Haider al-Abadi

Date of Birth: 25.04.1952

Haider Jawad Kadhim al-Abadi - Iraqi politician, former Prime Minister of Iraq.

Place of Birth. Education. Haider al-Abadi was born on April 25, 1952, in Baghdad to the family of Jawad al-Abadi - a physician, hospital director, and inspector general of the Iraqi Ministry of Health. At the age of 15, in 1967, Haider joined the Islamic Call Party.

He graduated from the Technical University of Iraq. In 1980, he received a PhD in Electrical Engineering from the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom. In 1982, under the Baath regime, two of his brothers were executed, and the third was sentenced to 10 years in prison, leading to the revocation of al-Abadi's Iraqi passport. In 1983, his father passed away and was buried in London. After that, al-Abadi worked in private enterprises, founded his own technology company, and served as its CEO from 1993 to 2002. In 1997, he received a scholarship from the UK Ministry of Technology and Innovation. His company is known for repairing elevators in Bush House and the BBC World Service offices.

Political Career. After the coalition invasion of Iraq and the overthrow of President Saddam Hussein's regime, Haider al-Abadi returned to Iraq and became the Minister of Communications and Transportation. In October 2003, he and all 25 ministers of the governing council protested against the head of the temporary coalition administration, Paul Bremer, and rejected the privatization of state-owned companies and infrastructure until a legitimate government was formed. However, the administration bypassed the council and formed a new government, forcing the insurgents to escalate military actions against the coalition.

In 2005, he became an advisor to the Prime Minister in Iraq's first elected cabinet. That same year, he became a member of the House of Representatives and chaired the Committee on Economy, Investment, and Reconstruction. Re-elected in 2010 and appointed chairman of the Finance Committee in 2013, he participated in the debate over Iraq's budget.

In 2006, he ran for the position of Prime Minister, which Nouri al-Maliki took over, replacing Ibrahim al-Jaafari. In 2008, steadfast in his support for Iraqi sovereignty, al-Abadi insisted on certain conditions for an agreement with the USA regarding its presence in Iraq. In 2009, he was referred to as a key figure in the restoration of Iraq. During his participation in Iraqi oil conferences from 2009 to 2012, al-Abadi was an active member of the Iraqi Oil Advisory Committee. In 2010, he was one of several Iraqi politicians who supported a lawsuit against Blackwater, which was sued for the murder of 17 Iraqi civilians by its employees. He served as deputy speaker of the House of Representatives at times.

In 2014, al-Abadi was again nominated as a contender for the position of Prime Minister by the Shiite political parties of the 'Iraqi National Alliance.'

On July 24, 2014, Fuad Masum was appointed the new President of Iraq. He in turn appointed al-Abadi as Prime Minister on August 11. To put the appointment into effect, al-Abadi had to form a government approved by Parliament within 30 days. Supporters of the former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki called al-Abadi's nomination for Prime Minister illegal. In particular, al-Maliki's son-in-law, Hussein, said: “We will contest this decision in the Federal Court.” The Prime Minister himself called al-Abadi's appointment a violation of the constitution and filed a lawsuit in Iraq's Federal Court. However, he agreed the very next day to resign and support al-Abadi. After his appointment as Prime Minister, he began consultations with parliamentary factions to form a new government for the country. On September 9, 2014, 177 out of 328 members of the House of Representatives (Parliament) voted in favor of the approval of the new government team.

On October 25, 2018, Haider al-Abadi officially handed over the government to the new Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi.

Family. Married, three children.

22.04.2022