Name of leader Samir Geagea
Full name Samir Farid Geagea
Organization Lebanese Forces (LF)
Conflict country Lebanon
Gender Male
Year of birth 1952[1]
Place of birth Ain al-Remaneh, Beirut, Lebanon[2]
Year of death N/A
Deceased
No; he is still alive.
Birth order
There is no information on the order, but he has one sister and one brother.[3]
Age at start of rebel leadership
“By 1985, Samir Geagea had been promoted to Chief of Staff of the Lebanese Forces.”[4]
Leader entry method
His entry method is unclear.[5]
Powersharing
No, there is no evidence of powersharing.
Education (also name universities attended, if any); note any relevant experiences while a student
“Geagea completed his formal education in Ain al-Remaneh public schools, where his academic performance granted him acceptance at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Medical School and a scholarship from the Gebran Khalil Gebran Foundation. The outbreak of the Lebanese civil war in 1975 interrupted Samir’s studies at AUB. The campus, located in west Beirut, fell under the control of hostile militias, forcing Samir to transfer to the Saint Joseph University Medical School in east Beirut. As military operations intensified and spread to the northern parts of the country after 1976, Samir joined the defense against the onslaught of Palestinian guerillas and their allies. Samir climbed the ranks of the Kata’eb Party from a junior member in the party’s student chapter during his high school years to a member of the student chapter at AUB .….. In 1978, just a few months shy of receiving his medical degree, he was forced to leave the university and dedicate his time fully to the military struggle.”[6] “Although he would later complete his studies at the University of St. Joseph, Geagea never practiced medicine – the massacres and dislocations experienced by the Christian community in the early war years impelled him to devote his career to their defense.”[7]
Ever married? If yes, age of first marriage
Yes; in 1991, at the age of 39, Geagea married Sethrida Tawk.[8]
Children
No; there is no evidence he has children.
Religious identification
He is a Maronite Christian.[9]
Elite family background
He is from a family of modest means.[10] “His father, Farid Geagea, was a warrant officer in the Lebanese Armed Forces, and his mother was a homemaker.”[11]
Political affiliations and intellectual circles; note any relevant social connections made
No; there is no evidence of political affiliations.
Physical and mental health
No; there is no evidence of poor physical or mental health.
Pre-militant leader occupation
He was an activist.[12]
Experience in a state military, and role; any relevant social ties
No; there is no evidence of experience in a state military.
Experience in a nonstate military, and role; any relevant social ties
No; there is no evidence of experience in a nonstate military.
Combat experience prior to assuming resistance organization leadership?
Yes; in the late 1970s, he fought in the Lebanese Forces against Palestinian terrorist organizations and their allies.[13]
Held government position prior to assuming leadership?
No; there is no evidence he held a government position.
Lived in exile?
No; there is no evidence he lived in exile.
Study abroad?
No; there is no evidence he studied abroad.
Did the leader receive military training abroad?
No; there is no evidence of military training abroad.
Did the leader have extensive work experience abroad?
No; there is no evidence he had extensive work experience abroad.
Serve time in prison? Social connections during that time?
“On March 23, 1994, a bomb detonated in a church in the heart of the Christian areas, resulting in several deaths and injuries. The authorities immediately blamed the LF for the bombing and arrested Geagea on April 21, 1994.
Despite the usurped judicial system’s best efforts at formulating charges and fabricating evidence, the court could not make a single accusation hold against Geagea and instead resorted to indicting him on fabricated evidence from the war period.
For the next 11 years and 3 months, Samir Geagea was held in solitary confinement in a 2×3 meter underground cell, three stories below the Lebanese Ministry of Defense, where he was deprived of the most basic of rights.”[14]
Was there an assassination attempt on the leader by the state?
Yes, the assassination attempt was likely conducted not by Hezbollah but by The Syrian Social-Nationalist Party.[15]
Cause of Death?
N/A
Primary language, and other languages spoken as adult
His primary language is Arabic.
Image Credit: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Samir_Geagea_%28cropped%29.jpg
[1] “SAMIR GEAGEA BIOGRAPHY,” Samir Geagea’s Website, Accessed March 28, 2018, http://www.samirgeagea.info/samir-geagea-biography/.
[2] “SAMIR GEAGEA BIOGRAPHY,” Samir Geagea’s Website, Accessed March 28, 2018, http://www.samirgeagea.info/samir-geagea-biography/.
[3] “SAMIR GEAGEA BIOGRAPHY,” Samir Geagea’s Website, Accessed March 28, 2018, http://www.samirgeagea.info/samir-geagea-biography/.
[4] “SAMIR GEAGEA BIOGRAPHY,” Samir Geagea’s Website, Accessed March 28, 2018, http://www.samirgeagea.info/samir-geagea-biography/.
[5] Samir Geagea Biography, “Histoire Des Forces Libanaises” [History of Lebanese Forces], Accessed March 28, 2018, https://histoiredesforceslibanaises.wordpress.com/2012/05/21/samir-geagea-biography/.
[6] “SAMIR GEAGEA BIOGRAPHY,” Samir Geagea’s Website, Accessed March 28, 2018, http://www.samirgeagea.info/samir-geagea-biography/.
[7] Samir Geagea Biography, “Histoire Des Forces Libanaises” [History of Lebanese Forces], Accessed March 28, 2018, https://histoiredesforceslibanaises.wordpress.com/2012/05/21/samir-geagea-biography/.
[8] Robert Fisk, “Warlord gets life, but plans his vacation,” Independent, June 24, 1995, Accessed March 28, 2018, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/warlord-gets-life-but-plans-his-vacation-1588238.html.
[9] Hussain Abdul-Hussain, “Lebanon’s Samir Geagea: A Maverick,” HuffPost, Accessed March 31, 2018, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/hussain-abdulhussain/lebanons-samir-geagea-a-m_b_530976.html.
[10] Samir Geagea Biography, “Histoire Des Forces Libanaises” [History of Lebanese Forces], Accessed March 28, 2018, https://histoiredesforceslibanaises.wordpress.com/2012/05/21/samir-geagea-biography/.
[11] “SAMIR GEAGEA BIOGRAPHY,” Samir Geagea’s Website, Accessed March 28, 2018, http://www.samirgeagea.info/samir-geagea-biography/.
[12] “SAMIR GEAGEA BIOGRAPHY,” Samir Geagea’s Website, Accessed March 28, 2018, http://www.samirgeagea.info/samir-geagea-biography/.
[13] Hussain Abdul-Hussain, “Lebanon’s Samir Geagea: A Maverick,” HuffPost, Accessed March 31, 2018, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/hussain-abdulhussain/lebanons-samir-geagea-a-m_b_530976.html.
[14] “SAMIR GEAGEA BIOGRAPHY,” Samir Geagea’s Website, Accessed March 28, 2018, http://www.samirgeagea.info/samir-geagea-biography/.
[15] Benjamin Acosta, Field Research Notes, Discussion with Yasmine Chawaf, reporter for as-Saffir newspaper. Beirut, Lebanon. July 2014.
