Word: gemayels
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...Bush sloshed through the mud to watch the rescue operations. Flanked by dozens of Marines and nine Secret Service men, he watched as workers jackhammered what was the remains of the building's second floor. He awarded the Purple Heart to two survivors, and met with President Amin Gemayel at his palace overlooking the city. Later he told TIME how his three hours in Beirut had moved him. "One is never prepared for the magnitude of what happened," he said softly. "You're standing there in a crater looking at one-inch reinforcing rods twisted like spaghetti...
...usual in the Lebanese political maelstrom, there was no shortage of suspects for the bombing. Nor was there any certainty that the question would ever be answered satisfactorily. The primary effect of the Marines' presence in Lebanon has been to provide backing for the fledgling government of President Amin Gemayel. For this reason, the Maronite Christians have generally welcomed the peace keepers and in fact have attached an almost symbolic importance to the presence of the U.S. battleship New Jersey in the waters off Beirut...
Others who oppose the Gemayel government, and thus the Marines, are elements of the Palestine Liberation Organization who either managed to remain in Lebanon following last year's evacuation of at least 6,000 P.L.O. commandos from Beirut, or have succeeded in insinuating their way back. The Druze and several of the Muslim groups have been armed and aided by the Syrian government. The Syrians are determined to assure themselves of an important future role in Lebanese affairs, and have repeatedly called for the resignation of Gemayel...
Meanwhile, the government of Amin Gemayel announced last week that "new difficulties" had prevented Lebanon's multitudinous factions from agreeing on a time and place for their national reconciliation meeting. "New" difficulties? The problems seemed as new as Cain and Abel. If Lebanon's warring sects are given a chance to disagree, they will. This time, Suleiman Franjieh, a former President (1970-76) and one of the leaders of the Syrian-backed National Salvation Front, announced that he would not attend any conference held in Lebanon, while Camille Chamoun, head of the right-wing Christian Lebanese Front, declared...
Since the cease-fire accord worked out by Saudi Arabia and the U.S. went into effect two weeks ago, the Syrian government has relentlessly asserted its influence over Lebanese affairs. Faced with Syrian opposition, Gemayel and the U.S. backed away from their suggestion that the U.N. monitor the ceasefire. The latest proposal calls for the observers to be drawn from U.N. forces now in Lebanon, but to keep them outside U.N. jurisdiction. Another alternative: ask nonaligned nations, such as India and Greece, to supply the truce policemen...