Ghassan Hitto ( ar, غسان هيتو; born 1963) is a Syrian politician and the first head of an interim government established by the

Syrian opposition The Syrian opposition ( ar, المعارضة السورية ', ) is the political structure represented by the Syrian National Coalition and associated Syrian anti-Assad groups with certain territorial control as an alternative Syrian gover ...

National Coalition The National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces ( ar, الائتلاف الوطني لقوى الثورة والمعارضة السورية), commonly named the Syrian National Coalition (SNC) ( ar, الائتلاف الو ...

. Born in

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

into a Kurdish family, he left

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

to the U.S. in 1980, became a naturalized

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

citizen and worked as an information technology executive and lived in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

until recently. In late 2012, he relocated to

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

. He was elected prime minister on 18 March 2013 by a narrow margin over former

Syrian Arab Republic Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

agricultural minister Assad Mustafa. Hitto resigned on 8 July 2013.

Education

Hitto graduated from Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis in 1989 with degrees in

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

and

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, automation, and information. Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, information theory, and automation) to Applied science, practical discipli ...

. He also received an M.B.A. at

Indiana Wesleyan University Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) is a private evangelical Christian university headquartered in Marion, Indiana, and affiliated with the Wesleyan Church. It is the largest private university in Indiana. The university system includes IWU—Mari ...

in 1994.

Career

Hitto is a former businessman who has lived in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

for decades, most recently in

Murphy, Texas Murphy is a city in suburban Collin County, Texas, United States. The 2020 census reported the population as 21,013, compared to 3,099 in 2000. Murphy is located northeast of Dallas and has a history that goes back to the late 1800s. History Att ...

. Before joining the opposition, he worked with Inovar, a Telecommunication firm, from 2001 to 2012. Hitto is married to Suzanne Hitto, an American schoolteacher; they have four children, Amer, Imran, Obaida, Lama all born in the United States. He has worked in the

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, scien ...

sector and supported the private school Brighter Horizons Academy founded in 1989 by the Islamic Services Foundation (ISF). He is also a founding member of the Muslim Legal Fund of America created after the

11 September 2001 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...

to give legal aid to Muslims. Hitto received 35 of 48 votes cast for the premiership, according to the BBC. Following his election, at least 12 key members of the SNC have suspended their membership partly as a result of Hitto's election on a majority vote instead of a consensus vote.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hitto, Ghassan 1963 births Businesspeople from Texas Anti-government politicians of the Syrian civil war Living people Politicians from Damascus National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces members Purdue University alumni Syrian emigrants to the United States Syrian Kurdish people Syrian Sunni Muslims People from Collin County, Texas