COMMUNIST'S EFFORTS TO FOMENT STRIKES IN LEBANON AND SYRIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00457R002200080004-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: November 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 23, 1998
• Sequence Number: 4
• Publication Date: November 15, 1948
• Content Type: IR

CLASSIFiCXH.. s7m.ply, L 25X1A2g
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T CD NO.
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UNTRY Lebanon/Syria " DATE DISTR. 29 Dec 1948
BJECT Communistaa Efforts to Foment, Strikes in 25X1 A2g NO. OF PAGES .
Lebanon and Syria
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PLACE
ACQUIRED
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1%rahim Ashqar met in Ratib Qadmani a s? office on 19 November. Qadmani
had visited Isaak Issagulov, Charge d'Affaires at the Soviet Legation
in Damascus, on 18 November. Baghdash spoke at this meeting, and
urged that Communist detainees at the Bavalbek camp be asked to con-
tinue their hunger strike and that demonstrations and strikes be
staged in Syria and Lebanon* He emphasized that these strikes should
be effective enough to paralyze public activity in both countries.
Baghdash said that he had discussed the proposed strikes with leaders
of the Communist Party and of the labor unions and that they had
supported the plan. He stated that most of the shoemakers, tray
motormen and conductors, typeaottrrs, and drivers were ready
strike against.
,,, The internment of Lebanese and Syrian citizens in concentra-
tion camps;
b. The anti-Communist prossure~inspiro by the Anglo-Saxons; and
c. The "conspiracies" planned by the local governments against
the Syrian and Lebanese peoples to bring them under British
domination.
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NO. bF ENCLS.
(Li3TED BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT V6.
Certain members of the Communist Party in Damascus, na n?ly,
Khalid Baghds43h, Muhamad 'Ali Nabi, Hashim Amin, Y,Tiehel Faysal, and
strike simultaneously.
It was decided that Baghdash, Haashim Amin and Michel Faysal would go
to Lebanon to arrange for the workers in Tripoli, Sidon, and Zahle to
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communist trade union association, Jami'at al-'Unmial, which stated
that Mustafa 'Aria' labor pamphlet, Harrat 42.~6-1.Urmial. had made untrue
allegations regarding a meeting of wor orB. Comment. 25X1 A6a
Possibly this refers to the meeting mentioned above. 7STs `leaflet
defended the anti Cor nanist speaker, a certain Bushi; who, it said,
truly represented the workers, and it stated that the Communist
speaker had been howled down at the meeting. The leaflet also
accused Mustafa 'Aria of serving foreign interests, and stated that
the chief of the Jami'at al-'Um ,i, Muhammad Vtahbi Hisri,, had been
able to stop the strike and to reconcile the Company and the workers,,
Nicola Khayr, Chief of the Social Affairs Department of the Ministry
of National Economy, stated that on 15 November Mustafa 'Aria asked
him to issue the license that he had requested a year ago, to his
"ederation of Unions (Ittihad Niqabat al-'Urnnal)? He reproached the
government for dividing the workers and aiding their exploitation by
employers through its creation of the rival Workers' League
(Jami'at Niqabat ai'Ummal era-l.4ustalchdamin), and he threatened a
strike if the license was not issued to his Federatioaio "
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3. For some time Conp~niete had t ied to fomon a strike among kployee
of the `Iraq Petroleum Company, sou a clain. s, On 17 November, after
the Corrany had decided to advance money to the workers to defray the
cost of their transfer from Beirut to Tripoli, to be refunded in
x a8 l.nent s by the' workers, Cot unists eta :?ted agitation o c e
yard for transportation expenses and adequate living q ers to be
provided by the Company. Although at first t h -majority of the
workers had accepted the Company's offer, many were swayed by the
arguments of Communists and, at a meeting 1eyld by the workers to
discuss the matter, Communist speakers, by she organization of
claques, were able to arouse enthusiasm for their demands.
4. Toward the end of November, a leaflet was published by the anti
6. Khayr told 'Aria that his request had been referred to the Surete
Generale and the Hinistry of National Econogy for approval, but that
no reply had been received. As for the proposed strike, Kbayr said
that?, if 'Arist typesetters had any demands to make, he would examine
them., However, if the workers did strike to create disorder or for
political reasons, Khayr warned 'Aria that severe measures would be
taken agairLst them; employers would be granted permission to c'.ismiss
the strikers without compensation,, and the latter would be pursued by
the Suret6 C nerale, according to law. 'Anes said that he mu.td study
the r tier, as he did not, want to olate any lama.
