Amine Gemayel

Amine Pierre Gemayel (Arabic: أمين بيار الجميّل, Lebanese Arabic pronunciation: [ʔæmiːn ɪlʒmaj.jɪl]; born 22 January 1942) is a Lebanese politician who served as the eighth president of Lebanon from 1982 to 1988. Gemayel was born in Bikfaya to Pierre Gemayel, the founder of the Christian Kataeb Party (also known as the "Phalanges"). He worked as a lawyer, then was elected as a deputy for Northern Metn in 1970 by-election, following the death of his uncle, Maurice Gemayel, and once again in the 1972 general election. At the start of the Lebanese Civil War, the Phalanges were a member of the Lebanese Front, allied with Syria against the leftist National Movement. However, Syria became their enemy, while they started receiving the support of Israel. This phase saw the rise of Amine's brother, Bachir, who had disputes with Amine about the military leadership, such as uniting the Christian militias by force. In 1982 Bachir was elected to presidency but was assassinated before taking office. Gemayel's election was endorsed by the United States and Israel following the assassination of his brother, and he was elected on 23 September 1982. At the age of 40 years, Amine was the youngest president to take office. Gemayel re-organized the Lebanese Army, receiving support from the Multinational Force in Lebanon and despite fierce internal opposition, he reached the May 17 Agreement with Israel in 1983, which stipulated the withdrawal of the Israeli forces and ending the state of war between the two countries, but didn't ratify it. Under his command, the army, allied with the Lebanese Forces, clashed with Jammoul, a Syrian-backed alliance led by the Druze Walid Jumblatt, in what is known as the Mountain War. By the end of the conflict, the government suffered heavy defeat, and lost control over wide areas of Mount Lebanon....