Tareq Mitri, Minister of Culture
 Place and Date of Birth:
Born in Tripoli, Lebanon, in 1950. Son of Elias Mitri.
Sect: Greek Orthodox.
Marital status: Married to Eliane Qmati, with two children: Dalia and
Zeina.
Education: Studied Political Science at the American University of Beirut
and graduated with a Doctorate in Political Science from the University of Paris
X-Nanterre.
Professional Career: Worked as professor at the Balamand University, the
University of Geneve, and as visiting professor at the Free University of Amsterdam (1998)
and Harvard (2003). Mitri also worked as program executive for inter-religious relations
and dialogue, and has been responsible for Christian-Muslim relations in the World Council
of Churches (WCC) since 1991. He has researched, lectured and published in Arabic, French
and English in the areas of Christian-Muslim relations, modern history and the sociology
of Christians in the Muslim world, and ecumenical relations. In his latest book, Au
Nom de la Bible, au nom de l'Amérique (In the name of the Bible, in the name of
America), published by Labor et Fides in 2004, Mitri analyzes how American society has
reacted to Islam and Muslims since the dramatic events of 11 September 2001 and why the
war against Iraq has divided Christians. Mitri will be on leave of absence from his post
in the WCC until after Lebanon's general elections, scheduled to take place in May 2005. Mitri is a also a founder of the multisectarian "Lebanese
Gathering for Dialogue", which groups a number of Lebanese figures around the aim of
evading the transformation of political differences into sectarian issues.
Political Background:
Appointed Minister of Environment and Administrative Development in Najib Mikati's cabinet
(April 19, 2005 - July 19, 2005). Appointed Minister ofCulture in Fouad Siniora's cabinet
(July 19, 2005 - )
Additional Information: Juan Michel, +41 22 791 6153, +41 79 507 6363,
email: media@wcc-coe.org
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