The Israeli-Lebanese conflict
Israeli-Lebanese
conflict
The Israeli-Lebanese conflict describes a
series of related military clashes involving Israel
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel>, Lebanon
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanon>, and various non-state militias
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Militias> acting from within Lebanon. The
conflict started in 1948 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1948> with
Israel's declaration of independence
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_of_Independence_%28Israel%29>
and is still continuing to this day. There is no peace treaty between Israel
and Lebanon. The conflict is a part of the wider Arab-Israeli conflict
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab-Israeli_conflict>.
In 1948, the Lebanese army had by far the
smallest regional army, consisting of only 3,500 soldiers. At the prompting of
Arab leaders in the region Lebanon agreed to join the other armies that were
being assembled around the perimeter of the British Mandate territory of
Palestine for the purpose of invading Palestine. Lebanon committed 1,000 of
these soldiers to the cause. The Arab armies waited for the end of the Mandate
and the withdrawal of British forces, which was set for March 15
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_15>, 1948
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1948>.
Israel declared its independence
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_of_the_Establishment_of_the_State_of_Israel>
on May 14 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_14>, 1948
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1948>. Almost immediately, Egypt
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt>, Lebanon
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanon>, Syria <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria>,
Transjordan <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transjordan>, and Iraq
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iraq> declared war on the new state. They
expected an easy and quick victory in what came to be called the 1948 Arab-Israeli
War <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1948_Arab-Israeli_War>. The Lebanon
army joined the other Arab armies in the invasion. It crossed into the northern
Galilee <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galilee>. By the end of the
conflict, however, it had been repulsed by Israeli forces, which occupied South
Lebanon until an armistice agreement
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1949_Armistice_Agreements> was signed on 23
March <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_23> 1949
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1949>.[2]
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli-Lebanese_conflict> Israel
forces withdrew to the international border.
1.
1982 Lebanon war, Israeli occupation (June 6, 1982-January 1985)
The 1982 Lebanon war
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982_Lebanon_war> began 6 June
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_6>, when Israel invaded again for the
purpose of retaliation attacking the Palestine Liberation Organization
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palestine_Liberation_Organization>. During
the conflict, 14,000 Lebanese and Palestinians were killed, and the Israeli
army sieged Beirut <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Beirut>.
Fighting also occurred between Israel and Syria <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria>.
The United States <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States>, fearing a
widening conflict and the prestige the siege was giving PLO leader Yasser
Arafat <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yasser_Arafat>, got all sides to
agree to a cease-fire and terms for the PLO's withdrawal on 12 August
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_12>. The predominantly muslim
Multinational Force in Lebanon
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multinational_Force_in_Lebanon> arrived to
keep the peace and ensure PLO withdrawal. Arafat retreated from Beirut on 30
August <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_30> 1982
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982> and settled in Tunisia
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunisia>.
The National Assembly of Lebanon
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Assembly_of_Lebanon> narrowly
chose Bachir Gemayel <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bachir_Gemayel> as
president-elect <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President-elect>, but when
he was assassinated on 14 September <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_14>
1982 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982>, Israel reoccupied West Beirut
and Maronite militias carried out the Sabra and Shatila massacre
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabra_and_Shatila_massacre>.
In 1983, the United States brokered the May 17
Agreement <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_17_Agreement>, a peace treaty
between Israel and Lebanon in all but name. The agreement called for a staged
Israeli withdrawal over the next eight to twelve weeks and the establishment of
a "security zone" to be patrolled by the Lebanese army in southern
Lebanon, but was conditional on Syrian withdrawal as well. In August 1983, as
Israel withdrew from the areas southeast of Beirut to the Awali River, Lebanese
factions clashed for control of the freed territory.
In February 1984, the Lebanese Army
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanese_Army> collapsed, with many units
forming their own militias. The National Assembly of Lebanon, under pressure
from Syria and Muslim militias, cancelled the May 17 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_17>
Agreement on 5 March <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_5> 1984
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1984>.
On 15 January
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_15> 1985
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1985>, Israel adopted a phased withdrawal
plan, finally retreating to the Litani River
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Litani_River> to form the 4-12 kilometer
(2.5-9 mi <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mile>) deep Israeli Security Zone
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Security_Zone> (map at) while using
the native South Lebanese Army
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Lebanese_Army> militia to help
control it.
2.
Border clashes, Assassinations (September
2000-July 2006)
In September 2000, Hezbollah forged an electoral
coalition with the Amal movement <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amal_movement>.
The ticket swept all 23 parliamentary seats allotted for south Lebanon in that
region's first election since 1972.
On 7 October
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_7> 2000
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000> three Israeli combat engineering
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_engineering> soldiers were captured
within Shebaa Farms <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shebaa_Farms> after
Hezbollah <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hezbollah> guerrillas set off a
bomb next to their jeep. The parents of the soldiers later suspected that the
hostages were killed after the abduction and accused the United Nations
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations> and UNIFIL
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNIFIL> of cooperating with Hezbollah.
After Hezbollah killed an Israeli soldier in an
attack on an armoured bulldozer that had crossed the border to clear bombs on
20 January <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_20> 2004
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004>, Israel bombed two of the group's
bases.
