Palestine Economy Portal

Translated by Tamara Barakat

Hasib Sabbagh was born in 1920 in Tiberius, but was raised in Safad. He lost his parents at an early age. He married Diana Tamari and they had three children: Sana, Suheil, and Samir.

Even though “Al Moallem Hasib” is a first-class economist, he earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Civil Engineering from the American University in Beirut in 1941, as he moved to Beirut upon completing his education in Jerusalem.

After he returned from Beirut, he got involved in the professional life, and established the Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) in Haifa. However, the 1948 Nakba forced him and his family to leave to Beirut. There, he revived his dream and reestablished the CCC in 1952.

Nowadays, the CCC, based in Athens, has become one of the seventeen largest international construction companies. It employs around 69 thousand people from 60 different nationalities.

In 2008, Sabbagh was ranked among the sixteenth richest Arabs, with a wealth of around $4.3 billion.

On the national, professional, and social levels, “Al Moallem Hasib” played a significant role in establishing the Arab Cultural Club in Beirut, which brought together Arab intellectuals. From this Club, the idea of establishing the Arab Nationalist Movement - which spread as an organizational movement in most Arab countries - sprung. Sabbagh also participated in Palestinian national work, for he was a founding member of both the Palestinian Central and National Councils.

Moreover, Sabbagh held several posts, the most prominent of which include: the Chair of the Board of Directors at the CCC, the Chair of the Board of Directors at the Palestinian Students Fund, the Deputy Chairman of the Welfare Association – Geneva, a member of the Board of Directors at the Arab Bank, member of the Board of Trustees at the Cleveland Clinic, a member of the International Council at Harvard University, a member of the Board of Trustees at Eureka College, a member of the Board of Directors at the Massachusetts General Hospital, a member of the Board of Directors at Georgetown University, a member in the Palestinian National Council, a member in the Palestinian Central Council, a member of the Board of Directors at the Institute for Palestine Studies in Beirut, and the Chair of the Board of Directors at the Georgetown Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding.

Additionally, this Palestinian businessman provided hundreds of scholarships for Palestinian and Lebanese students. He established several charitable projects including the Hassib Sabbagh Information Technology Center of Excellence in the Arab American University of Jenin, the Hasib Sabbagh Dorms for female students at the Kadoorie Institute in Tulkarem, the Hasib Sabbagh Sqaure at the center of Tulkarem, the Hasib Sabbagh School in Nablus, the Hasib Sabbagh Hospital in Ramallah, the Hasib Sabbagh Hall in the AUB, the Hasib Sabbagh Garden in Beirut, and The Hasib J. Sabbagh Chair in Georgetown University.

Sabbagh was awarded various medals honoring his leading humanitarian, social and national roles. These medals include the National Order of the Cedar medal with the rank of Knight in 1970, the National Order of the Cedar medal with the rank of Officer in 1997, the Silver Lebanese Order of Merit in 2001, and the Bethlehem Star Award in 2000.

On January 12, 2010, Sabagh passed away at age 90, in New York after suffering from an illness. He was buried in Beirut, but his contributions and work still live on until today.