[3] In the years preceding the election Zgharta had witnessed violent clashes between different Maronite families, conflicts that carried political overtones.
This act provoked the declaration of Zgharta as a military zone, and soldiers and policemen poured into the area.
[4] Zgharta was the home turf of Maronite strongman Suleiman Frangieh, landlord and one of the most powerful politicians in the country.
[8] Manifesting its political influence the clan founded an armed militia under their command in the same year, the Zgharta Liberation Army.
[5] Once a foe of Frangieh, Father Sam'an Douaihy had joined forces with the local strongman ahead of the 1964 election.