Zeina Akar becomes First Woman Defence Minister of the Arab World 

The Western Asian country Lebanon formed a new government late on Tuesday, 21st January 2020 under Prime Minister Hassan Diab amidst unprecedented nationwide economic and political crises. The country remained without an effective government after the former Prime Minister Saad Al Hariri quit from his role in October 2019 under pressure from protests against state corruption and mismanagement.

The President of Lebanon, Michel Aoun nominated Hassan Diab as the new Prime Minister. Hassan Diab is a 60-year-old professor at the American University of Beirut, who heads a new cabinet of 20 members. The newly named ministers to form the government were mostly backed by political parties while the protestors demanded a new government with independent technocrats. Naseef Hitti was named the Foreign Minister, Ghazi Wazni as Finance Minister while Zeina Akar became the first woman in the Arab world to hold the post of Defence Minister of the country, she was also named as the Deputy Prime Minister.


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