Foulath Mohammed Hadid (7 March 1937–29 September 2012) was an Iraqi writer, and expert on Arab affairs.
- ''

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'' 11 October 2012

Biography

Born in

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

in 1937, the son of the Marxist Iraqi economist, cabinet minister and democracy advocate

Mohammed Hadid Mohammed Hadid (January 1, 1907 – August 3, 1999) was an Iraqi economist, democracy advocate, Minister of Finance of Iraq between 1958 and 1963 and the father of internationally recognized architect Dame Zaha Hadid. Early years and famil ...

and the brother of Haytham Hadid and the noted architect

Zaha Hadid Dame Zaha Mohammad Hadid ( ar, زها حديد ''Zahā Ḥadīd''; 31 October 1950 – 31 March 2016) was an Iraqi-British architect, artist and designer, recognised as a major figure in architecture of the late 20th and early 21st centu ...

, his mother Wajiha al-Sabunji was an artist from Mosul. His father being a founding member of the Iraqi National Democratic Party, Foulath Hadid was strongly influenced by his father's political views as he grew up in a household where other leading members of the Party were regular visitors. He attended Victoria College in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

from 1947 to 1956 before studying law at Christ's College, Cambridge. He went on to study Business at

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 ...

and became a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. He opened an office for the accountancy firm Arthur Young 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 ...

and became a Partner in Peat, Marwick and Mitchell. He met his wife Lalla Kenza Alaoui while both were working in Washington, DC. Their daughter

Tala Hadid Tala Hadid (born in London) is a film director and producer. She is also a photographer. Her work has been shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, The Walker Arts Center in Minneapolis, The Smithsonian National Museum, The National ...

is a painter and award-winning film-maker. The family divided their time between Europe, North America and the Middle East. A keen sportsman, Hadid played golf and was a regular visitor in the Royal Box at

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

. On his retirement Hadid was introduced to St Antony's College by his friend

Patrick Seale Patrick Abram Seale (7 May 1930 – 11 April 2014) was a British journalist and author who specialised in the Middle East. A former correspondent for ''The Observer'', he interviewed many Middle Eastern leaders and personalities. Seale was a ...

and was elected to a Senior Associate Membership to enable him to edit and publish ''Mudhakkarati'' in 2006, the memoirs of his father

. The book was hailed as one of the most important Arab political memoirs of recent years. Years before the

Arab Spring The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of Nonviolent resistance, anti-government protests, Rebellion, uprisings and Insurgency, armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in T ...

it was Hadid's belief that one day the Arab people would rise up and demand political freedom. "He condemned European imperialism, American hegemony, and autocratic Arab governments equally in denying the Arab people their legitimate aspirations." Having been accepted to read for a

Doctor of Philosophy 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 ...

degree at Oxford he began working on his thesis, a history of Iraq's democracy movement in the 1940s and 1950s. However, instead he finished the work as his next book, ''Iraq's Democratic Moment'', published posthumously in 2012. He received an advance copy at his hospital bed. Zaha Hadid Grave Brookwood Cemetery

During the 12 years Hadid was involved at St Antony's, he raised funds to establish an annual award to support doctoral students in Middle Eastern studies, the Hadid Scholarship. At his suggestion, his sister

designed a major new building for the Middle East Centre. In addition, he aided

Warden A warden is a custodian, defender, or guardian. Warden is often used in the sense of a watchman or guardian, as in a prison warden. It can also refer to a chief or head official, as in the Warden of the Mint. ''Warden'' is etymologically identic ...

Margaret MacMillan in securing the funding which allowed the College to begin a transforming building complex, which was completed in 2013. For his services to the College Hadid was elected to an Honorary Fellowship in 2004, and the Hadid Room, the College's meeting room, was named in his honour. Foulath Hadid died in September 2012 after a short illness and was survived by his wife, his daughter Tala, his son Nik Williams, his elder brother Haytham Hadid and his sister

, the latter having subsequently died in 2016. He is buried with his father and sister in Brookwood Cemetery.Obituary for Foulath Hadid
- ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' 2 October 2012

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hadid, Foulath 1937 births 2012 deaths People from Baghdad Victoria College, Alexandria alumni Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge Harvard Business School alumni Fellows of St Antony's College, Oxford Burials at Brookwood Cemetery Iraqi emigrants to the United Kingdom