A renowned senator in the Star Wars universe from the Corellian System , Senator Garm Bel Iblis was one of the founders of the Rebel Alliance, along with Mon Mothma of Chandrila and Bail Organa from Alderaan. But he and Mothma did not agree on the philosophy of the Alliance, and for most of the war he was a mysterious figure, assumed to be dead.

Before the Clone Wars, Senator Bel Iblis withdrew his planet from the debate over the Military Creation Act, using an obscure clause in the Corellian constitution known as Contemplanys Hermi, an old Corellisi phrase meaning "meditative solitude." Corellia closed its borders, and tried to stay out of the coming war.

It failed. The conquest of the nearby Duro by General Grievous forced the world into the Clone Wars, whether its people wanted to or not.

For Bel Iblis, the rise of the Empire was very personal. As main opposition to Emperor Palpatine's growing power, he made himself and his family a target for the newly self-appointed Emperor. Palpatine had stormtroopers round up the Bel Iblis family and executed them. Bel Iblis escaped, but not before he saw his wife and children murdered. It was then that he contacted Mothma and Organa, and together they drafted the legendary Corellian Treaty, which was the first step of resistance towards the Empire.

Bel Iblis was a brilliant military strategist and tactician, but it was Mothma who was able to inspire people and unite interests. Organa acted as mediator between the two warring senators, but was tragically killed in the destruction of Alderaan. Relations between the remaining founders deteriorated, as Bel Ilbis accused Mothma of wanting to overthrow Palpatine and rule as empress is his place. After refusing a direct order from Mothma, she dismissed him, and he took loyal troops with him and established a secret, mobile base called Peregrine's Nest, from which he conducted a hit-and-run campaign against the Empire.

Eventually, he saw that his impression of Mothma wasn't true when she established the New Republic, but his pride got the better of his sense. So when Han Solo asked for his help in recovering the fabled Katana fleet or Dreadnaughts (Bel Iblis' fleet already consisted of six of the ships), he agreed. Princess Leia Organa Solo tried to convince him to rejoin the New Republic, but it was only when his old comrade, Mon Mothma, asked that he agreed to. He helped defend Coruscant against an invasion launched by Grand Admiral Thrawn, and has become an admired and respected Repulic leader once again.

External Links

• "[1]" Holonet News - Corellia closes borders