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Franjieh Launches Marada Party at Ceremony Attended by Thousands
Pro-Syrian politician Suleiman Franjieh has officially re-launched al Marada, originally a militia founded by his grandfather, as a new political movement at a ceremony attended by thousands in his northern hometown of Zgharta.
Other parties allied with Damascus attended the ceremony Sunday including Hizbullah and Amal. The Free Patriotic Movement was also present.

Franjieh, whose Maronite Christian family wields strong influence in the north, said the Marada believes in a united Lebanon with a strong Arab identity and refuses the settlement of Palestinian refugees in the country.

"We are Lebanese, we are Levantines and we are Arabs," Franjieh told the crowd that waved green flags emblazoned with the Greek letter Pi, the party's new emblem.

He said his party believes that the resistance or Hizbullah should keep its weapons to face possible Israeli aggression.

The Marada Brigade was founded in 1975 by former President Suleiman Franjieh to protect Zgharta during the Civil Car. It was allied with the Phalange, another powerful Christian militia until the latter allegedly murdered the young Franjieh's father Tony, his wife and daughter in 1978.

Al Marada was disbanded at the end of the war in accordance with the Taef Accords that ordered the disarming of all militias. The launching of the group as a new political movement coincided with the June 13 memorial of the 1978 Franjieh family massacre.

Earlier this week, Franjieh, former Prime Minister Omar Karami and other pro-Syrian figures formed a new opposition front with the aim of toppling the government.

The speakers at the gathering lashed out at the government disregarding a "pact of honor" reached last week to refrain from trading insults and heightening political tensions.

"The government is continuing the same behavior that struck democracy for the past decades. It is insolent in the way it deals with the Lebanese," said MP Nabil Nicholas of the Free Patriotic Movement led by Gen. Michel Aoun.

He accused the government of impoverishing the Lebanese and leading them to emigrate.

Beirut, 12 Jun 06, 14:20


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