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Elie Salem

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Elie Salem
In office
1982–1984
PresidentAmine Gemayel
Prime MinisterShafik Wazzan
Preceded byFouad Boutros
Succeeded byRashid Karami
Personal details
Born
Elie Adib Salem

(1930-03-05) 5 March 1930 (age 94)
Btourram, Koura District, Lebanon
SpousePhyllis Sell
Children4
Alma materAmerican University of Beirut
OccupationAcademic, Scholar, Diplomat

Elie Adib Salem (born 1930) is a Lebanese academic, scholar and diplomat. He served as the deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs between 1982 and 1984 and as Advisor to the President of Lebanon on Foreign Affairs from 1984 to 1988. He was the president of the University of Balamand from 1993 until his retirement in 2018.

Early life and education

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Salem was born in Btourram, El Koura (North Lebanon) on 5 March 1930.[1][2] He attended the Tripoli Boys School and then earned his BA from the American University of Beirut (AUB) in 1950 in political science.[3] He received his PhD in International Affairs from Johns Hopkins University (School of Advanced International Studies) in 1953. [4]

Career and activities

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Salem worked as a professor at Johns Hopkins (SAIS) prior to returning to Lebanon to teach in the Political Science and Public Administration department at AUB in 1962.  He became Chairman of the Department and then Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences from 1974 until 1982. He played a leading role in salvaging AUB from the ravages of war and was Acting President on multiple occasions during the most critical periods of the Lebanese internal wars.

In 1982, he was named as Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister in the government of Prime Minister Chafic al-Wazzan.[3] [1] He led negotiations with all relevant regional and international heads of state in the wake of the 1982 Israeli Invasion in order to achieve a withdrawal of foreign forces and to rebuild Lebanese sovereignty. Between 1984 and 1988 Salem served as an advisor on foreign affairs to Lebanese President Amine Gemayel. He worked closely with the President on maintaining Lebanon’s security and stability and played a key role in the negotiations that led to the Taif Agreement that ended Lebanon’s fifteen-year internal wars.

Following the end of his term in politics, Salem founded the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies (LCPS) in 1989, which became the leading think tank in Lebanon engaged with issues of democratization and public policy.[1] In 1993 Salem was appointed as the third president of the University of Balamand (UOB)[5]. Under his leadership, UOB was transformed from a small provincial university to a full-fledged university of national and international standing.  Student enrollment grew from 700 to 5500; campus building increased from 6 to 40; and the university expanded from 3 to 11 Faculties, including Engineering and Medicine.  

Personal life

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Salem met Phyllis Sell in the US during his studies there, and they married in 1954.  They have four children: Elise (Lisa), Nina, Adib, and Paul. Elise is currently a Vice President at the Lebanese American University (LAU)[6]; Nina is a professor of pathology and director of cytology at the American University of Beirut (AUB) Medical Center[7]; Adib is an economist and financial consultant; and Paul is a Vice-president of the Middle East Institute[8].

Salem has eleven grandchildren in Lebanon and the USA. He currently resides in Btourram, El Koura, where he is translating into Arabic his latest book on his vision for Lebanon.

Works

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Salem has published over five books in English and Arabic related to the University of Balamand, including AXIOS: The Rise of a University, From Vision to Action (UOB Press, 2018). His scholarly books include, Violence and Diplomacy in Lebanon[9], 1982-1988.  Translated into Arabic as al-Khayarat al-Saabah.  This is a detailed and critical interpretation of Lebanon’s efforts to regain its independence and sovereignty (I.B. Tauris Press, London, 1995); and Modernization Without Revolution[10] on Lebanon’s experience as a state between 1943 and 1970, prior to its internal war of 1975-1990 (Indiana University Press, Bloomington and London, 1972).  Amongst his personal books is My American Bride[11] about his life and marriage and the often humorous clashes between his Lebanese background and 20th century American culture (Quartet Books, London, 2008). He recently published In Dialogue with Lebanon: A Personal-Political Narrative[12] (Saer Al Mashrek, Beirut, 2023).[13]

Awards

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Salem was awarded the Grand Cordon of Order of St. Peter and St. Paul in 2004.[14]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Tom Najem; Roy C. Amore (2021). Historical Dictionary of Lebanon (2nd ed.). Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 272. ISBN 978-1-5381-2044-6.
  2. ^ "Personal Journey". Official website of Elie Salem. Archived from the original on 16 January 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  3. ^ a b "History Makers. Elie Salem". American University of Beirut. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  4. ^ Elie Adib Salem (2008). My American Bride. A Tale of Love and War. Quartet Books Ltd. ISBN 978-0-7043-7137-8.
  5. ^ "University of Balamand | Previous Presidents". University of Balamand. 29 November 2024. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  6. ^ "Dr. Elise Salem". LAU. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  7. ^ "AUB - Faculty Member Profile - Nina Shabb". American University of Beirut. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  8. ^ "Paul Salem". Middle East Institute. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  9. ^ Salem, Eli (31 December 1994). Violence and Diplomacy in Lebanon: The Troubled Years, 1982-88. Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 978-1-85043-835-9.
  10. ^ Salem, Elie Adib (1973). Modernization Without Revolution: Lebanon's Experience. Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-33870-9.
  11. ^ Salem, Elie Adib (2008). My American Bride. Quartet. ISBN 978-0-7043-7137-8.
  12. ^ Salem, Elie A. (2023). In Dialogue With Lebanon: A Personal-political Narrative. Editions Saer Al Mashrek. ISBN 978-614-451-345-3.
  13. ^ "Salem, Elie Adib". Amazon. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  14. ^ Who's Who in Lebanon (19th ed.). Beirut: Publitec Publications. 2007. p. 307. doi:10.1515/9783110945904.476. ISBN 978-3-598-07734-0.
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