As the
ex-commander of Syrian intelligence
in Lebanon, General Ghazi Kanaan was
by all accounts the paramount power
broker in the country. All
high-ranking Lebanese officials
reported directly to Kanaan and he
had the final word on all major
political and security decisions
made by the Lebanese government.
Kanaan
was born to a prominent Alawite
family in the village of Bhamra near
Kerdaha (Syrian President Hafez
Assad's hometown) in the mountains
overlooking the seaport city of
Latakia. Contrary to many reports,
Kanaan is not related to Assad, but
their two families have had a long
historical alliance. Like Assad and
other senior Syrian officials, he
joined the military early in his
career, reportedly commanding an
army unit facing Israeli forces in
the Golan Heights during the 1970s.
Kanaan rapidly advanced through the
army officer corps. He attained the
rank of Colonel and served as head
of Syrian intelligence in Homs until
1982, when he was appointed to
replace Gen. Mohammad Ghanem as the
commander of the mukhabarat
(Syrian Intelligence Service) in
Lebanon.
During
the Lebanese civil war, intelligence
forces under Kanaan's command
established their headquarters in
Anjar, an Armenian village in the
Bekaa Valley (ironically, the place
where Lebanese prince Fakhr al-Din
defeated the Ottoman ruler of
Damascus in the 18th century and
imprisoned him in a cage).
Additional bases and detention
facilities have been established in
West Beirut (on Sadat Street and in
the Ramlet al-Baida neighborhood
near the Beau Rivage Hotel),
Tripoli, Chtoura and Hazmiyeh.
Kanaan
is credited with gradually
tightening Syria's grip over the
Lebanese government during the 1980s
by cultivating alliances with
members of Lebanon's militia elite.
In 1983, Kanaan ordered his militia
allies to torpedo the May 17th
Agreement between Lebanon and Israel
that was brokered by former U.S.
Secretary of State George Shultz. In
1984, Kanaan masterminded the
February 6 mutiny in West Beirut
that led to the breakdown of the
Lebanese central government and the
withdrawal of multinational
peacekeeping forces, including U.S.
Marines, from Lebanon.
By the
late 1980's, Syrian influence
pervaded throughout the country as
militia leaders of all sectarian
persuasions came under Kanaan's
influence. Those who resisted Syrian
influence were either assassinated
(e.g. Hasan Khalid, the Mufti of
Lebanon's Sunni Muslim community, in
1989) or abducted and imprisoned by
Kanaan's forces (e.g. leaders of the
Sunni Tawhid al-Islami movement and
the pro-Iraqi wing of the Ba'ath
Party in the mid-1980's).
Kanaan's most significant
achievement during the 1980's was
his successful effort to lure
collaborators within the
predominantly Christian (and
ostensibly anti-Syrian) Lebanese
Forces (LF) militia. This process
began in 1985 with the defection to
Syria of LF Commander Elie Hobeika
(notorious for the 1982 massacre of
Palestinians in Sabra and Shatila)
and culminated with the decision of
LF Commander Samir Geagea to
collaborate with Damascus in October
1990, when Syrian forces invaded
East Beirut and ousted the
constitutional government of Lebanon
headed by interim Prime Minister
Michel Aoun.
After
Aoun's ouster, Syrian control of
Lebanese politics became complete.
Since 1990, Kanaan has literally
become the "king-maker" in Lebanese
politics--the election of the
president is strictly subject to his
official approval. In October 1995,
just weeks before the expiration of
Lebanese President Elias Hrawi's
term in office, Kanaan attended a
party hosted by former prime
minister Umar Karami and announced
to the numerous MPs present that
they were to amend article 49 of the
constitution and extend Hrawi's
tenure for three more years.
According to an account of the
evening, published by al-Hayat,
Kanaan then raised his hand,
saying that the vote would take
place by a raising of hands and
would not be secret . . .
Everyone looked as if they had
just been through a cold shower
. . . The party broke up early.
Presidential hopefuls departed
with their wives, one
complaining of tiredness,
another saying he had a
headache.1
Less than a month later, the
parliamentarians obediently convened
and extended Hrawi's term in office.
More recently, Kanaan personally
oversaw the formulation of a new law
late last year which strongly
preordains the election of
pro-Syrian candidates in Lebanon's
upcoming parliamentary elections in
August.
Kanaan's power extends far beyond
his political capacity. Due to the
extensive network of Syrian
intelligence officers and local
operatives under his command, little
of importance happens in Lebanon
without his knowledge. The commander
of Lebanon's Sureté Générale
(General Security Directorate), Maj.
Gen. Jamil Sayyed, reports directly
to Kanaan, often bypassing the
civilian leadership of the Lebanese
regime. Since Kanaan has the power
to order the arrest and indefinite
detention of anyone in the country,
he is the most feared man in the
Lebanon. One Lebanese who spoke to
Human Rights Watch recalled being
arrested by Syrian intelligence in
1993, tortured and brought directly
before Kanaan and pressured to
collaborate.2
Kanaan, known to his associates as
Abu Yo'roub (after the name of his
eldest son), has used his influence
for personal gain as well. His
involvement in narcotics production
and trafficking in the Bekaa Valley,
counterfeiting and other illegal
activities have made him a very
wealthy man. With the shadow of
Syrian power lurking behind him, few
in Lebanon are willing to stand
their ground in disputes with
Kanaan. One who did is Yahya Shamas,
a former member of parliament and
long-time associate of Kanaan's who
made the mistake of buying a piece
of real estate from the Syrian
general and then refusing to sell it
back when its value started rapidly
appreciating. Shamas was quickly
jailed on drug trafficking charges
in 1994 and imprisoned. Kanaan is
even rumored to have had affairs
with the wives of numerous
Syrian-backed Lebanese politicians
who know better than to object to
such impropriety.
Kanaan's success in subduing Lebanon
has earned him tremendous accolades
in Damascus. Until recently, there
was much talk of Kanaan replacing
Ali Douba as the head of Syria's
entire intelligence apparatus (it is
now said that Douba will be replaced
by the deputy chief of military
intelligence, Gen. Hassan Khalil).
Kanaan's early support of Bashar
Assad, the son and apparent
successor of President Assad, has
considerably strengthened his
influence within the regime. He also
has good relations with several
American officials, particularly in
the intelligence community, and has
visited Washington DC on at least
one occasion (in February 1992).3
As a result, his political future in
Damascus is considered to be very
bright.
1
Al-Hayat, 2 October 1995. See
also "Syria wants Lebanese
legislators to extend Hrawi's term
for three years by a show of hands,"
Mideast Mirror, 2 October
1995.
2 Human Rights Watch,
An Alliance Beyond the Law:
Enforced Disappearances in Lebanon,
May 1997.
3 Kanaan's two younger
sons attended George Washington
University in Washington DC,
reportedly with their expenses fully
paid by former Prime Minister Rafiq
Hariri.
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Middle East Intelligence Bulletin.
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