Khaled al-Obaidi

Khaled al-Obaidi
al-Obaidi meets US Secretary of Defence, April 2015
Defense Minister of Iraq
In office
18 October 2014 – 19 August 2016
President Fuad Masum
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi
Preceded by Saadoun al-Dulaimi
Succeeded by Othman Ghanm (Interim)
Personal details
Born Mosul, Iraq
Political party Itihad al-Quwa al-Wataniyah
Alma mater University of Baghdad, Keele University
Military service
Service/branch Iraqi Army
Rank Major general

Khaled Yassin al-Obaidi[1] was the Iraqi Defense Minister from 2014 to 2016.

Background

Khalid Yassin al-Obaidi is a Sunni Muslim who was born in Mosul.[2] He belongs to al-Obaidi sunni tribal confederation.[3] al-Obaidi is a member of the Iraqi parliament's Itihad al-Quwa al-Wataniyah bloc.[4] He holds two master's degree in engineering and military science as well as a doctorate in political science.[5] He served in the Iraqi Air Force, specialising in engineering aircraft engines until 2003 when he was appointed as a university professor by the Ministry of Higher Education. He was appointed as the Technical Education Authority by the Ministry of Education in 2007[6][5] and has also served as a security advisor for the Nineveh Governor. He was nominated for the post of Defense Minister in 2010 however he was rejected.[7] He was also a Major general in the Iraqi Army.[3]

Defence Minister

On 18 October 2014, he was appointed as the Defence Minister of Iraq.[2] In August 2016, al-Obeidi was voted out of power through a no-confidence vote in the parliament, with majority of lawmakers voting against him over allegations of corruption. He is the first incumbent defence minister to receive a no-confidence vote in Iraq after the invasion of Iraq in 2003.[6][8] Othman Ghanm was appointed to succeed him as the interim Defence Minister by the Iraqi government on 29 August 2016.[9]

In December 2017 an MP reported that an arrest warrant had been issued for al-Obaidi. Warrants were issued for 48 defence officials in total, including the air force commander.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Iran would fully stand by Iraqi govt., nation". Mehr News Agency.
  2. 1 2 "Iraq MPs approve two key ministers". Al Jazeera. 18 October 2014. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Khaled al-Obeidi / Khalid al-UBAYDI". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  4. ↑ "Where does tribal influence fit in Iraqi politics?". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  5. 1 2 "Iraqi Prime Minister Abadi's government finally complete". Al Monitor. 23 October 2014. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  6. 1 2 "The Sacking of Iraq's Defense Minister". STRATFOR. 25 August 2016. Retrieved 26 August 2016.
  7. ↑ Mustafa al-Furati (20 October 2014). "Key ministers appointed to restore security in Iraq". Al-Akhbar. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  8. ↑ "Iraqi defense minister gets no-confidence vote amid offensive against ISIS". Haaretz. 25 August 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  9. ↑ Baxtiyar Goryan (29 August 2016). "Iraqi government assigns interim Defense Minister". Kurdistan24. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  10. ↑ "MP: Arrests ordered for former Iraqi defense minister, air force commander". Iraqi News. 2017-12-27. Retrieved 2018-01-01.


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