Ali Eid (14 July 1940 – 25 December 2015) was a Lebanese politician. He was the leader of the Alawite community in Lebanon. He founded the Arab Democratic Party in 1972 and until his death served as General Secretary of the Arab Democratic Party.

Early life

Ali Eid was born in Tabbaneh,

Tripoli, Lebanon Tripoli ( ; , , ; , ; see #Names, below) is the largest and most important city in North Lebanon, northern Lebanon and the second-largest city in the country. Situated north of the capital Beirut, it is the capital of the North Governorate ...

. The eldest son of Youssef Eid, a wheat dealer and his wife Amoun Eid. He began his studies at Tripoli Boys School (TBS), also known as the American School in Tripoli. In the summer he would study at the place of Sheikh Khoder in Tabbaneh, he always excelled in his studies coming first in his class.

Political career

In 1960 Ali Eid decided to continue his studies in

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

, majoring in

Biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

. Ali Eid returned to Lebanon in 1960, and attended the

American University of Beirut The American University of Beirut (AUB; ) is a private, non-sectarian, and independent university chartered in New York with its main campus in Beirut, Lebanon. AUB is governed by a private, autonomous board of trustees and offers programs le ...

(AUB) and majored in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

Public Administration Public administration, or public policy and administration refers to "the management of public programs", or the "translation of politics into the reality that citizens see every day",Kettl, Donald and James Fessler. 2009. ''The Politics of the ...

(PSPA). During his studies and time in

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

, he discovered that the political structure of the Lebanese system deprived the people of his religious sect,

Alawites Alawites () are an Arab ethnoreligious group who live primarily in the Levant region in West Asia and follow Alawism, a sect of Islam that splintered from early Shia as a ''ghulat'' branch during the ninth century. Alawites venerate Ali ...

, of their rights. In 1972 Ali Eid began his political life after he founded (The Alawite Youth Movement), and his alliance with the late Syrian President

Hafez al-Assad Hafez al-Assad (6 October 193010 June 2000) was a Syrian politician and military officer who was the president of Syria from 1971 until Death and state funeral of Hafez al-Assad, his death in 2000. He was previously the Prime Minister of Syria ...

. In 1977 Ali Eid and a group of friends founded The Front Opposing Patriotism party. Its founders were Souhale Hamadah (General Secretary) Ali Eid as (Vice president), Rashid Al-Mukadim, George Mourani, and Nasib Al-Khatib. In 1982 The Front Opposing Patriotism was resolved and The Arabic Democratic Party was founded with Ali Eid being the general secretary. In 1989 he was hit by a catastrophe, the death of his son Zoulficar due to an unexploded bomb from the

Lebanese civil war The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

. Ali Eid was appointed to newly established

Alawite Alawites () are an Arabs, Arab ethnoreligious group who live primarily in the Levant region in West Asia and follow Alawism, a sect of Islam that splintered from early Shia as a ''ghulat'' branch during the ninth century. Alawites venerate A ...

seat in the

Lebanese Parliament The Lebanese Parliament (, ) is the unicameral national parliament of the Lebanon, Republic of Lebanon. There are 128 members elected to a four-year term in Electoral district, multi-member constituencies, apportioned among Lebanon's divers ...

in 1991 as a deputy, which was created following the

Taif Agreement The 1989 Taif Agreement (, ), officially known as the ('')'', was reached to provide "the basis for the ending of the civil war and the return to political normalcy in Lebanon". Negotiated in Taif, Saudi Arabia, it was designed to end the 15 y ...

. He was the general secretary of the Arab Democratic Party in Lebanon, and though he and his party were pro-Syrian during the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

, he and other Lebanese Alawites have since become more neutral due to the involvement of the Syrians in him losing the Alawite Parliament Seat to the late Alawite Deputy Ahmad Habous in 1996. In March 2015, Eid's brother Bader was assassinated in the village of Kuweikhat in

Akkar Akkar District () is the only district in Akkar Governorate, Lebanon. It is coextensive with the governorate and covers an area of . The UNHCR estimated the population of the district to be 389,899 in 2015, including 106,935 registered refugees o ...

Death

On 25 December 2015, it was announced that Eid had died in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

at the age of 75.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eid, Ali 1940 births 2015 deaths American University of Beirut alumni Arab Democratic Party (Lebanon) politicians Leaders of political parties Lebanese Alawites Lebanese Arab nationalists People from Tripoli District, Lebanon People of the Lebanese Civil War Lebanese warlords Politicians from Tripoli, Lebanon