Zuhair Masharqa (b. 1938 in Aleppo

Aleppo

Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...

, d. 2007) was a Syrian political figure.

Earlier career and political alignment

Masharqa served as governor of Hama Governorate

Hama Governorate

Hama is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in western-central Syria. Its area depends of sources. It varies from 8,844 km² to 8,883 km². Governorate has a population of 1,593,000...

 from 1973 to 1978, when he joined the cabinet as minister of education.

He was a prominent member of the Baath Party.

Vice President of Syria

He was the country's longest serving Vice President from 1984 to 2006, and was particularly noted for his loyalty to President Hafez Assad. President Bashar Assad chose to retain him as a Vice President

Vice president

A vice president is an officer in government or business who is below a president in rank. The name comes from the Latin vice meaning 'in place of'. In some countries, the vice president is called the deputy president...

up to his retirement in 2006. He died of a heart attack the year following his retirement as Vice President.