Nasib Al Matni (1910–1958) was a Lebanese journalist who was assassinated on 8 May 1958. He established several publications and edited various newspapers. His assassination triggered the events which led to a

political crisis Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...

in Lebanon. The murder of Al Matni is one of the unsolved cases in Lebanon.

Biography

Al Matni was born in 1910. He descended from a Maronite family. Al Matni was the president of the Lebanese Press Federation. During the

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified by a ...

of Bechara El Khoury he was one of the leading dissidents in Lebanon. Al Matni was arrested in 1952 and tried which was protested through a three-day strike. He was also a critic of the President Camille Chamoun and held pro-Nasserist views supporting the

United Arab Republic The United Arab Republic (UAR; ar, الجمهورية العربية المتحدة, al-Jumhūrīyah al-'Arabīyah al-Muttaḥidah) was a sovereign state in the Middle East from 1958 until 1971. It was initially a political union between Eg ...

. Al Matni and the editor of the Communist newspaper ''Al Shaab'' were briefly arrested on 22 July 1957 following the general election. They called for President Chamoun's impeachment if there were fraudulent practices in the electoral process.

Assassination

Al Matni was assassinated in his office in West Beirut in the early hours on 8 May 1958. During the incident he was the owner and editor-in-chief of ''The Telegraph'' which was supported by the Sunni opposition in Lebanon. The paper was a leftist and pan-Arabist daily publication which criticized the policies of President Chamoun. In the last editorial published in the paper Al Matni repeated his call for the resignation of President Chamoun and added:

Lebanon's interests, Lebanon's eternal independence, and the interest of the people make it essential for the individual to sacrifice himself for the benefit of the whole.

The officials claimed that his killing was not due to a political reason, but the opposition figures argued that he was killed due to his anti-Chamoun stance. Because following his assassination numerous threatening letters were found which asked him to stop his criticisms against President Chamoun.

Aftermath

After his assassination Kamal Jumblatt and other opposition leaders asked the Lebanese people to organize a general strike which led to large-scale protests in Beirut and Tripoli. The libraries of the

United States Information Agency The United States Information Agency (USIA), which operated from 1953 to 1999, was a United States agency devoted to "public diplomacy". In 1999, prior to the reorganization of intelligence agencies by President George W. Bush, President Bill C ...

were burned by the demonstrators in both cities on 10 May. The protests took place on the day of Al Matni's funeral in Akkar,

Miniyeh Miniyeh ( ar, المنية, french: Minieh) is the capital of the Miniyeh-Danniyeh District in North Governorate of Lebanon. Minya is located 96 km from Beirut at an altitude of 20 m above sea level. Notable people * Mostafa Matar ...

, Chouf, Biqa and

Sidon Sidon ( ; he, צִידוֹן, ''Ṣīḏōn'') known locally as Sayda or Saida ( ar, صيدا ''Ṣaydā''), is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate, of which it is the capital, on the Mediterranean coast. ...

. These demonstrations soon expanded to other Lebanese cities. Muslims, Druzes and those Christians who opposed to President Chamoun participated in these protests which lasted between 9 May and 14 October 1958. During these events nearly 3,000 people died. Several media outlets blamed President Chamoun and the Syrian Social Nationalist Party for the murder of Al Matni. ''

Al Amal AL, Al, Ål or al may stand for: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Al (''Aladdin'') or Aladdin, the main character in Disney's ''Aladdin'' media * Al (''EastEnders''), a minor character in the British soap opera * Al (''Fullmetal ...

'', official organ of the Kataeb Party, reported that Al Matni was the father of jihad and that the state should arrest the murderers. '' Al Anbaa'', media outlet of the Progressive Socialist Party, and '' An Nahar'' also demanded the arrest of the perpetrators.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matni, Nasib 20th-century Lebanese writers 20th-century journalists 20th-century newspaper founders 1910 births 1958 deaths Assassinated Lebanese journalists Deaths by firearm in Lebanon Lebanese democracy activists Lebanese left-wing activists Lebanese Maronites Lebanese newspaper founders Terrorism deaths in Lebanon