Georges Saadeh ( ar, جورج سعاده) (November 21, 1930 – November 17, 1998) was a Lebanese politician. He was appointed as a minister in several governments and was the head of the

Kataeb Party The Kataeb Party ( ar, حزب الكتائب اللبنانية '), also known in English as the Phalanges, is a Christian political party in Lebanon. The party played a major role in the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990). In decline in the lat ...

for twelve years.

Early life and education

Saadeh was born in Chabtine, a small village in the caza of

Batroun Batroun ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرُون '; Syriac script: ܒܬܪܘܢ ') is a coastal city in northern Lebanon and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It is the capital city of Batroun District. Etymology The name ''Bat ...

. He was the third child of a poor Maronite family of six boys. His father was a cavalier in the Lebanese Interior Security Forces. He studied

Arabic literature Arabic literature ( ar, الأدب العربي / ALA-LC: ''al-Adab al-‘Arabī'') is the writing, both as prose and poetry, produced by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for literature is '' Adab'', which is derived from ...

at the Lebanese Academy for Fine Arts and then graduated with a PhD from the

Salamanca University The University of Salamanca ( es, Universidad de Salamanca) is a Spanish higher education institution, located in the city of Salamanca, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It was founded in 1218 by King Alfonso IX. It is t ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. He also continued to study law, and graduated with a degree in law from the Lebanese university

Political career

He entered the

at the age of 15. And after his return from Spain, he became

Pierre Gemayel Pierre Amine Gemayel, also spelled Jmayyel, Jemayyel or al-Jumayyil ( ar, بيار الجميّل; 6 November 1905 – 29 August 1984), was a Lebanese political leader. A Maronite Catholic, he is remembered as the founder of the Kataeb Part ...

's advisor. Saadeh became one of the Kataeb's most acclaimed orators but was still an employee in the Lebanese Ministry of Education when the party asked him to run for the Batroun legislative election in 1968. That same year, he won the elections and graduated from Law school. He was an MP in Parliament Caza of Batroun from 1968 to 1992, when he boycotted the 1992 parliamentary elections. In 1986, Georges Saadeh became the head of the Kataeb Party after winning the elections over Dr Elie Karameh. He was supported by Pierre Gemayel's first camarades "the old guard" and by Samir Geagea's Lebanese Forces. He was head of the Kataeb Party from 1986 till his death in 1998 and head of the

Lebanese Front The Lebanese Front ( ar, الجبهة اللبنانية, ''al-Jabha al-Lubnaniyya'') or ''Front Libanais'' in French, was a coalition of mainly Lebanese Nationalist parties formed in 1976 by majority Christian intellectuals during the Leban ...

after the death of the President of Lebanon

Camille Chamoun Camille Nimr Chamoun OM, ONC ( ar, كميل نمر شمعون, ''Kamīl Sham'ūn''; 3 April 1900 – 7 August 1987) was a Lebanese politician who served as President of Lebanon from 1952 to 1958. He was one of the country's main Christi ...

. He was the main supporter of president elect

Bashir Gemayel Bachir Pierre Gemayel ( ; 10 November 1947 – 14 September 1982) was a Lebanese militia commander who led the Lebanese Forces, the military wing of the Kataeb Party in the Lebanese Civil War and was elected President of Lebanon in 1982. ...

who was elected at the second round of the 1982 presidential elections. He held several ministerial positions: minister of planning in the government of Saeb Salam in 1972, minister of transportation and public works in the government of Rachid El Solh 1974 and minister of telecommunication in the governments of Salim El Hoss in 1989, of Rachid Karami in 1990, of Rachid El Solh in 1990. In 1989, Georges Saadeh became a Christian leader and a supporter of the

Taif Agreement The Taif Agreement ( ar, اتفاق الطائف), officially known as the ( ar, وثيقة الوفاق الوطني, label=none'')'', was reached to provide "the basis for the ending of the civil war and the return to political normalcy in Le ...

. He was the subject of an attempted assassination by a car bomb in 1989 in Furn El Chebbak and survived a car bomb targeting the leadership meeting of the Kataeb Party in Beirut in December 1993.

Death and legacy

In 1998, he wrote his book ''My story with the Taif Agreement'' in which he revealed secrets of the then-controversial agreement that is now acclaimed but died November 17, 1998, of cancer before the distribution of the book which was taken care of by his elder son. He was outlived by wife, Lily El Khazen, and three children: Samer (member of Parliament between 2009 and 2017 representing the Kataeb Party parliamentarian bloc), Myra and Rami. His son Samer decided to pursue the political work.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saadeh, Georges Lebanese Maronites 1930 births 1998 deaths Kataeb Party politicians Government ministers of Lebanon Members of the Parliament of Lebanon Candidates for President of Lebanon University of Salamanca alumni People from Batroun District