Mohammed Fahmi Explained

Mohammed Fahmi should not be confused with Mohamed Fahmy.

Mohammed Fahmi
Office:Minister of Interior and Municipalities
Term Start:21 January 2020
Term End:10 September 2021
President:Michel Aoun
Primeminister:Hassan Diab
Predecessor:Raya El Hassan
Successor:Bassam Mawlawi
Birth Date:23 May 1958
Birth Place:Beirut, Lebanon
Party:Independent
Alma Mater:James Madison University
Allegiance: Lebanon
Branch:Lebanese Army
Serviceyears:1978–2016
Rank:Brigadier General
Battles:Lebanese Civil War

Mohammed Fahmi (Arabic: محمد فهمي; born 23 May 1958 in Beirut)[1] [2] is a Lebanese politician and retired general of the Lebanese Army. He has served as the Lebanese Minister of Interior and Municipalities from 21 January 2020 to 10 September 2021. He succeeded Raya El Hassan.

Background

Fahmi was born to a Lebanese mother from the influential Elzein family. He joined the Lebanese army in 1978. He became close to the then head of the Lebanese army general Emile Lahoud (1989–1998) and Jamil Al Sayyed who at the time was second in command of the army's intelligence service. The latter played an important role in his designation as minister of the interior in January 2020. He joined the government of Hassan Diab as an independent.

He held various offices in the Lebanese Army: head of the bomb squad removal unit, head commander of the Mount Lebanon military region, and the security department of the military intelligence services. Fahmi studied at the James Madison University in the United States.[3] [4] [5]

Controversy

On 26 June 2020, Fahmi mentioned in an interview at Al-Manar, that he killed two people in 1981 during the Lebanese Civil War, and Michel Aoun promised to protect him back then.[6] Some analysts wrote that the incident might have happened on 25 November 1978, when Fahmi was a lieutenant officer in the Defense Regiment and Major Michel Aoun was a deputy commander of the First Defense Regiment in Baabda District. However, the victims might have been from the Kataeb Party, after the army decided to install barriers near the Kataeb offices in Haret Hreik.[7]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: وزير الداخلية والبلديات: محمد فهمي . interior.gov.lb . https://web.archive.org/web/20201127235720/http://www.interior.gov.lb/Minister.aspx?active=True . 2020-11-27 . Arabic .
  2. Web site: Who is in the new Lebanese government?. thenational.ae. 22 January 2020.
  3. Web site: Mohammad Fahmi face au défi de son legs politique - Jeanine JALKH. JALKH. Jeanine. 2020-01-23. L'Orient-Le Jour. fr. 2020-01-23.
  4. Web site: Biographies-express des nouveaux membres de l'équipe ministérielle. 2020-01-22. L'Orient-Le Jour. fr. 2020-01-23.
  5. Web site: Who are the ministers in Lebanon's new government?. gulfnews.com. 22 January 2020 . en. 2020-01-23.
  6. Web site: وزير الداخلية اللبناني: "قتلت اثنين".. اعتراف ناري يثير بلبلة واسعة. arabic.euronews.com. Arabic. 30 June 2020.
  7. Web site: الوزير فهمي يعترف انه قتل شخصين والرئيس عون حماه. akhbaralyawm.com. Arabic. 28 June 2020.