Review: Kim Ghattas’s ‘The Best Kind of American’ Links 1984 Assassination to Regional Chaos
The New York Times reviews Kim Ghattas’s new book, 'The Best Kind of American,' which examines the 1984 assassination of American University of Beirut president Malcolm Kerr. The review highlights how Kerr’s murder, orchestrated by Iranian proxies, exposed the complex web of foreign interventions and local militant activities that destabilized Lebanon. Ghattas connects this event to broader regional conflicts, including the U.S. Embassy bombing and the involvement of figures like Imad Mughniyeh, illustrating how external powers used Lebanon as a theater for their geopolitical struggles.