Organization of Communist Action of Lebanon (OCAL; Munazzamat Al-?Amal Al-Shuyu?i Fi Lubnan, or Organisation De 1'Action Communiste Du Liban)
ORGANIZATION OF COMMUNIST ACTION OF LEBANON (OCAL; Munazzamat al-ʿAmal al-Shuyuʾi fi Lubnan, or Organisation de 1'Action Communiste du Liban)
Organization created in 1970 from the merger of two small movements of the extreme left: the Lebanese Socialist Movement and the Organization of Socialist Lebanon. The former had been the left wing of the Lebanese Arab Nationalist Movement and the latter rallied intellectuals from the Lebanese Communist Party and the Baʿth. After April 1971 the OCAL supported the Palestinian resistance in its confrontation with Lebanese authorities. The OCAL advocated a popular war of liberation, rejecting UN Resolution 242 because it made no mention of the Palestinian people. Between 1971 and 1977 the OCAL, which was allied with the Lebanese National Movement, actively supported the Palestinian resistance, within which it had especially close ties with the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine. Pro-Chinese when it was founded, the OCAL has drawn progressively closer to the Lebanese Communist Party. It publishes the newspaper al-Hurriyah.
SEE ALSO Arab Nationalist Movement;Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine;Lebanese Communist Party;Lebanese National Movement;Resolution 242.