Barjas al-Hadid

Sheikh Barjas Shaher Sayel Al-Hadid - (born in 1936), also known locally as Abu Nidal (The Father of Nidal) Barjas Al Hadid, is a Jordanian politician and Sheikh of the prominent Al-Hadid tribe and member of the Parliament of Jordan. As well as being leader of the 30,000-member Balqa Governorate-based Al-Hadid tribe, Barjas Al-Hadid was formerly a member of the Royal Jordanian Air Force. As Sheikh, Al-Hadid's duties have included mediating in disputes, including blood feuds, which arise between Jordanian tribe and clan members, within whose families tribal law still exists. Significant numbers of the Al-Hadid tribe are also found in Syria; where they come under the name Hadidi, (estimated to be around half a million 500,000 - one of the largest tribes within Syria; and in Iraq they number around 400,000) the Sheikh has been dispatched in the past to Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Yemen in order to mediate.

Al-Hadid's position as elected Member of Parliament came partially as a result of the large amount of land owned by his tribe and the influence it brings (traditionally the Al-Hadid family have owned all of the lands of Amman, the modern-day capital of Jordan); this has historically resulted in the Al-Hadid family being one of the wealthiest families in the Kingdom of Jordan.

Using this immense land wealth they have donated some of their lands to numerous good causes throughout Jordan's history, most notably the land around Central Amman for the creation of Amman's Italian Hospital - also known as Mustashfa Italiani, In addition to this they also donated lands in the Al-Wehdat area of Amman for the building of refugee camps for Palestinians that fled Palestine in 1948, during the Nakba period. These refugee camps are still in existence today.

Between 1947 and 1967 a member of the Hadids occupied a seat in the Chamber of Deputies.

When not engaged on parliamentary, family and private business, Barjas spends his time resolving tribal disputes and interceding to advance the interests not only of members of his Al-Hadid tribe, but of anyone else who appeals for his assistance.

Owing to his work taking part in mediations and resolving disputes within the kingdom, including many high-profile cases, Barjas is famous within the Kingdom of Jordan and is favoured by many who live there for his work and other works of philanthropy.

Undoubtedly Barjas is the most well-known figure within Jordanian society today. The very mention of his name within the Kingdom of Jordan is always met warmly and with positivity by Jordanians and non-Jordanians alike; who have likely received some form of help from him or his tribal family (the Hadids) at one time in their lives.

Barjas Al-Hadid is a pillar of the East Bank establishment whose tribal family have offered the ruling Hashemite royal family indefatigable loyalty since Prince Abdullah arrived in the city of Ma'an in 1921 to claim Transjordan for the Hashemites. 'King Hussein was born in 1935' relates Barjas, "for the first 3 months of his life he had a wet nurse who was a Hadid. The wet nurse; named Dela Al-Hadid, is the mother to Hmoud Hamad Al-Hadid and the Grandmother to Colonel Maher Hmoud Al-Hadid. "When my Father Shaher died in 1947, when I was only nine years old, King Abdullah insisted that he be buried in the royal family's cemetery, above the Raghadan palace in Amman".

The Hadid tribal history and hence Barjas' family history is interwoven with the history of Jordan. "We took part in the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Empire, with Prince Faisal, and we fought against the French in Syria" says Barjas with Pride. "We fought at the battle of Maisaloun, my father Shaher and his cousin Minwer and many from our tribe were there".

In 1957, Al-Hadid attended military college in Cairo, but his education was ended early by a serious injury sustained in a light aircraft. After recovering, he rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel, working at Amir Faisal Military College until 1976. His political career began in 1984, when he joined the Amman City Council, where he served for two years, after which he was appointed to an eight-year term as one of 40 Senators in the upper chamber of the National Assembly. In 1997, Al-Hadid was elected to the Chamber of Deputies for the fourth electoral district in Amman; and was reelected in 2003.

Al-Hadid is married to Noof Salim Khair, with whom he has five children: Nidal, who was the mayor of Amman, worked in the Jordanian Football Association, and was a FIFA Development Officer for most Arabic countries; Muhammed, a major in the intelligence services; Hussam, a businessman; and his daughters Arwa and Hala. His father, Shaher, and cousin, Minwer, fought in the Arab Revolt which installed King Abdullah as ruler, and took an oath of loyalty to the king. This contributed to the close relationship shared between the two families, and upon his death Sheikh Shaher was buried in the royal cemetery at Al-Maquar, Amman.

The Hadid family Clan have been mentioned in a number of History Books in various different countries and by varying authors throughout time, these books are primarily based on the History of Tribal Clans in the Middle East and the important roles they have served during the founding of these countries. One such example would be in the Book "The Making of Jordan: Tribes, Colonialism and the Modern State " written by Yoav Alon. In this Book there are numerous mentions of the Hadid family clan, ranging from their role in Jordanian History and famous battles that they fought in, where the Clan's Territory is located, and mention of one of their most famous Leaders, Sheikh Minwer Shtewi Al-Hadid - In August 1922 during the Ikhwan raids on Jordan a Wahabi Force attacked two Bani Sakhr Villages (Tribal Allies of the Hadid), only 12 miles south of Amman the Capital. After being surprise attacked by the Wahabi Force, the surviving remnants called on their Amman based Hadid Allies for assistance. The Hadid led by Sheikh Minwer Shtewi Al-Hadid accepted the request for assistance by In a two-day battle the Bani Sakhr Reinforced by the Hadid Clan defeated the Wahabi Force. During the Battle, Sheikh Minwer Al-Hadid captured the flag of the Wahabis which he later took back to his encampment in Amman, later King Abdullah visited Sheikh Minwer Al-Hadid to request the return of their flag as King Abdullah wished to foster peaceful relations with the Wahabis in hopes of preventing future incursions into Jordan. Initially, Sheikh Minwer Al-Hadid was reluctant to return the flag as he had personally captured it during the fighting as a spoil of war and it was the Wahabis who had wrongfully aggressed into Jordanian Territory in the first place. Eventually however after continued talks with King Abdullah, a close friend of Sheikh Minwer Al-Hadid, he finally agreed to his request,