Word: franjiehs
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When Lebanese President Suleiman Franjieh announced the appointment of his country's first military government, Beirut crackled with small-arms fire as Lebanese Christians celebrated. Last week the military government bowed out after three days, and again the city popped with gunfire. This time it came from Beirut's Moslem neighborhoods, rejoicing that Franjieh had asked former Premier Rashid Karami to head a civilian government. The change in leadership was precipitated by the latest in a series of clashes between the country's Moslem majority (about 60%) and Christian minority that have troubled Lebanon (pop. 3.2 million...
Syria's President Hafez Assad and Lebanon's President Suleiman Franjieh met briefly in the Lebanese town of Chtoura, a honeymoon resort that is the local equivalent of Niagara Falls. The setting was significant: though their discussions concerned the situation with Israel, the meeting was the first formal summit between leaders of the two often contentious neighbors since 1947. Franjieh reportedly refused to allow Syrian troops inside his country short of an all-out Israeli assault, and agreed only to "military coordination" with Damascus. Even Israeli diplomats decided that the meeting had temporarily lessened tension along the northern...
Last week's agreement between the Palestinians and the government came none too soon for Lebanon, which has been economically paralyzed by the strife. But the uneasy compromise left a lot unsettled. President Suleiman Franjieh is expected to form a new government soon, which will respect Lebanon's constitutional division of power between the Christians, the Shia and the Sunni Moslems. Pressure from pro-Palestinian Moslems appeared to be an important factor in forcing Franjieh to settle with the guerrillas. Also instrumental was Leftist Leader Kamal Jumblatt, who stands to gain an important post in the new government...
Hafez's resignation had little impact. Tough, short-fused Franjieh had clearly been in full control from the start. One of his major worries was the pro-fedayeen activity of Lebanon's Opposition Leader Kamal Jumblatt and other left-wing or Moslem politicians. Jumblatt called a secret meeting to organize political agitation in support of the guerrillas. Later, a member of Parliament from Jumblatt's Progressive Socialist Party was caught trying to smuggle arms into Beirut from the Syrian border. His car contained 35 submachine guns, five bundles of dynamite and seven bazookas. There were other signs...
...most of the battle areas. A hopeful sign was that it was being supervised by joint patrols of the army and the fedayeen. But the gut issue remained unresolved. The fedayeen seemed prepared to return to the status quo, under which they would continue to control the refugee camps. Franjieh was determined that the control should be shared with Lebanese authorities so that the guerrillas would never again have the freedom that they enjoyed before. Ahead lay the possibility of more battles until the fedayeen give in-or, perhaps, until they are forced out of Lebanon as they were...