Information AboutLebanese Forces |
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The Lebanese Forces are a Lebanese Political Party and former Militia , which played a major role in the Civil War which ravaged Lebanon from 1975 to 1990 . After the civil war ended, the movement reinvented itself as a political party, although its activities were severely restricted by the pro- Syria n government until the Cedar Revolution in early 2005 resulted in a withdrawal of Syrian Troops . The movement is officially secular, but in practice has always been supported almost exclusively by Christians, especially Maronite s. The LF used to be represented by the crucifix, however there were requests from priests to stop using it as a symbol of the Lebanese Forces because of their violent history. EARLY HISTORY (1977 - 1982) In opposition to an alliance of Palestinian and leftist Muslim militias, the Lebanese Forces (LF) were organized in 1977 under the leadership of Bachir Gemayel , as the military counterpart to the Lebanese Front , a political coalition. The LF was initially a loose coalition of disparate Christian militias, including the Tigers (linked to former President Camille Chamoun 's National Liberal Party , or "Ahrar") and the militant Guardians Of The Cedars , led by Etienne Saqr , but was dominated by Gemayel's Phalange , the military wing of the Kataeb Party of Gemayel's father, Pierre Gemayel . Gemayel built the LF into a formidable fighting force, absorbing, often forcibly, smaller Christian militias. In a 1978 4am raid on Tony Frangieh's mansion in an attempt to capture Ehden, the mountainous summer town for the people of Zgharta , it is believed that the Kataeb killed their allied partner Marada Brigade commander, Tony Frangieh (the former President's son) and to this day they deny killing him. It was a failed attempted to absorb the Marada Brigade by force. In another ''surprise'' attack on 7 July 1980 , the LF attacked and absorbed their former allies, the ''Ahrar.'' The LF attempted to dominate the Christian side of the political landscape in Lebanon, and along the way they killed off some of their allied leaders. These actions taken by the Kataeb under Bashir and the LF created a breakup and division within the Christian Lebanese Front during the civil war which made their former allies look elsewhere for alliances. Nowadays there are continual efforts in rebuilding the Maronite unity which existed before 1978. The LF are concidered to be the worst political party in Lebanon and it is the main reason that the Lebanese civil war started. THE AMINE GEMAYEL YEARS (1982 - 1988) President Bachir Gemayel was assassinated on 14 September 1982 , before having taken office. His brother, Amine replaced him as President and his cousin, Fadi Frem , as commander of the LF. The two had a frosty relationship, and in 1984 , pressure from Amine Gemayel led to Frem's replacement by Fuad Abou Nader , a nephew of Gemayel's. Nader was not popular with the rank and file Lebanese Forces, however, and he was soon overthrown by a faction led by Samir Geagea and Elie Hobeika . With his eye apparently on the Presidency, Hobeika began secret negotiations with the Syrian government to end the conflict. On 28 December 1985 , he signed the Tripartite Accord , against the wishes of Geagea and other leading Christian figures. Geagea mobilized dissenting factions of the LF and on January 15 1986 , attacked the LF headquarters in Karantina , where Hobeika was holed up. Hobeika surrendered and fled, first to Paris and subsequently to Damascus . Taking command of the LF, Geagea launched a drive to re-equip and reorganize the militia. He also instituted a Social Welfare program in areas controlled by the LF. THE AOUN YEARS (1988 - 1990) Two rival governments contended for recognition following Amine Gemayel's departure from the Presidency in September 1988. The LF initially supported the one led by General Michel Aoun, who was also the Commander of the Lebanese Army. However, Aoun and Geagea will soon fall out. Geagea considered Aoun's "War of Liberation" against the much larger Syrian army to be doomed from the outset. Nevertheless the rising popularity of Aoun in the country, and more importantly in the Christian communities, would compell Geagea to support it. That soon changed when in 1990 the newly elected president Elias Hrawi convinced Geagea to change camps in return for political privileges in a post-war government. What ensued was a devastating war for control of the suburbs of East Beirut throughout much of 1990. THE SECOND REPUBLIC (1990 - 2005) After Aoun surrendered on 13 October 1990 to the rival President, Elias Hrawi and his Syrian backers, Geagea was offered ministerial posts in the new government. He refused several times, however, he said that he was opposed to Syrian interference in Lebanese affairs, and his relationship with the government deteriorated. In 1994 , Geagea was arrested on charges of attempting to undermine government authority by ''"maintaining a militia in the guise of a political party,"'' of instigating acts of violence, and of committing assassinations during the Lebanese Civil War. The Lebanese Government issued a decree dissolving the LF. Prior to his arrest, he was contacted by several sympathetic politicians and warned about the forthcoming proceedings and offered safe passage out of Lebanon. Geagea refused to leave and was subsequently arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment on several different counts, including the assassination of former Prime Minister Rashid Karami in 1987 and of National Liberal Party leader Dany Chamoun in 1990 . He was incarcerated in solitary confinement, with his access to the outside world severely restricted. Human rights groups including Amnesty International decried the judicial process leading to his conviction as seriously flawed and politically motivated. Supporters of the LF were active participants in the Cedar Revolution of 2005 . In the subsequent Parliamentary Election held in May and June, the LF formed part of the Rafik Hariri Martyr List , a coalition led by Saad Hariri , which won the election. Samir Geagea was pardoned on 18 July 2005 , and after residing in France for a time with his wife (and MP), Sitrida , returned to Lebanon in October 2005 to become president of the Executive Committee of the Lebanese Forces. The LF currently hold 5 of the 128 seats available in the Lebanese Parliament . EXTERNAL LINKS
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