Walid Jumblatt
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Walid Jumblatt
1949 -
Lebanese politician.
Like his father, Kamal, Walid Jumblatt did not seek the political leadership of the Druze community in Lebanon or of the Jumblatt family. It was thrust upon him in the wake of his father's assassination in 1977. Jumblatt studied at the American University of Beirut and seemed uninterested in politics. In his first years as leader, he was uncomfortable with his new role and merely followed his father's path. However, he quickly made peace with the regime in Syria. He later abandoned his father's pan-Arab vision and decided to focus more on the affairs of the community. Following Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon, Walid reorganized the Progressive Socialist Party, making it a purely Druze fighting force. He led the defense of the predominantly Druze mountain areas against the encroachments of the Maronite-led Lebanese Forces. His stand within the community was strengthened when he allowed his militias to fight an all-out war against the Lebanese Forces, aided by some Palestine Liberation Organization factions. The fighting, in what became known as the War of the Mountains in 1983, was accompanied by bloody massacres, committed by both sides.
Jumblatt survived a 1982 assassination attempt that soured his relationship with the regime of Amin Jumayyil. He later formed the nucleus of the opposition to Jumayyil after the agreement of 17 May 1983 between Israel and Lebanon, which was rejected by Syria. Jumblatt dissolved his militia after the election of Ilyas al-Hirawi as president in 1989. He ran in the 1992 elections and won. His party also won another seat in parliament, bringing its total to ten. Jumblatt was named minister for the affairs of the displaced peoples in 1994 and served in several other cabinet positions.
Jumblatt's close relations with Syria, dating back to the 1980s, began to change in autumn 2000, when he joined his voice to what had been a largely Christian call for a reduction of the Syrian troop presence in Lebanon. He and his political allies, including Christians, did well in parliamentary elections, indicating a shift in his long-held political strategy.
Bibliography
AbuKhalil, As'ad. Historical Dictionary of Lebanon. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield, 1998.
— AS'AD ABUKHALIL
UPDATED BY MICHAEL R. FISCHBACH
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Walid Jumblatt
| Walid Jumblatt | |
|---|---|
 Picture of Walid Jumblatt |
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| Born | August 7, 1949 |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Home town | Moukhtara |
| Title | Chairman of the Progressive Socialist Party |
| Predecessor | Kamal Jumblatt |
| Political party | Progressive Socialist Party |
| Religion | Druze |
| Spouse | Nora Jumblatt |
| Children | Taymour (b. 1982) Aslan (b. 1983) Dallia (b. 1989) |
| Parents | Kamal Jumblatt Princess May Arslan |
| Relatives | Prince Shakib Arslan (grandfather) |
| Lebanon |
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Walid Jumblatt (Arabic: وليد جنبلاط) (born August 7, 1949) is a Lebanese politician and the current leader of the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP). He is the most prominent leader of Lebanon's Druze community.[1]
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Family
The origin of the Jumblatt family is the Kurdish Janpoulad family coming from Shamel Janpoulad and dating back to Janboulad Ibn Kassem al Kirdi al Kaisari, known as Ibn Arabou (1530–1580), and governor of Aleppo. Walid Jumblatt is the son of Kamal Jumblatt, the founder of the PSP, the party which Walid Jumblatt currently leads. He is the maternal grandson of Prince Shakib Arslan.[2] His first wife was Gervette "Gigi," a Jordanian woman of Circassian origin who is the mother of his child Timour. His current wife is the Syrian Nora Sharabati, the daughter of the former Syrian Minister of Defense Ahmed Al-Sharabati. Walid Jumblatt graduated from the American University of Beirut in Political Science.[3][4]
Political life
The BBC describes Jumblatt as "the smartest leader of Lebanon's most powerful Druze clan and heir to a leftist political dynasty based around the Progressive Socialist Party".[5] Assem Qanso of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party of Lebanon accused Jumblatt of abandoning his father's beliefs.[6]
He was a supporter of Syria after the war but, since the death of Syrian President Hafez al-Assad in 2000, he has campaigned for Damascus to relinquish control. This pitted him against President Émile Lahoud and the Lebanese Shiite party Hezbollah of which he said: "Their fighters have done a good job defying and defeating the Israeli army, OK, but the question we ask is where their allegiance goes: to a Lebanese strong central authority or somewhere else?"[7]
Although, on 21 January 2011, Jumblatt said he supported Hizbollah and Syria stance.[8]"
In Popular Culture and Arts
As many political leaders, Walid Jumblatt originated important imagery since the late 1970s[9]. The photographer Ziad Antar made a portrait of him using a film expired since 1976, provoking ghosty effect. The image supposedly evokes the danger the Lebanese Druze leader faces after having criticized Hezbollah and the Syrian regime[10].
