Word: bashir
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...members of the commission reminded Begin that the Phalangists had committed other massacres in the past. They also read from Cabinet minutes and other documents to show that the possibility of revenge killings by the militiamen in the aftermath of the assassination of President-elect Bashir Gemayel had been raised not only in Begin's presence but by the Prime Minister himself. He had, in fact, told U.S. Negotiator Morris Draper that the Israeli army had moved into West Beirut, in defiance of the agreement that had been negotiated for the evacuation of the Palestine Liberation Organization, "to prevent...
This policy has dismayed the Israelis, who had hoped to forge an active partnership with a Lebanese government headed by Amin Gemayel's brother Bashir, who was slain nine days before his scheduled inauguration as President two months ago. Perhaps more serious than the disappointment of the Israelis, from Gemayel's point of view, is the dissatisfaction of some members of the Lebanese Forces, the Phalangist-dominated organization of Christian militias that was once headed by Bashir. Many Phalangists resent Amin's attempts at conciliation with the Muslims, and they oppose an effort by his government...
...family affair, and the Gemayel clan has been prominent on the national scene for half a century. Pierre Gemayel, now 72, founded the Christian Phalangist Party in the 1930s, and he raised his two sons to carry on the family role in politics. So when President-elect Bashir Gemayel was assassinated last September only nine days before he was to have been inaugurated, it came as no surprise that his brother Amin promptly declared his own candidacy. By a nearly unanimous vote in parliament, Amin was elected to a six-year term. At first, no one quite knew what...
personalities could hardly have been more different. Bashir, 34, was charismatic but tough, a military man whose favorite pastime was hanging out with members of the private militia he led. Amin, 40, was quiet and intellectual, a lawyer and businessman who kept out of the limelight to pursue his private life. Bashir felt comfortable in fatigues or at the wheel of a Jeep; Amin has always had an eye for fine tailoring and limousines. While Bashir evoked strong emotions of loyalty or hatred, Amin was regarded...
conciliator, the "human face of the Phalange," as some Lebanese put it. Above all, Bashir was closely identified with Israel, which had helped finance and train his militia. Amin had always maintained good contacts with Arab states and opposition groups inside Lebanon. Following the 1975-76 civil war, which divided Beirut into Christian and Muslim sectors, he visited West Beirut regularly to talk with his Muslim counterparts. During negotiations for the evacuation of the Palestine Liberation Organization from West Beirut last summer, Amin met quietly with Abu Iyad, the P.L.O.'s military commander. Born in the predominantly Christian village...