Jean Obeid
Lebanese politician (1939–2021)
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Jean Obeid (Arabic: جان عبيد; 8 May 1939 – 8 February 2021) was a Lebanese lawyer, journalist and politician, who served in different cabinet posts, the last of which was foreign minister of Lebanon from 2003 to 2004.
Jean Obeid | |
|---|---|
Obeid in 1988 | |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants | |
| In office 17 April 2003 – 26 October 2004 | |
| Prime Minister | Rafik Hariri |
| Preceded by | Mahmoud Hammoud |
| Succeeded by | Mahmoud Hammoud |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 8 May 1939 |
| Died | 8 February 2021 (aged 81) |
| Spouse | Loubna Boustany |
| Children | 5 |
| Alma mater | Saint Joseph University |
Early life and education
Obeid hailed from a Maronite family.[1] He was born in Alma, a village in the Zgharta district, on 8 May 1939.[2][3]
Obeid obtained a degree in law from the Saint Joseph University in Beirut.[4]
Career
Obeid was a journalist by profession.[5] He held several high-level positions in various newspapers and magazines. He worked for Lisan Al Hal in 1960 and for the Assayad magazine and Al Anwar daily from 1966.[4]
Obeid was an advisor on Arab affairs to two former Lebanese Presidents, Elias Sarkis (1978-1982) and Amin Gemayel (1983-1987).[2] Gemayel also appointed him special envoy to Syria.[6][7] On 11 February 1987, Obeid met with Parliament Speaker Hussein Husseini and was kidnapped by nine gunmen in west Beirut.[8][9] Obeid was freed unhurt after four days.[10]
Obeid served as a member of the parliament, representing Chouf from 1991 to 1992 and Tripoli from 1992 to 2005.[1] He served as minister of state in the cabinet led by Prime Minister Rafik Hariri between 1993 and 1995.[4][11] Then he was the minister of national education, youth and sports from 1996 to 1998.[4][12] He was appointed to the same post in 2000.[4]
On 17 April 2003, Obeid was appointed foreign minister in a reshuffle to the last cabinet of Hariri, replacing Mahmoud Hammoud in the post.[13][14] Obeid's tenure ended in 2004, and he was succeeded by Mahmoud Hammoud as foreign minister.[2][14] In 2008, Obeid ran for the presidential elections and was considered to be possible consensus candidate.[2] He was also a candidate for President of Lebanon and participated in the 2014 Lebanese presidential election.[15]
In May 2018, Obeid returned to the Lebanese parliament by winning the Maronite seat for the constituency of Tripoli.[15][16]
Personal life and death
Obeid was married to Emile Boustany's daughter, Loubna,[17] and had five children.[4] He was also the maternal uncle of the economist Jihad Azour.
On the morning of 8 February 2021, the National News Agency (NNA) announced that Obeid had died due to complications from COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Lebanon.[16][18]