Hassan Diab

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Diab (right) with the Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias

Hassan B. Diab ( Arabic حسان دياب, DMG Ḥassān Diyāb , born January 6, 1959 ) is a Lebanese university professor, engineer and politician. He was appointed Prime Minister by the Lebanese President on December 19, 2019 and tasked with forming a new cabinet based on formal consultations with members of the Lebanese Parliament. After the resignation of his government on August 10, 2020, he is in office.

Life

Diab was born into a Sunni family in Beirut in 1959 . He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in communications engineering from Leeds Metropolitan University in 1981 , a master's degree in systems engineering from the University of Surrey in 1982 and a doctorate in computer engineering from Bath University in 1985 . Diab was a professor of electrical engineering at the American University of Beirut (AUB). In 2004, Diab went to Oman, where he was tasked with founding Dhofar University and its three colleges: Business Administration, Applied Science and Engineering. He was the founding dean of the Faculty of Engineering and a member of the Board of Trustees. From October 2006 to June 2011 he was also Vice President for regional external programs at the AUB. In his 35 year academic career, he has published over 80 academic studies in peer-reviewed journals. His main research interests were the cryptography of high-performance computer systems, reconfigurable computers, embedded systems and higher education in the Middle East.

On June 13, 2011, under Prime Minister Saad Hariri, he was appointed Minister of Education and Higher Education in the cabinet of Najib Mikati , replacing Hasan Mneimneh. The term in office was not without controversy, however, as he was accused of publishing a book at the government's expense describing his achievements as a minister and naming a school after his mother, who died three weeks before his appointment. Diab's term ended on February 15, 2014. He decided not to run again; his successor was Elias Abu Saab. He then continued his academic career; Diab was Vice President of the American University in Beirut in 2019.

Reign

On December 19, 2019 , after consultations with the Lebanese MPs , the President of Lebanon, Michel Aoun , instructed former Education Minister Hassan Diab to form a new government. 69 of the 128 elected representatives voted for Diab as future Prime Minister in Beirut. Approval came from the Shiite movements Hezbollah and Amal, as well as MPs affiliated with Aoun.

But since Diab does not belong to any of the major political dynasties and the Sunni bloc around his predecessor Saad Hariri refuses to support him, "he will take up his new office without house power - at a time that overwhelms even political veterans in chronically unstable Lebanon," wrote Moritz Baumstieger in the Süddeutsche Zeitung . The specialist in electrical engineering is considered a technocrat who does not belong to any of the political camps. "All of our efforts must focus on stopping the collapse and restoring confidence," he said on his first public appearance and promised to appoint more independent professionals and women to the future cabinet. Nevertheless, Diab is viewed critically by the demonstrators in Lebanon ; for them the new head of government is "not a new beginning, just the next face of the old system."

More than a month after his appointment and almost three months after the resignation of his predecessor, Diab announced the new cabinet of 20 ministers on January 21, 2020 . "This is a government that represents the aspirations of the protesters who have been mobilizing across the country for more than three months," he said. His government will endeavor to comply with their demands for an independent judiciary, for the recovery of misappropriated funds and for the fight against illegal profits. Diab added that the government will fight unemployment and pass a new electoral law calling every minister in his cabinet a "technocratic" minister. He was quickly caught up in a nationwide health crisis from the novel coronavirus, a crisis that deepened the country's economic recession.

Prime Minister Hassan Diab announced on August 10, 2020 to President Michel Aoun that he intended to resign shortly. This move came after several MPs and ministers resigned in the last few days following the disaster in the port of Beirut . Diab justified his resignation in a televised address to the nation; he said that "this crime" was the result of endemic corruption and called for those responsible for the deadly explosion to be brought to justice.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Naharnet Newsdesk: Hassan Diab Garners 69 votes in Binding Parliamentary Consultations. Naharnet, December 10, 2019, accessed December 10, 2019 .
  2. ↑ Naharnet Newsdesk: Analysts: Diab designation Risks to Deepen Sectarian Rift, Block Aid. Naharnet, December 19, 2019, accessed December 19, 2019 .
  3. ^ A b Newsmaker: Hassan Diab - enter the academic. Gulf News, December 20, 2019, accessed December 20, 2019 .
  4. ↑ Ex-Education Minister Diab is supposed to lead Lebanon out of the crisis. Deutsche Welle, December 19, 2019, accessed on December 19, 2019 .
  5. ↑ Moritz Baumstieger: 136 pages curriculum vitae - Lebanon's designated Prime Minister Hassan Diab is not lacking the urge to be recognized, but possibly the power to lead the unstable country into quieter times. Süddeutsche Zeitung, December 20, 2019, accessed on December 24, 2019 .
  6. ↑ A technocrat at the head of Lebanon. Frankfurter Rundschau, December 20, 2019, accessed on December 24, 2019 .
  7. ↑ Naharnet Newsdesk: Diab: Govt. Will Seek to Meet Protesters Demands, Recover Stolen Funds. Naharnet, January 21, 2020, accessed on January 22, 2020 .
  8. ↑ Naharnet Newsdesk: Riots in Crisis Hit Lebanon Reflect Growing Poverty, Despair. Naharnet, April 30, 2020, accessed April 30, 2020 .
  9. ↑ Lebanon's PM Diab tells President Aoun of plan to resign after Beirut blast: Reports. Al Arabiya, August 10, 2020, accessed August 10, 2020 .
  10. ↑ Ted Regencia, Linah Alsaafin & Ramy Allahoum: Endemic corruption caused Beirut blast, says Diab: Live updates. Al Jazeera, August 10, 2020, accessed on August 11, 2020 .
predecessor Office successor
Hasan Mneimneh Education Minister of Lebanon
June 13, 2011 to February 15, 2014 		Elias Bou Saab
Saad Hariri Prime Minister of Lebanon
December 19, 2019 to August 31, 2020 		Mustapha Adib
personal data
SURNAME Diab, Hassan
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Diab, Hassan B.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Lebanese university professor and politician
DATE OF BIRTH January 6, 1959