Khalid al-Azm was a Syrian national leader and five-time interim Prime Minister, as well as Acting President from 4 April to 16 September 1941.
14 Facts About Khalid al-Azm
2.
Khalid al-Azm was a member of one of the most prominent political families in Syria, al-Azm, and the son of an Ottoman minister of religious affairs.
3.
Khalid al-Azm graduated from the University of Damascus in 1923 with a degree in law, and joined the city government in 1925.
4.
Khalid al-Azm remained a longtime supporter of the former, but often quarreled with the latter, whom he accused of being too authoritarian.
5.
Khalid al-Azm became a focus of opposition when he resigned from the cabinet in 1945 and lead the forces opposed to Kuwatli's drive to amend the constitution to allow himself a second term in office.
6.
Khalid al-Azm concluded successful arms purchases from France and later from the Soviet Union.
7.
Khalid al-Azm allied himself with France and the United States and attempted to obtain loans from them for domestic development.
8.
Khalid al-Azm traveled frequently to attend United Nations assemblies on the Palestinian problem.
9.
Khalid al-Azm was elected into the Constituent Assembly that drafted a new constitution for Syria.
10.
Khalid al-Azm became Prime Minister again under Hashim al-Atassi's second administration, in June 1950, heading three cabinets between then and 1951.
11.
Khalid al-Azm clashed repeatedly with the military because he refused to appoint officers in any of his cabinets, and always reserved the defense portfolio for himself.
12.
Khalid al-Azm clashed with pro-Hashemite elements in Syrian politics that advocated union with Iraq.
13.
Khalid al-Azm retired briefly, then reemerged in November 1956 to enter the cabinet of Prime Minister Sabri al-Assali as minister of defense.
14.
Khalid al-Azm opposed in vain the union with Egypt in 1958 which created the United Arab Republic, arguing that Nasser would destroy Syria's democratic system and free market economy.