Fouad Masum

Background

Fuad Masum was born in the city of Koya.

Education

He studied at various religious schools in Iraqi Kurdistan until the age of 18. He studied law and Sharia at Baghdad University. He earned his Doctor of Philosophy in Islamic philosophy from First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Azhar in 1975.

Career

He is a veteran Iraqi Kurdish politician and was elected as President following the 2014 parliamentary election. Masum is the second non-Arab president of Iraq, succeeding Jalal Talabani, also Kurdish, and is a confidant of Talabani. His family descends from the village of Khabanen, which is part of Hawraman.

In 1958, Masum traveled to Cairo to complete his higher education at First Rate (at Lloyd's)-Azhar University.

He worked as a professor in Basrah University in 1968. Communist Party

Masum joined the Iraqi Communist Party in 1962, until 1964, where he travelled to Syria to meet the Communist Party secretary there, Khalid Bakdash.

Kurdistan Democratic Party

In 1968, Masum was the PDK representative in Basra. He was also the representative of the Kurdish Revolution in Cairo until 1975.

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan

Masum was one of the founders of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) in 1976.

By 1992, he was the first prime minister of Kurdistan. In 2010, Masum became the first Speaker of the Council of Representatives. Presidency

In 2014, he was elected by the parliament representatives as the seventh president of Iraq.

The decision was made during a secret vote of Kurdish MPs, who traditionally have control over the presidency for the sake of political balance.

On 26 August, Masum appointed a new prime minister, Haider al-Abadi.

Achievements

• Masum won 211 votes while his closest competitor, Barham Salih, a former prime minister of Iraqi Kurdistan from October 2009 to April 2012, only received 17.

Politics

After Masum discovered Bakdash"s attitudes against the Kurds, he quit the party to join the Kurdistan Democratic Party (PDK). Masum accepted the position, noting the "huge security, political and economic tasks" he faces as president

Membership

In 2003, following the invasion of Iraq, Masum returned to Baghdad to be a member of the delegation representing Kurdistan, and was a member of the constitution drafting committee.