Lebanese and Syrian governments as well as from Palestinian opposition groups. In 1988, his active support encouraged Arafat to steer the Palestine Liberation Organization firmly toward a renewed peace initiative. Consolidated Contractors Company In 1943, with four other contractors, he established the Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) in Haifa. Sabbagh left Palestine in April 1948 and moved to Lebanon. CCC was reestablished there in 1950, becoming the region's largest multinational and one of the largest contractors worldwide. Sabbagh was a billionaire and ranked 16th on the world's richest Arabs. Philanthropy Sabbagh founded Diana Tamari Sabbagh Foundation in 1979 following the death of his wife Diana Tamari. The founding board of trustees members included Sabbagh himself, his three children, Khalil Abou Hamad, Adel Afifi, Samih Alami, Walid Khalidi and Abdul Majid Shoman. Through the Diana Tamari Sabbagh Foundation, one of the largest Arab charitable foundations, Sabbagh supported institutions of higher education across the Arab world and the West, and has influenced a range of dialogue initiatives, notably in the United States at the Council on Foreign Relations, the Carter Center, and the Center for Muslim - Christian Encounter, and in Palestine within the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH), under Hanan Ashrawi. He also co-founded the Welfare Association for Palestinians, chaired the Palestinian Students Fund, and has been on the boards of the Arab Bank and of many academic institutions and pro-Palestinian think tanks, such as the Institute of Palestine Studies. See also Palestinian Christians References External links Hasib Sabbagh's personal website Biographical Video of Hasib Sabbagh from the Dean Peter Krogh Foreign Affairs Digital Archives 1920 births 2010 deaths Palestinian businesspeople Businesspeople from Beirut American University of Beirut alumni Palestinian Christians Expatriates in Lebanon