7. The Typesetters' Union, headed by Sa'd-al--Dftn Mum xah,, held a rmaeting
on 21 November, following the arrests of 'Axis and of Nasib Nina,,
Telegraph editor, who had been ordered by the Communist Party to lead
t i monatration in front of the UNESCO bu lding,, Invitations to
this meeting had been extended. on 20 November to all Communist and
non-Communist workers, but the latter did not accept. The non-
Communists were also asked to participate in the proposed strike.
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8, At the meeting, it was decided to proclaim a general strike to pro-
test the arrest of 'Arcs and his comrades, and to demand the release
of the Baalbek detainees, including Hanna Zarqa, Socretat?y of the
Typesetters' Union
9, Proclamation of the strike greatly disturbed the Ja ti'at al-'Urrrsal.,
Government-sponsored trade union association, and, following a meeting
between Tawfiq Faghali and Khalil Khuri, on of the Lebanese President,
Bisharah Khuri, the President instructed the 11inistI7 of National
Economy to issue a license to the non-Communist Typesetters' and
Bookbinders' Uniono This license was issued on 18 P ovember, under
Decree No. 907.
10. On 19 and 20 November, Tawfiq Faghal.i urged all workers to join the
Jamie at al- 'Um mil. for their own interests and those of the country,
and to frustrate the proposed strike of the Communist-controlled
Typesetters' Union. When the workers learned that the Typesetters'
and Bookbinders' Union had been granted a license and was obviously
backed by the government, the majority expressed willingness to join
Faghali' a ion.
12. As soon as the Typesetters' Union had issued its proclamation to
strike, the Typesetters' and Bookbinders' Union also issued one, de-
nouncing the strike as a foreign-inspired move to help 'Aria, which
would bring no advantages to the workers.
12. Faghal.i then contacted Khalil Khuri and promised to provide workers
for each newspaper-whose typesetters might strike. Ile informed
Khuri that al-'Ama1, al-Saman, al-F3 , &.1-Hadith, and Tele h
(where Fagls 'trot er Ivor s asa~ypesetter would prinw ~# 3
issues. Faghali then called on all the publishers and promised to
help them print their newspapers if their workers struck.
13. During the reception that the government held on 21 November at the
Grand Serail to celebrate Lebanon's independence, Sheikh Khalil Khuri
and Habib Nahhas, Chief of the Press Bureau of the Presidency., were
interviewed by newsmen concerning the strike. I:huri told them that
the newspapers would be provided with workers in case of a strike.
14d Faghali's workers were sent to help print Beirut (in compliance with
'Abp shnuq's request) as well as to a -tea iar and other news-
papers. Source states that, strangely enou , e errs h was printed
on the al-'Aural printing press by Fag: hali's -wor erc -"en some of
Nasib aT,ia s Communist workers threw the types of Tele a h on 25X1 A6a
the floor, in order to stop the paper's issuea mmenntt0
Nasib Matni, publisher of Tele a h, has been reported as a er
of the Communist Party and as aS, oviet propagandist. - 25X1 X6
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15. on 22 November, Nasib Matni asked the Publishers' Union to hold a
meeting to discuss the typesetters' strike. The Union met on
22 November at the offices of Iskander Riyashi, and tender his
chaff! nanship. The `zblishers ? Union was ready to support the
strike after Hi y shi l s defense of the workers, but Elias Rababi,
chief editor of al-'Anal and member of the Publishers' Union Council,
acted to prevent krii A. ababi said that the, Typesetters! Union
should have consulted the Publishers' Union before deciding on the
strike. Furthermore, he said, the strike was being callednot to
de=id workers' rights or to protest arbitrary imprisonment, but
for the sake of 'Aria, who was not a typesetter? and of demonstra-
tors who had done harm to Lebanon. Furthemore, he said, some of
the workers belonging to another Typesetters' union opposed the
strike. Rababi recommended that the strike be delayed and the
25X1 X6 goverment approached about the release of the detainees. He thus
influenced the publishers and workers to call off the strike.
Mini Therefore, as most of the workers opposed the strike, the Coxmu
M nists had to abandon it, certain of its failure. Accordingly, a
proclamation calling off the strike was issued by the Beirut District
Cos .ttee of the Communist Party.
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