On 29 January
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_29> 2004
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004>, in a German
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany>-mediated prisoner swap, one time
Amal <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amal> security head Mustafa Dirani
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustafa_Dirani>, who had been captured by
Israeli commandos in 1994, and 22 other Lebanese detainees, about 400
Palestinians, and 12 Israeli-Arabs were released from Israeli prisons in
exchange for Israeli businessman Elchanan Tenenbaum
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elchanan_Tenenbaum>, who had been kidnapped
by Hezbollah in October 2000. The remains of 59 Lebanese militants and
civilians and the bodies of the three Israeli soldiers captured on 7 October <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_7>
2000 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000> were also part of the exchange.
Hezbollah requested that maps showing Israeli mines in South Lebanon be
included in the deal.
In May 2004, Hezbollah militiamen killed an
Israeli soldier along the border within the Israeli held Shebaa Farms.
Between July and August 2004 there was a period
of more intense border conflict. Hezbollah said the clash began when Israeli
forces shelled its positions, while Israel said that Hezbollah had started the
fighting with a sniper attack on a border outpost.
On 2 September
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_2> 2004
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004> Resolution 1559
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council_Resolution_1559>
was approved by the United Nations Security council, calling for the disbanding
of all Lebanese militia. An armed Hezbollah was seen by the Israeli government
as a contravention of the resolution.[55]
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli-Lebanese_conflict> The
Lebanese government differed from this interpretation.
Syrian
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syria> troops withdrew from Lebanon in
April 2005.
On 10 June
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_10> 2006
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006> the Lebanese army arrested members of
an alleged Israeli spy ring, including Mahmoud Rafeh
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahmoud_Rafeh>, his wife, and two children.
Police discovered bomb-making materials, code machines and other espionage
equipment in his home. Rafeh reportedly confessed to the Majzoub killings and
to working for Mossad <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mossad>, and admitted
that his cell had assassinated two Hezbollah leaders in 1999 and 2003 and the
son of Ahmed Jibril <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jihad_Ahmed_Jibril>,
leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popular_Front_for_the_Liberation_of_Palestine-General_Command>,
in 2002. Former Lebanese Prime Minister Walid Jumblatt
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walid_Jumblatt>, an outspoken critic of
Hezbollah, suspected that the exposure of the spy ring was a Hezbollah fabrication.
3. 2006
Lebanon War
On 12 July
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_12> 2006
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006>, in an incident known as
Zar'it-Shtula incident
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zar%27it-Shtula_incident>, the Hezbollah
initiated diversionary rocket attacks on Israeli military positions near the
coast and near the Israeli border village of Zar'it
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zar%27it>, while another Hezbollah group
crossed from Lebanon into Israel and ambushed two Israeli Army vehicles, killing
three Israeli soldiers and seizing two.
Hezbollah promptly demanded the release of
Lebanese prisoners held by Israel, including Samir Kuntar
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samir_Kuntar> and an alleged surviving
perpetrator <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahya_Skaf> of the Coastal Road
massacre <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coastal_Road_massacre>, in
exchange for the release of the captured soldiers.
Heavy fire between the sides was exchanged
across the length of the Blue Line
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Line_%28Lebanon%29>, with Hezbollah
targeting IDF positions near Israeli towns.
Thus began the 2006 Lebanon War
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Lebanon_War>. Israel responded with
massive airstrikes and artillery fire on targets throughout Lebanon, an air and
naval blockade, and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon. In Lebanon the
conflict killed over 1,500 people, mostly civilians, severely damaged
infrastructure, displaced about one million people. Israel suffered nearly
4,000 rockets being launched into northern Israel causing the death of 42
civilians and the displacement half a million Israelis.[67] <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli-Lebanese_conflict>
Normal life across much of Lebanon and northern Israel was disrupted. These are
besides the deaths in combat.
A United Nations
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations>-brokered ceasefire went into
effect on 14 August <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_14> 2006
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006>. The blockade was lifted on 8
September <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_8>.<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli-Lebanese_conflict>
4. Post-2006
war activity
Since the 2006 Lebanon War
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2006_Lebanon_War>, there have been only
isolated incidents.
On 7 February
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/February_7> 2007
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007>, there was an exchange of gunfire
near Avivim <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avivim> between the Lebanese
Armed Forces <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanese_Armed_Forces> and the
Israel Defence Forces
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel_Defence_Forces>, culminating in the
firing of two IDF tank shells over the border. There were no injuries on either
side. The UN Secretary-General stated it was first armed incident since the end
of the last war and that the first fire was by the Lebanese army without any
provocation since the IDF was operating inside Israeli territory.
On June 17
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_17>, 2007
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007>, an unknown militant group fired two
rockets from Lebanon <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lebanon> into northern
Israel, an action which the UN condemned as a serious violation of the
ceasefire. Hezbollah <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hezbollah> denied
involvement in the incident, and Israel
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel> emphasized that it would restrain
itself from responding by force. Saniora
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saniora> pledged that "The state will
spare no effort in uncovering those who stand behind this incident."