Jawad Abu Hatab


Jawad Abu Hatab is a Syrian politician. Since May 2016 he has served as Prime Minister and Defence minister of the Syrian Interim Government (though he resigned as prime minister on 10 March 2019. Prior to his election as Prime Minister he worked as a heart surgeon and served in various roles within the Syrian opposition.

Early life and career

Hatab was born in 1962 in Damascus. He completed his higher education at the medical school of Damascus University in 1988. He subsequently worked as a heart surgeon at the Cardiac Surgery Hospital located within the hospital. Hatab travelled to Italy in 2003 and completed his studies to become a paediatric cardiologist.

Political career

After the commencement of the Syrian civil war, Hatab served in various administrative roles within the Syrian opposition. In May 2016 he was elected as Prime Minister of the partially-recognised Syrian Interim Government. Since his appointment he has sought to improve service delivery in opposition-controlled areas and taken steps to relocate opposition government officials from Turkey to Syria.