Karim Azkoul

Dr Karim Azkoul, PhD (1915-2003) was a Lebanese diplomat and philosopher born in Rashaya, Lebanon on July 15, 1915.^[1]

Personal life

Azkoul married Eva Corey in 1947.^[1] They had a son and a daughter. The son, Jad Azkoul is a world-renowned classical guitarist.^[2] Eva and Karim Azkoul both died in 2003, one week apart.

Azkoul's leisures included reading and writing.^[1]

Education

Azkoul attended the Jesuit University of St Joseph in Beirut. He later attended the Universities of Paris, Berlin, Bonn and Munich.^[1]

Career

Azkoul was a professor of History, Arab and French Literature and Philosophy in various colleges in Lebanon from 1939 to 1946. He was the Director of an Arabic publishing house and monthly Arabic review The Arab World in Beirut from 1943 to 1945.^[1]

Karim Azkoul was Lebanon's representative at the United Nations' talks on Human Rights at the time of their establishment.^[3]

There, he is known to have worked closely alongside Charles Malik.^[4][5][6]

He was Rapporteur of the Committee on Genocide in 1948. Other work of his with the U.N. includes having been Acting Permanent Delegate to the U.N. from 1950 to 1953 and Head of U.N. Affairs Department (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lebanon) from 1953 to 1957.^[1][7]

On the 10th of November 1950, he was photographed at a U.N. radio alongside René Cassin, Georges Day and Herald C.L. Roy, participating in a roundtable discussion for the use of French-speaking countries.^[8]

He went on to become the Head Permanent Delegation to the U.N. from 1957 to 1959.^[1] He was photographed shaking hands with Dag Hammarskjöld (then the U.N. Secretary General) when receiving his credentials there in 1958.^[9]

From 1959 to 1961, Azkoul was Consul General of Lebanon in Australia and New Zealand. From 1961 to 1964, he was Ambassador to Ghana, Guinea and Mali, and to Iran and Afghanistan from 1964 to 1966.^[1]

Azkoul was a journalist from 1966 to 1968 before teaching as Professor of Philosophy at the Beirut College for Women from 1968 to 1972. In 1970 to 1972 he was a Professor of Philosophy at the Lebanese University.^[1]

In 1978, he was Chief Editor of The Joy of Knowledge (Arabic Encyclopaedia) and responsible for ten volumes therein.^[1]

He is also credited as having been Vice Chair to the Committee for Defence of Human Rights in Lebanon and Member of the Board of Trustees, BD of Man. of Theological School of Balamand, Lebanon. Likewise as PEN, Emergency World Council, Hague in 1971.^[1]

Azkoul featured as an actor in a full-length film entitled Le Voyage étranger by Serge Roullet, released in 1992. Azkoul plays the role of "Le viel homme", or "the old man".^[10]

Awards and recognition

Azkoul was awarded the National Order of the Cedar, Lebanon Order of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem Order of Saint Marc, Alexandria Order of The Brilliant Star, Republic of China Order of Southern Star, Brazil Order of Saint Peter and Paul, Damascus^[1]

Karim Azkoul is featured in The International Who's Who.^[1]

Politics and philosophy

Although Karim Azkoul made it a point to specify he was in no way anti-Semitic or anti-Jewish, he nevertheless was of a firmly anti-Zionist political stance. He also strongly advocated Arab unification, and often spoke out against foreign national intervention in the Middle East. He predicted that tensions would worsen if the United States continued to increase its military presence in the Middle East. He also maintained that Lebanon (and the rest of the Arab world) was well on its way towards genuine democracy, as long as the western powers did not act against United Nations wishes when involving itself in the region's politics.^[11]

Publications

Reason and Faith in Islam (German), 1938. Reason in Islam (Arabic), 1946. Freedom (co-author), 1956. Freedom of Association (U.N.), 1968^[1]

Translated into Arabic: Consciencism (Nkrumah), 1964. Arab Thought In The Liberal Age (Albert Hourani), 1969^[1]

References