assistant professor of economics at the

University of Aleppo University of Aleppo ( ar, جَامِعَة حَلَب, Jāmiʿat Ḥalab, also called Aleppo University) is a public university located in Aleppo, Syria. It is the second largest university in Syria after the University of Damascus. During 2005 ...

from 1966 to 1970. He was appointed vice dean of the faculty of commerce of the same university and his tenure lasted from 1967 to 1969. He served as acting president of the

from 1969 to 1970. Then he became associate professor of economics and president of

Tishreen University Tishreen University ( ar, جامعة تشرين, lit=October University), is a public university located in Latakia, Syria. It is the third-largest university in Syria. History The university was founded under the name of the ''University o ...

which he held from 1971 to 1978. He was the transport minister in the period 1978–1980 and then minister of planning between 1980 and 1981. Next he was named as the minister of economy and foreign trade in 1981 and was in office until 1985. Yasin was appointed deputy prime minister in 1985. Since Prime Minister Abdel Rauf Al Kassem resigned, a new government was formed led by

Mahmoud Zuabi Mahmoud Al-Zoubi ( ar, محمود الزعبي, Maḥmūd az-Zuʿbī; 1935 – 21 May 2000) was Prime Minister of Syria from 1 November 1987 to 7 March 2000. Early life Al-Zoubi was born into a Sunni family in 1935 in Khirbet Ghazaleh, a villag ...

on 2 November 1987. Yasin retained his post together with other two deputy prime ministers, namely

Mustafa Tlass Mustafa Abdul Qadir Tlass ( ar, مُصْطَفَى عَبْد الْقَادِر طَلَاس, Musṭafā ʿAbd al-Qādir Ṭalās; 11 May 1932 – 27 June 2017) was a Syrian senior military officer and politician who was Syria's minister of defe ...

and Mahmoud Qaddour. Yasin was in office until March 2000 and replaced by

Khalid Raad Khalid Raad ( ar, خالد رعد) is a Syrian liberal economist, technocrat and former deputy prime minister, who was in charge of economic affairs. Career Raad taught courses at Damascus University. He also headed Syria's Free Zones Authority. ...

in the post. Then Yasin returned to teaching post at

. Following the death of Hafez Assad he was made a member of the Baath Party's regional command in June 2000.

Controversy

In June 2000, Yasin was arrested and imprisoned on charges of

embezzlement Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

for which former Prime Minister Mahmoud Zuabi was also accused. His family assets were also frozen by the government. Then he was freed in November 2000. However, on 8 December 2001, he and former transport minister Mufid Abdul Karim were sentenced to ten years in prison and fined for $240 million.

Death

On 6 March 2016, Yasin died in his hometown, Latakia.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yasin, Salim 20th-century Syrian economists 21st-century Syrian economists 1937 births 2016 deaths People from Latakia Damascus University alumni University of Colorado alumni Presidents of universities in Syria Damascus University faculty University of Aleppo faculty Tishreen University faculty Transport ministers of Syria Deputy Prime Ministers of Syria Syrian ministers of state planning Syrian ministers of economy Members of the Regional Command of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Syria Region