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President-elect Donald Trump has named his daughter’s father-in-law, Massad Boulos, as a senior Middle East adviser, thrusting the Lebanese auto tycoon into a fragile U.S.-brokered truce between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Trump said Boulos will serve as the president’s senior adviser on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs, joining the real estate developer Steve Witkoffwhom he appointed special envoy for the region, and his nominee for US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee.
None have traditional diplomatic experience, reflecting Trump’s penchant for elevating close friends and family to key positions.
“Massad is a negotiator and a staunch supporter of PEACE in the Middle East. He will be a strong advocate for the United States and its interests, and I am delighted to have him on our team!” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Boulos, whose son Michael is married to Trump’s youngest daughter Tiffany, has spent much of the past year rallying support for Trump among Arab Americans in the embattled state of Michigan.
Boulos recently traveled to Washington to meet with senior Lebanese officials and other US diplomats and representatives. He was widely tipped to be the next person to oversee relations between Israel and Lebanon, taking over from President Joe Biden’s senior adviser Amos Hochstein.
Born in a Christian family in Kfar Akka, Lebanon, moved to Texas as a teenager to attend the University of Houston. After graduation, Boulos joined his family’s automotive business in Nigeria, rising to lead Scoa Motors and Boulos Enterprises, which dominate the Nigerian motorcycle and vehicle market.
He is known to have close ties to Lebanon’s Christian political class, including Suleiman Frangieh, a leading Christian politician and Hezbollah’s favorite candidate to fill the vacant presidency.
The US announced last week that Israel and Lebanon had agreed to a ceasefire, ending more than a year of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
The US-brokered cease-fire deal calls for the gradual withdrawal of Israeli and Hezbollah forces from the southern Lebanon during 60 days. The Lebanese army and Unifil troops are set to be deployed widely in the region, which will be enforced by a US-led monitoring mechanism.
