Dany Chamoun (26 August 1934-21 October 1990) was the commander of the Tigers Militia during the Lebanese Civil War and a member of the Chamoun family of Lebanon.
Biography[]
Chamoun in 1976
Dany Chamoun was born on 26 August 1934 in Deir el-Qamar, Lebanon, the son of Camille Chamoun and the brother of Dory Chamoun. He studied civil engineering in England, and in January 1976 he became the Secretary of Defense of the National Liberal Party of Lebanon, leading its Tigers Militia military wing since the start of the conflict in 1976. Chamoun was an aggressive warlord, fighting against the Syrian Arab Army, Israel Defense Forces, and the fellow Christian Kataeb Party, with his forces being accused of massacring Muslims in the 1976 Karantina massacre, in which he claimed that the Muslims were given free transport and evacuation from the area, saying that the shanties were turned down and able to become private property after a "concise military operation". However, many of the Muslims called it a massacre, with 13-year-old Khadija Jabir saying that the Muslims were jeered at and attacked by the Maronites with canes and harsh words. On 7 July 1980, his forces were massacred by the Christian Phalange militia in the Safra massacre, and he went into self-exile in Muslim West Beirut. In 1988, he became President of the Lebanese Front and wanted to run for President of Lebanon, but Syria vetoed his nomination. On 21 October 1990, Chamoun was killed at his home with his German wife and his children, with the extremist Maronite leaders Elie Hobeika and Samir Geagea being accused of ordering his assassination.