Nasser al-Qudwa explained

Nasser Al Qudwa
Office:2nd Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations
President:Yasser Arafat
Rawhi Fattouh
Term Start:1991
Term End:2005
Predecessor:Zuhdi Labib Terzi
Successor:Riyad Mansour
Party:Fatah
Alma Mater:Cairo University
Doctor of Dental Medicine and Surgery
Office1:Foreign Minister of the Palestinian Authority
Term Start1:February 2005
Term End1:March 2006
Predecessor1:Nabil Shaath
Successor1:Mahmoud al-Zahar

Nasser Al Qudwa, also spelled Nasser Al-Kidwa[1] (ar|ناصر القدوة; born 1953) is a Palestinian politician. A long-time activist in Fatah, he represented the Palestinian Liberation Organization at the United Nations from 1991 to 2005, when he became the Foreign Minister of the Palestinian Authority. Al Qudwa served in that role until 2006.

Early life and education

Al Qudwa was born in 1953. He attended Cairo University, graduating with a degree in dentistry in 1979. Then became an executive member of the Palestinian Red Crescent shortly after.

Career

Al Qudwa joined Fatah in 1969. He became president of the General Union of Palestinian Students in 1974. He is also a central-committee member of Fatah.[2]

Qudwa represented his uncle Yasser Arafat and the Palestine Liberation Organization as an unofficial observer in the United Nations in 1987, then as a permanent observer in 1991. In 2005, he was succeeded by Riyad H. Mansour, when he became Foreign Affairs Minister in the Palestinian Authority Government of February 2005. Nasser served as United Nations Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan in the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).[3] Al Qudwa was appointed deputy to Kofi Annan, then special envoy to Syria for the U.N. and Arab League in March 2012.[4] He was responsible for the contacts with Syrian opposition groups.[5] In 2014, Al Qudwa resigned from his position as U.N. Deputy Mediator on Syria.

On 21 March 2021, the Fatah Central Committee dismissed Al Qudwa from the party after he announced plans to run a separate list of candidates under the National Democratic Forum bloc in the 2021–22 Palestinian local elections. He also announced plans to back Marwan Barghouthi, serving life sentences in Israeli prison for murder, in the 2021 Palestinian presidential election, which was delayed indefinitely. Al Qudwa's announcement and subsequent dismissal represented fissures in Fatah, as Al Qudwa called for Fatah leaders to stand against PA President Mahmoud Abbas.[6]

Personal life

Al Qudwa is the nephew of Yasir Arafat.[7] He is the head of the Yasser Arafat Foundation.[8]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://palestineun.org/mission-team/former-ambassadors/ Former Ambassadors
  2. News: Levinson. Charles. Opposition Mounts Against Abbas. 31 August 2012. The Wall Street Journal. 12 October 2010. Ramallah.
  3. https://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2012/sga1330.doc.htm UN Press Release
  4. News: Kofi Annan to head to Syria on Saturday as Russia and China step up peace efforts. 31 August 2012. Al Arabiya. 5 March 2012.
  5. News: Annan deputy blocked by Damascus. 31 August 2012. Rappler. 31 March 2012. Agence France-Presse.
  6. News: ‘Fatah to the bone’: Who is Palestinian official Nasser al-Qudwa? . 30 August 2024 . . 2021-03-21.
  7. News: Profile: Nasser al-Kidwa. 5 April 2013. Asharq Alawsat. 6 March 2012. 12 November 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131112142944/http://www.aawsat.net/2012/03/article55242940. dead.
  8. News: Arafat's Death Revisited; Israel Completes Separation Wall. 31 August 2012. MIFTAH. 7 July 2012.