Philip Habib
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Amb. Philip Habib |
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Habib and grand nephew Gregory Cohen in his offices at the State Department in 1976
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| Born |
Philip Charles Habib February 25, 1920 Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Died | May 25, 1992 (aged 72) Puligny-Montrachet, France |
| Cause of death | Cardiac arrhythmia |
| Resting place | Golden Gate National Cemetery, San Bruno, California |
| Residence | Belmont, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Alma mater |
University of Idaho (B.S.) University of California, Berkeley (Ph.D.) |
| Occupation | Diplomatic service |
| Years active | 1949–1983, 1986–1987 |
| Employer | U.S. Government |
| Organization |
Department of State U.S. Army (1942–1946) |
| Known for | Shuttle diplomacy |
| Home town | Brooklyn, New York |
| Spouse(s) | Marjorie W. Slightham (m.1943–1992, his death) |
| Children | 2 daughters |
| Parent(s) | Iskander (Alex) Habib Jamous & Miriam (Mary) Spiridon Habib |
| Awards |
Medal of Freedom, (Diplomacy, 1982) Légion d'Honneur (France, 1988) |
Philip Charles Habib (February 25, 1920 – May 25, 1992) was an American career diplomat. Called one of the "pre-eminent career diplomats in American post-war history", he was best known for his work as Ronald Reagan's special envoy to the Middle East 1981–83. In that role he averted an Israel-Syria war and an Israel-PLO war in 1981, then negotiated a peaceful end to Israel's 1982 siege of Beirut. In 1986 he was instrumental in ending Ferdinand Marcos's attempt to steal the 1986 presidential election in the Philippines. As U.S. special envoy to Central America in 1986–87, he helped Costa Rican president Oscar Arias shape and sell the peace plan that led to the end of the region's civil wars. He had come out of retirement to take each of those assignments. During his 30-year career as a Foreign Service officer, he had mostly specialized in Asia. In 1968, he was instrumental in halting the escalation of U.S. involvement in Vietnam. After his death, The New York Times described him as "the outstanding professional diplomat of his generation in the United States."
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Habib was raised in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood of its Bensonhurst section by Lebanese Maronite Catholic parents. His father ran a grocery store. Habib graduated from New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn and worked as a shipping clerk before starting his undergraduate study in forestry out west at the University of Idaho in Moscow. As a college student on the Palouse, he was well-regarded by his peers and was an accomplished poker player. After graduating in 1942 from the UI's College of Forestry (now Natural Resources), he served in the U.S. Army during World War II and attained the rank of captain. Discharged from the service in 1946, Habib continued his education via the G.I. Bill in a doctoral program in agricultural economics at the University of California in Berkeley, and earned a Ph.D. in 1952. In 1947 recruiters for the American Foreign Service visited the Berkeley campus. They were particularly interested in candidates who did not fit the then-current mold of Ivy League blueblood WASPs. Though he had never given diplomacy a moment's thought, he enjoyed taking tests for intellectual challenge. He took the American Foreign Service exam and scored in the top 10% nationally.
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