Jamil Mardam Bey
Jamil Mardam Bey left Syria in January 1949 for Cairo and continued to live there until his death in 1960. Many attempts were made to lure him back to public life but his health was in decline and he felt he could not discharge his duties. In 1954, President Gamal Abdel Nasser delegated Anwar al-Sadat and diplomat Amin Shaker to persuade Mardam Bey to return to Syria and stand for presidential elections. Mardam Bey counselled the return of Shukri al-Quwatli, who had been ousted by a military coup. Mardam Bey issued a declaration in 1954 that he had officially retired from public life. He had already suffered his first heart attack.