Antoine Lahad

Antoine Lahad (Arabic: أنطوان لحد, romanized: 'Anṭwān Laḥad; 22 August 1927 – 10 September 2015) was a Lebanese Army Major General, and subsequently the leader of the South Lebanon Army (SLA) from 1984 until 2000, when the SLA withdrew from Southern Lebanon and was dissolved. A Maronite Christian from the Chouf District, Lahad was a career officer in the Lebanese Armed Forces. He rose to the title of Major General, specialized in intelligence, and commanded key regions before his initial retirement. In 1984, Lahad took command of the SLA following the death of its founder, Saad Haddad, with backing from former Lebanese President Camille Chamoun. He restructured the militia, integrating Lebanese Druze, Shia, and Sunni Muslim soldiers, expanding the overall rank-and-file force to include thousands of Lebanese militiamen. They fought alongside each other to regain control of Lebanese territory from Palestinian militant factions (and, subsequently, Hezbollah) which dominated much of southern Lebanon. Operating from Marjayoun, he coordinated with the Israel Defense Forces to maintain the southern security belt. He survived a 1988 assassination attempt, which left him partially paralyzed. After Israel withdrew from southern Lebanon in May 2000, the SLA collapsed. He then lived first in Tel Aviv, Israel, and finally in Paris, until his death at 88 years of age in 2015.