Samir Geagea

Samir Geagea سمير جعجع
Geagea in 2019
Executive Chairman of Lebanese Forces
Incumbent
Assumed office 15 January 1986
Preceded by	Elie Hobeika
Personal details
Born	(1952-10-25) 25 October 1952 (age 72) Ain El Remmaneh, Lebanon
Political party	Lebanese Forces
Other political affiliations	Kataeb Party (until 1992) March 14 Alliance (until 2016) Lebanese Opposition (2019–present)
Spouse	Sethrida Tawk ​ (m. 1990)​
Alma mater	American University of Beirut Saint Joseph University
Religion	Maronite Catholicism
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People Samir Geagea Émile Eddé Bechara El Khoury Alfred Naqqache Camille Chamoun Suleiman Frangieh Pierre Gemayel Bachir Gemayel Amine Gemayel Michel Aoun Gebran Bassil
Families Chamoun Frangieh Gemayel Khazen Moawad
Parties Lebanese Forces National Bloc Constitutional Bloc Kataeb National Liberal Marada Movement Free Patriotic Movement
Militias Lebanese Forces (Lebanese Resistance) Kataeb Regulatory Forces Tigers Al-Tanzim Guardians of the Cedars
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Samir Farid Geagea (Arabic: سمير فريد جعجع, Lebanese Arabic: [saˈmiːɾ faˈɾiːd ˈʒaʕʒaʕ] listen^ⓘ, also spelled Samir Ja'ja' ; born 25 October 1952) is a Lebanese politician and former militia commander who has been the leader of the Lebanese Forces political party and former militia since 1986.^[1]

Born in Ain al-Remaneh, Geagea joined the Christian^[2] Kataeb Party in his early years. He led the Northern Front in the Lebanese Forces from 1979 to 1984.^[3] In March 1985, after the deterioration of the Christian political situation in the eastern regions after the assassination of the Lebanese Forces leader Bachir Gemayel, he led, jointly with Elie Hobeika and Karim Pakradouni, an uprising that led to control of the political situation without any bloodshed.^[3] On 15 January 1986, Geagea led a movement against the tripartite agreement sponsored by Syria to become the commander of the Lebanese Forces after the overthrow of Elie Hobeika, head of the executive body at the time and one of the signatories of the tripartite agreement.^[4]

Geagea initially supported the "War of Liberation" declared by disputed Prime Minister General Michel Aoun against the Syrian Army. On 31 January 1990, General Aoun declared war on the Lebanese Forces led by Geagea under the name "elimination war".^[3] Under Geagea, the Lebanese Forces agreed to the Taif Accord peace agreement that ended the civil war and ceded control of its territory and weapons to the Lebanese Army in 1991. In accordance with the agreement, he immediately dissolved the military and security arm of the Lebanese Forces and surrendered all its military assets to the Lebanese Army. But as Beirut was under the control of the Syrian Army, the party members were subject to pressure and Syrian forces refused to withdraw as set out in the agreement.^[5][6]

On 24 January 1990, Geagea was appointed a Minister of State in the first post-war cabinet, led by Prime Minister Omar Karami. Geagea rejected the position due to the flagrant control of the cabinet by the Syrian regime. On 16 May 1992, Geagea was again appointed as a minister in the Rashid El Solh cabinet, only to refuse it again for the same reasons. In 1994, Geagea was arrested and put on trial for bombing a church and political killings in the war. He denied the accusations and claimed he was the target of a political prosecution fabricated by the Syrian-Lebanese security apparatus.^[5][6]

Geagea spent 11 years in solitary confinement, the only war leader to go to jail in Lebanon, while others benefited from an amnesty and took cabinet posts.^[5][7] Following the Cedar Revolution, and the subsequent withdrawal of Syrian forces from Lebanon, a newly elected Lebanese Parliament voted to grant him amnesty on 18 July 2005.^[8]