Marouf al-Bakhit

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Dr. Marouf Suleiman al-Bakhit (Arabic: معروف البخيت), also known as Marouf al-Bakheet (born 1947) is the Prime Minister of Jordan. He and his cabinet were sworn in on November 27, 2005. He was previously the Jordanian ambassador to Israel and the national security chief. Bakhit's main priorities are to maintain security and stability in Jordan, as he was appointed by King Abdullah II less than three weeks after the 2005 Amman Bombings.

[edit] Military career

Marouf Al-Bakhit comes from one of Jordan’s biggest Tribes Al-Abbadi Tribe the second biggest in Jordan, he was born in 1947 in the Town of Mahis 10 Km west of the capital Amman and joined the Jordanian Armed Forces in 1964. He graduated from the Royal Military College in 1966 as Second Lieutenant and retired from the Armed Forces in 1999 as Major General.

He participated in a number of leadership roles in the army, including in the 1990s as the President of Mo'ta University for military affairs and before that as Manager of Research and Development and Director of Purchases and Director of Personnel Affairs in the General Command of the Armed Forces.

He also commanded a team responsible for security relations with foreign countries and European security establishments. He represented Jordan in arms limitation talks in Madrid.

[edit] Civilian career

This led to the launch of his civilian career and he worked as a member of the Higher Guidance Committee and a General Organiser of peace processes during the years 1999 - 2002. Then he was assigned the Ambassadorship of Jordan to Turkey, a title he held until 2005, when he moved to Israel, again as an Ambassador.