Zahira Ahmed Badawi Kamal is a Palestinian politician. She was born in 1945 in Wadi al-Joz, East Jerusalem. She has seven siblings, all of whom are younger than her. She studied at El-Ma'amuniya High School, then enrolled in Ain Shams University in Cairo to study industrial physics and chemistry, earning her bachelor's degree. She received her postgraduate diploma in Education from the University of Jordan in 1978. She founded the Palestinian Federation of Women's Action Committees and served as Minister of Women’s Affairs in the second and third cabinets headed by Ahmed Qurei. She holds the position of Secretary General of the Palestinian Democratic Union, and she is also a member of the Yasser Arafat Foundation.