Jean Kahwaji ( ; born 1953) is a former Lebanese

military officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warrant officer. However, absent c ...

who served as the 13th

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

of the Lebanese Armed Forces from 2008 to 2017.

Career

Kahwaji joined the Lebanese army in 1973. He trained abroad, especially in the

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and

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. He also underwent anti-

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

training in

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in 2006, as well as in

. He headed the army's 12th Infantry Brigade since 2002. He also went to the Swedish military school in Boden Garrison in

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for terrain warfare during the 1990s. On 30 August 2008, the Lebanese government appointed Brigadier-General Kahwaji to be chief of the Lebanese Armed Forces, replacing

Michel Suleiman Michel Suleiman ( ; born 21 November 1948) is a Lebanese politician who served as the 12th president of Lebanon from 2008 to 2014. Before becoming president, he served as commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces from 1998 to 2008. After Lebanese A ...

, who became

President of Lebanon The president of the Lebanese Republic () is the head of state of Lebanon. The president is elected by the parliament for a term of six years, which cannot be renewed immediately because they can only be renewed non-consecutively. By convention, ...

in May 2008. He was the 13th chief officer in the army's history.

Corruption charges

Kahwaji has been charged several times with corruption and illicit enrichment. As an army official, Kahwaji is suspected of using his influence to accrue vast fortunes, and accepting bribes. In December 2020, a Lebanese judge has filed corruption charges against him and other high-ranked officials.

Murder enquiry

On 24 January 2023, Judge Tarek Bitar charged Kahwaji and the former Prime Minister,

Hassan Diab Hassan Diab (; born 1 June 1959) is a Lebanese academic, engineer and politician who served as the prime minister of Lebanon from 21 January 2020 to 10 September 2021. He was appointed by President Michel Aoun in 2019 to succeed Saad Hariri as ...

, with 'Homicide with intent' under the probe into the Beirut explosion in 2020. Judge Bitar also charged Prosecutor General Ghassan Oweidat - the head of Lebanon's domestic intelligence agency Major General Abbas Ibrahim and other current and former security and judicial officials.

Personal life

Jean Kahwaji is married to Marleine Sfeir. They have three children: Jad, Joanna and Joe. He is a Maronite Catholic.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kahwaji, Jean Living people 1953 births Lebanese Maronites Lebanese generals People from Bint Jbeil District

Career

Corruption charges

Murder enquiry

Personal life

See also

References