Husni al Barazi

Origins and youth

Husni al-Barazi was born in the Syrian city of Hama into a prominent landowning family of Kurdish origin. He was educated in Istanbul and received a doctorate degree from the Sorbonne.

Political activity

During the French Mandate, Al-Barazi joined the Syrian opposition to French rule, but in 1926 he was arrested for his opposition activities and was exiled to Lebanon. Upon returning to Syria in 1928, Al-Barazi ran for parliamentary elections and was elected a Member of the Syrian Parliament.

Al-Barazi reportedly played a prominent role in the local hashish market.

He was appointed Minister of Culture from 1934 till 1936, then Governor of Alexandretta (Iskenderun) from 1936 to 1938. In April 1942 he was appointed Prime Minister, but was removed from his position and isolated by the French authorities in January 1943, following which he again moved to Lebanon.

Downfall, exile and death

Al Barazi returned to Syria in 1946 and remained in his position as Member of Parliament during all the military coups that took place from the late forties until the mid fifties. During this period, he was accused of plotting against the state and was arrested several times.

He went into final exile in 1954, when, while he was on a trip to Turkey, he was accused of plotting and conspiring against Syria, and was sentenced to death in absentia. In the late 60’s, al-Barazi was pardoned on account of his old age but never returned to Syria; he remained in exile between Lebanon and Turkey, where he died in 1975.