Luai al-Atassi was a Syria

Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....

n military leader and Head of State (9 March - 27 July 1963). He was born in Homs

Homs

Homs , previously known as Emesa , is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is above sea level and is located north of Damascus...

 to a politically prominent family

Atassi

Atassi, also spelled Atasi is the name of a prominent family of city Notables in Homs, Syria dating back to the 16th century AD. Members of the family lead the national movement against the French mandate...

, and studied at the Military Academy in that city. He fought in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War

1948 Arab-Israeli War

The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...

 and rose to become chief of Military Protocol under his kinsman, President Hashim al-Atassi

Hashim al-Atassi

Hashim Bay Khalid al-Atassi was a Syrian nationalist, statesman and its President from 1936 to 1939, 1949 to 1951, and 1954 to 1955.- Background and early career :...

 in 1954. Luai served as military attaché at the Syrian embassy in Cairo

Cairo

Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...

 and became an adherent of the Pan-Arab nationalism of Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

's president Gamal Abdel Nasser

Gamal Abdel Nasser

Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...

. In 1958 Atassi strongly supported the union of Syria and Egypt in the United Arab Republic

United Arab Republic

The United Arab Republic , often abbreviated as the U.A.R., was a sovereign union between Egypt and Syria. The union began in 1958 and existed until 1961, when Syria seceded from the union. Egypt continued to be known officially as the "United Arab Republic" until 1971. The President was Gamal...

 and criticized the coup in Syria that dissolved it in 1961. He went on to serve as military attaché at the Syrian embassy in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 He was recalled to Damascus

Damascus

Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...

 to testify against Nasserite officers charged in a coup seeking to restore the UAR. He refused to condemn the officers and was himself imprisoned. On March 8, 1963, the military wing of the Baath party seized power, released Atassi, and appointed him Chairman of the National Revolutionary Command Council charged with administering executive authority. He was vested with limited presidential powers, and became Head of state in that capacity. However his position was mostly ceremonial, and he resigned four months later on July 27, 1963. He then retired to his native Homs where he lived for another four decades and took no further part in military or political activity. His complete detachment from public life after his retirement is credited with saving him from serious molestation from the Assad regime that overthrew his kinsman President Nureddin al-Atassi

Nureddin al-Atassi

Noureddin Mohammed Ali al-Atassi was President of Syria from February 1966 to November 1970...

in 1970.