Mohammad Abdulrahman Tarkou
Syrian politician (born 1979)
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Mohammad Abdulrahman Tarkou (Arabic: محمد عبد الرحمن تركو, Kurdish: Mêhmed Ebdulrêhman Turkou; born 1979) is a Syrian academic and politician who has served as the Minister of Education in the Syrian transitional government since 29 March 2025. He is a Syrian Kurd and hails from the city of Afrin in northern Syria.
Mohammad Abdulrahman Tarkou | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Education | |
| Assumed office 29 March 2025 | |
| President | Ahmed al-Sharaa |
| Preceded by | Nazir al-Qadri |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1979 (age 46–47) |
| Alma mater | Damascus University (BA) Leipzig University (PhD) |
Education and academic career
Tarkou earned his bachelor's degree in law from Damascus University in 2001, specializing in criminal law. He later pursued his doctoral studies in Germany and received a PhD in law from Leipzig University. His academic focus includes special penal law, child rights, and child protection from violence.[1]
He has served as a professor at the Faculty of Law at Damascus University, where he taught subjects including child legislation and its institutions. He also taught at the Faculty of Education, focusing on child-related legislation.[2]
Administrative roles
From 2022 to 2024, Tarkou held the position of Vice President of Damascus University for Administrative and Student Affairs. He was also a member of the academic staff at the Syrian Virtual University and contributed to research on topics such as child protection, citizenship values in educational curricula, and human rights education.[1][2]
Ministerial role
On 29 March 2025, Tarkou was appointed Minister of Education in the Syrian transitional government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa.[3]
Tarkou's appointment occurred amid growing internal and external calls for a more inclusive and representative government.[4] He is reportedly the only Kurdish figure serving in the Syrian transitional government.[2]
Despite this, the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria expressed a critical stance toward the newly formed government, claiming that it fails to reflect the diversity of Syrian society and claimed that, similar to the era of Bashar al-Assad, power remains centralized in the hands of the new president, Ahmed al-Sharaa.[5][6]