His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Qubaty Grand Officer - National Order of the Cedar | |
---|---|
الدكتور محمد عبدالمجيد قباطي | |
Minister of Tourism | |
Incumbent | |
Assumed office 18 September 2016 | |
Minister of Information | |
In office 1 December 2015 – 18 September 2016 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Aden, Yemen | 5 January 1958
Spouse | Faten Mohamed Kaid Saif (Political Advisor to the Yemeni Prime Minister) |
Children | Shady Qubaty Alya Qubaty Basem Qubaty |
Alma mater | King's College London King's College, Cambridge University of London |
Awards | National Order of the Cedar |
Website | http://2009magd.blogspot.co.uk |
Prof. Mohamed Abdul Mageed Qubaty (Arabic: الدكتور محمد عبدالمجيد آل قباطي) FRCS, GONOC is a Yemeni politician. As Yemen's Minister of Tourism, he was Chairman of the Yemen Tourism Promotion Board (YTPB),[1] Vice President of the Arab Tourism Organization and Vice President of the UN World Tourism Organization Commission for the Middle East. He also served as Yemen's Minister of Information and Mass Media.[2] Known for "practicing politics with a scalpel" due to being one of the most successful surgeons in the country as well as an influential orator, he is one of Yemen's most famous political figureheads and led the opposition front during the Arab Spring. He is currently the Chairman of the Southern Civil Democratic Rally (MAGD-SCDR).
He has held previous political positions such as the Senior Political Advisor to the previous three Yemeni Prime Ministers (2007-2011) and the Ambassador of Yemen to Lebanon and Cyprus (2003-2007).
There was a failed attempt to assassinate him on 11 September 2012, which targeted the minister's motorcade, next to the Council of Ministers in Sana'a, Yemen under the guise of a terrorist attack marking the 11th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Dr. Qubaty was injured and the suicide bombing led to the death of eight bodyguards whilst injuring others.[citation needed]