Akram Hasson ( ar, أكرم حسون, he, אכרם חסון, born 2 July 1959) is an Israeli

Druze The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings of ...

politician who served as a member of the

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

in several spells from 2012 to 2019, first as MK for

Kadima Kadima ( he, קדימה, lit=''Forward'') was a centrist and liberal political party in Israel. It was established on 24 November 2005 by moderates from Likud largely following the implementation of Ariel Sharon's unilateral disengagement plan ...

between 2012 and 2013, and then as an MK for

Kulanu Kulanu ( he, כולנו, lit. ''All of Us'') was a centrist political party in Israel founded by Moshe Kahlon that focused on economic and cost-of-living issues. History The party was established on 27 November 2014 following months of specu ...

from 2016 to 2019. In 2015, Hasson became Kadima's last leader, marking the first time a

had led a Jewish party.

Biography

After doing his

national service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The l ...

in the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

between 1978 and 1981, Hasson worked as Director of Youth and Sports at a local council. The following year he briefly worked as a teacher in a high school in

Daliyat al-Karmel Daliyat el-Karmel ( ar, دَالِيَةِ ٱلْكَرْمِل, he, דַלְיַת אֶל-כַּרְמֶל, "vineyards ( دالية) of Carmel") is a Druze town located on Mount Carmel in the Haifa District of Israel, around 20 km southeast ...

and the prison system, before starting work at a law firm in

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

. He left the firm in 1986 and became director of the Daliyat al-Karmel community centre. In 1989 he became Deputy Mayor of the city, a position he held until 1998. In 1996 he graduated with a BA in education, gaining a master's degree in business and education administration the following year. In 1997 he became a headteacher, before working as the Director of the Israeli branch of the

University of Lincoln , mottoeng = Freedom through wisdom , established = 1861 – Hull School of Art1905 – Endsleigh College1976 – Hull College1992 – University of Humberside1996 – University of Lincolnshire and Humberside2001 � ...

from 1998 until 2001. In 2002 he was awarded a PhD. Between 2003 and 2008 he served as mayor of

Carmel City Carmel City ( he, עִיר הַכַּרְמֶל, ''Ir HaKarmel''; ar, مدينة الكرمل ''Madīnat al-Karmel'') was a short-lived city in the Haifa District of Israel, named after its location on Mount Carmel. History In 2003 Interior Min ...

and a member of the Planning and Building Committee in Haifa. Since 2005 he been a member of the Committee for Changing the System of Government in Israel. He was placed 35th on the Kadima list for the

2009 Knesset elections 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Arabic digit In the beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshatrapa, Andhra and ...

. Although the party won only 28 seats, Hasson entered the Knesset in May 2012 as a replacement for

Gideon Ezra Gideon Ezra ( he, גדעון עזרא, 30 June 1937 – 17 May 2012) was an Israeli politician. He served as a member of the Knesset for Likud and Kadima between 1996 and 2012, and also held several ministerial portfolios. Biography Ezra's famil ...

, who had died of lung cancer. In December 2012 he became the first non-Jewish recipient of the Golden Inkwell Word prize, awarded by the

Hebrew Writers Association in Israel The Hebrew Writers Association in Israel ( he, אגודת הסופרים העברים במדינת ישראל, previously אגודת הסופרים העבריים בארץ ישראל or אגודת הסופרים העבריים) is a professional as ...

.Druse MK wins prize for helping preserve Hebrew
The Jerusalem Post, 28 December 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2015. Hasson was awarded the prize after promoting legislation to preserve the

Hebrew language Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

by ensuring that all signage is primarily in Hebrew and that any speeches made abroad by government officials must be in Hebrew. Placed eighth on the Kadima list for the 2013 elections, he lost his seat when the party was reduced to two MKs. After party leader

Shaul Mofaz Shaul Mofaz ( he, שאול מופז; 4 November 1948) is a retired Israeli military officer and politician. He joined the Israel Defense Forces in 1966 and served in the Paratroopers Brigade. He fought in the Six-Day War, Yom Kippur War, 1982 L ...

retired from politics on 27 January 2015; Hasson was elected on the same day to replace him, becoming the first Druze leader of a Jewish party. However, two days later he joined the new

list for the

2015 elections The following elections were scheduled to occur in the year 2015. Africa * 2015 Beninese parliamentary election 26 April 2015 * 2015 Burkinabé general election 29 November 2015 * 2015 Burundian legislative election 29 June 2015 * 2015 Burun ...

, being placed twelfth on the

party list An electoral list is a grouping of candidates for election, usually found in proportional or mixed electoral systems, but also in some plurality electoral systems. An electoral list can be registered by a political party (a party list) or can ...

. Although the party won only ten seats in the elections, Hasson returned to the Knesset in January 2016 as a replacement for party leader

Moshe Kahlon Moshe Kahlon ( he, מֹשֶׁה כַּחְלוֹן, born 19 November 1960) is a retired Israeli politician. Between 2003 and 2013 he served as a member of the Knesset for Likud, and as Minister of Communications and Minister of Welfare & Social ...

, who had resigned under the Norwegian Law. Hasson was placed seventh on the Kulanu list in the April 2019 election, losing his seat as the party was reduced to 4 seats. Hasson resides in Daliyat al-Karmel and has five children.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hasson, Akram 1959 births Living people 20th-century Israeli civil servants 20th-century Israeli educators 21st-century Israeli civil servants 21st-century Israeli educators Deputy mayors of places in Israel Druze members of the Knesset Israeli Druze Kadima leaders Kulanu politicians Mayors of places in Israel Members of the 18th Knesset (2009–2013) Members of the 20th Knesset (2015–2019) People from Daliyat al-Karmel