Nabih Mustafa Berri biography
President of the National Assembly (Speaker of the legislature)
Harakat Amal (Shi'ite Movement of Hope)
Date of Birth: 1938
Nabih Berri was born in Sierra Leone of a merchant father who moved to Africa to escape the harsh economic conditions of South Lebanon.As a child his family returned to Tiblin in South Lebanon. Nabih Berri's family is a large one in South Lebanon, but he still lack the connections
of traditional Shi'ite leaders.
In 1963, Nabih Berri received a Bachelor of Law Degree from the Lebanese University and was elected as president of the National Union of Lebanese Students in 1963. Nabih Berri practiced law in Beirut until 1980. He later joined the Movement of the Dispossessed, which was formed by the Shi'ite religious leader Imam Musa Sadr in the early 1970's.
In 1975, Harakat Amal became a military wing of Imam Musa's movement and Nabih Berri became a member of Amal's politburo. Finally, on April 25, 1980, He was elected to be the president of the Amal Command Council. Amal was an organization that sought a greater role for the Shi'ite population in Lebanon.
In 1985 Israel withdrew from Lebanon but left its South Lebanon Army (SLA) in the Security Zone in South Lebanon. Amal provided resistance to the SLA and was heavily backed by Syria. However PLO strikes on Israel from South Lebanon resulted in Israeli retaliation in South Lebanon and a lot of bloodshed.
Nabih Berri was determined to show Israel that Amal could control the PLO in Lebanon and thus remove any pretext for Israel to maintain the security zone. Consequently, in May 1985, with the support of Syria, Amal laid a siege around Palestinian camps in Beirut.
The camp wars ended in 1988 when He lifted the siege. Eventually, the Lebanese Civil War ended in 1990, and a government was formed. Since June 1991, Nabih Berri have been a member of the Lebanese Parliament.
On October 20, 1992, Nabih Berri became Speaker of Parliament, a position traditionally reserved for a Shi'ite leader under the Taif agreement.With this position Nabih Berri have been able to strive for a more united Lebanon closely allied with Syria.