Arab Democratic Party (Lebanon)

The Arab Democratic Party ( _ar. الحزب العربي الديمقراطي, "al-Hizb al-'Arabi al-Dimuqrati") is a Lebanese party, based in Jabal Mohsen, Tripoli. Its current leader is Ali Eid.The party was founded by Rifaat al-Assad in the early 70s. ["Rifaat founded the Red Knights in northern Lebanon in the early 1970s and they were eventually instrumental in helping Yasser Arafat to slip by sea to Tripoli in 1983..." [http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/NewsDesk.nsf/story/47F6806256DBA8F8C225705D002ECDDA?OpenDocument] ] The militia of the party, the "Red Knights" ("al-Fursan al-Humr"), who were also known as the "Pink Panthers" due to the colour of their uniforms ["... the pro-Syrian Arab Democratic Party, whose militiamen are sometimes called the Pink Panthers because of their raspberry-colored fatigues..." [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,951288,00.html] ] , fought different factions during the Lebanese Civil War, including the Islamic Unification Movement. ["Sporadic fighting in Tripoli between the Alawite ADP forces and anti-Syrian Sunni Moslem groups has continued throughout the 1980s. Open conflict between the ADP and anti-Syrian Sunni groups broke out in the streets of Tripoli in 1981-82, largely in response to the conflict in Syria between the Sunni majority and the Alawites who constitute the ruling elite. " [http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/print?tbl=RSDCOI&id=3ae6abc917] ] [ [http://www.meib.org/articles/0009_l3.htm "Hashem Minqara: Free at Last" (September 2000) ] ]

Its followers are mostly Alawites.

In 2005 it was rumoured that Rifaat al-Assad was reviving the Red Knights militia in Tripoli. ["President Bashar Assad's exiled uncle, Rifaat Assad, is reactivating his "Red Knights" dissident organization in Alawite-populated regions surrounding the northern port city of Tripoli after the downfall of Syria's 29-year control of Lebanon, An Nahar reported on Sunday." [http://www.naharnet.com/domino/tn/NewsDesk.nsf/story/47F6806256DBA8F8C225705D002ECDDA?OpenDocument] ]

References

External links

* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F01EED71239F932A05753C1A962948260 2 Publicly Put to Death In Northern Lebanon, NYT, 1984.]