In the past two years, through coups and crises and a succession of Premiers, the strong man of Syria has been a small, thin, professional soldier named Colonel Adib Shishekly. Shishekly, 44, now Syria's chief of staff, came to power through a coup in December 1949, and has been living dangerously ever since. Last year a would-be assassin took a pot shot at him; today, Shishekly maintains three houses, sleeps in a different one each night. A morose, short-tempered man who shuns publicity, he has been content to run the show from the background. Last week, for the first...
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