See also
References
- ^ August 3, 2009 (2009-08-03). "LEBANON: Walid Jumblatt's exit could weaken U.S.-backed coalition - latimes.com". Latimesblogs.latimes.com. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2009/08/lebanon-departure-of-druze-ally-could-spoil-us-backed-coalitions-majority.html. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ "Kamal Jumblatt". Nndb.com. http://www.nndb.com/people/605/000101302/. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ "Lebanon’s new miracle" (in (French)). 1stjordan.net. http://www.1stjordan.net/actuuk/archivesuk/resultat.php?id=852&debut=0. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ "Jumblatts family history captured in a painting". Lebanonwire.com. 2002-11-30. http://www.lebanonwire.com/0211/02113026DS.asp. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ "Middle East | Who's who in Lebanon". BBC News. 2005-03-14. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4348129.stm. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ "Qanso: Jumblatt abandoned his father’s principles". NOW Lebanon. 6 February 2012. http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArchiveDetails.aspx?ID=361567. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
- ^ Chicago Tibune interview Aug.11, 2006
- ^ "Nasrallah, Jumblatt talk Lebanon future". PressTV. 2011-01-22. http://www.presstv.com/detail/161331.html. Retrieved 2011-08-13.
- ^ "Abbas. LEBANON. Mukhtara. Political poster of Walid JUMBLATT, leader of the Druze community and Pt of the Socialist Progressive Party.". Magnum Photos. http://magnum.orangetest.com/C.aspx?VP3=CMS3&VF=SearchDetailPopupPage&VBID=24KL0XDK6SB&PN=27&IID=2TYRYDM1DFYI. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
- ^ Andrew Pulver (Wednesday 9 March 2011). "Photographer Ziad Antar's best shot". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2011/mar/09/photographer-ziad-antar-best-shot. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
External references
- Rebel with a cause by Massoud A. Derhally, Arabian Business, March 27, 2005
- Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt Accuses Hizbullah, Iran and Syria For Lebanon Crisis, Transcript of interview of Walid Jumblatt, broadcast on Al-Arabiya, July 20, 2006
- We Should Treat the Syrian Regime the Same Way It Treats Us: With Car Bombs, Assassinations and Destruction. Transcript of interview of Walid Jumblatt, broadcast on Al-Arabiya, December 28, 2006
- I Support a Two-State Solution, Not the Liberation of Jerusalem Transcript of interview of Walid Jumblatt, broadcast on Al-Jazeera TV, January 31, 2007
- On Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad: "An Ape Unknown to Nature, a Creature That Is Only Half-Man." Excerpts from an address delivered by Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, aired on Al-Jazeera TV on February 14, 2007.
External links
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Walid Jumblatt |
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Walid Jumblatt on Charlie Rose
- Walid Jumblatt at the Internet Movie Database
- Walid Jumblatt collected news and commentary at Al Jazeera English
- Walid Jumblatt collected news and commentary at The Jerusalem Post
- Walid Jumblatt at the Notable Names Database
- Walid Jumblatt, by Gary C. Gambill and Daniel Nassif, Middle East Intelligence Bulletin, Vol 3, No 5, May 2001
- "It's strange for me to say it, but this process of change has started because of the American invasion of Iraq" quoted in Beirut's Berlin Wall, by David Ignatius, Washington Post, February 23, 2005
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Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Copyright © 2004 by The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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