The Amal Movement (or Hope Movement in English, Arabic: ???? ???? ?arakat ?Amal) is a Lebanese political party associated with Lebanon''s Shia community. It was founded as the "Movement of the Dispossessed" in 1974. The Amal Movement is, by a small margin, the largest Shia party in parliament, having thirteen representatives to Hezbollah''s twelve. Amal is currently in an alliance which includes the Free Patriotic Movement, Hezbollah, and the Progressive Socialist Party. The movement''s current name was originally used by the Movement of the Dispossessed militia, the "Lebanese Resistance Regiments", Arabic: ????? ???????? ??????????. This name, when abbreviated, created the acronym "Amal", which means "Hope" in Arabic.[1]
