Syria: Deputy Minister Fayçal Moqdad appointed head of diplomacy

Fayçal Moqdad, while he was Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, in Damascus, July 24, 2019. AP - Hassan Ammar

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Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Fayçal Moqdad has been appointed head of diplomacy to replace Walid Moallem, who died on Monday, November 16.

Syria's permanent representative to the UN, Bashar al-Jaafari, has been appointed deputy foreign minister.

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With our correspondent in Beirut, 

Paul Khalifeh

A member of the Baath party in power since his university years, Fayçal Moqdad, 66, joined the Syrian diplomatic corps in 1994.

Perfectly English-speaking, this graduate in English literature from the universities of Damascus and Prague spent most of his diplomatic career within the Syrian delegation to the United Nations, where he rose through the ranks to be appointed Syrian Ambassador to the United Nations in 2003. UN, before being recalled to Damascus to be appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Originally from the southern province of Daraa, cradle of the Syrian revolt, Fayçal Moqdad is now the highest Sunni political leader within the regime. 

Its unwavering support for the regime has made it a privileged target of internal and external opposition.

In 2013, his father was kidnapped by rebels in Daraa before being released a month later thanks to the mediation of tribal leaders.

He will be assisted at the head of Syrian diplomacy by a bitter ambassador, Bashar al-Jaafari, ardent defender of Syria at the United Nations.

Appointed by President Bashar al-Assad as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, this diplomat is of the Shiite faith.

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