Kamal Jumblatt

Kamal Jumblatt كمال جنبلاط
Kamal Jumblatt (right) and Saeb Salam in Damascus, 1957.
Born	6 December 1917 Moukhtara, Chouf, Mutasarrifate of Mount Lebanon, Ottoman Empire
Died	16 March 1977 (age 59) Baakline, Chouf, Mount Lebanon, Lebanon
Nationality	Lebanese
Alma mater	St. Joseph University
Years active	1943–1977
Political party	Progressive Socialist Party
Spouse(s)	May Arslan
Children	Walid Jumblatt
Parent(s)	Fouad and Nazira Jumblatt

Kamal Fouad Jumblatt (Arabic: كمال جنبلاط) (December 6, 1917 – March 16, 1977) was an important Lebanese politician. He was the main leader of the anti-government forces who opposed the Assad government in the Lebanese Civil War and major ally of the Palestine Liberation Organization until his assassination in 1977. He is the father of the Lebanese Druze leader Walid Jumblatt.

Kamal Jumblatt was born on December 6, 1917 in Deir El Kamar. He was born into the prestigious Kurdish Jumblatt family, who were traditional leaders of the Lebanese Druze community. His father, the powerful Druze chieftain Fouad Joumblatt, director of the Chouf District, was assassinated on 6 August 1921. Kamal was just four years old when his father was killed. After his father’s death, his mother Nazira played a significant political role in the Druze community for over a quarter of a century.

In 1926, Kamal Jumblatt joined the Lazarus Fathers Institute in Aintoura, where he completed his elementary studies in 1928. He achieved his high school diploma, having studied French, Arabic, science and literature, in 1936, and a philosophy diploma in 1937.

Jumblatt then pursued higher studies in France, where he attended the Faculty of Arts at the Sorbonne University and obtained a degree in psychology and civil education, and another one in sociology. He returned to Lebanon in 1939, after the outbreak of World War II and continued his studies at Saint Joseph University where he obtained a law degree in 1945.

Kamal Jumblatt practiced law in Lebanon from 1941 to 1942 and was designated the Official State Lawyer for the Lebanese Government. In 1943, he became the leader of the Joumblatt clan after the death of Hikmat Joumblatt, bringing him into the Lebanese political scene. In September 1943, Kamal Jumblatt was elected to the National Assembly for the first time, as a deputy of Mount Lebanon. He joined the opposition to the ruling Constitutional Bloc Party, headed by the then-President, Bechara El Khoury. On 14 December 1946, he was appointed minister for the first time, for the portfolio of economy, in Riad Al Solh's cabinet. His term was from 14 December 1946 to 7 June 1947, and he replaced Saadi Al Munla. Sleiman Nawfal replaced Jumblatt as economy minister.