Another Questionable Frangieh Tie?

The cover story of The Claremont Independent describes the affiliations of Bassam Frangieh, the head of the Arabic program on campus.

This was one of my favorite mentions that wound up getting cut. (Kill your darlings, as Faulkner would say.)

Rather ironically for someone who supports “the people,” Frangieh is a friend of Joseph Braude, a disgraced Middle East consultant, who was arrested at JFK for purchasing archaeological artifacts from Iraq in the tumultuous days after the end of the Hussein regime. ''These items are not souvenirs, but stolen goods that belong to the people of Iraq,'' said Martin Ficke, special agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in New York. Braude lists Frangieh as a “trusted friend and mentor" in the introduction to his 2003 book – just months before he was arrested and sentenced to six months house arrest.