| Jan 1, 1918 |
Following World War I the League of Nations recognized the French mandate over Greater Syria (including Lebanon). |
| 1920 |
The French legally extended the borders of the Mt. Lebanon province to include all of what is now Lebanon. This was done to enhance the political situation of the Maronite community who's population would exceed that of the Sunni Muslims in the new district. |
| 1941 |
Lebanon formally became an independent state. |
| 1944 |
Lebanon formed a sectarian government based on a census taken in 1932. This method of dividing the government between dominant sects continues today. |
| 1970 - 1971 |
A Palestinian revolt in Jordan was violently crushed sending thousand of Palestinian refugees to Lebanon. The Palestinian refugee issue was to become a divisive force in Lebanon and a cause of the civil wars. |
| 1975 |
Civil war broke out between the Maronite forces representing the established order on one side, and the militias of the Lebanese National Movement (LNM) and the Sunni Moslems, led by Ibrahim Qulaylat, on the other side. The PLO would eventually join the fighting on the side of the LNM and the Lebanese Army would join the side of the Maronites. Ultimately Syria would join the Maronites ensuring their victory (March 1976). |
| 1977 |
The Maronites declared the terms of the cease fire null and void in defiance of Syria. The Maronites now had the support of the Israeli government. |
| 1978 |
Israel invaded Lebanon and then retreated leaving behind a buffer zone to be controlled by the pro-Israeli Southern Lebanon Army (SLA). |
| 1982 |
With the assistance of Maronite President Gemayel, Israel invaded again. This time the PLO was formally expelled from Lebanon. In addition an international peacekeeping force of US, French, and Italian soldiers was sent to Beirut. The Syrians entered Lebanon and occupied the Bekka Valley. The Israelis eventually left, but maintained a self patrolled security buffer zone in southern Lebanon. |
| 1983 |
The Sunni militia "Mouabioun" launched a series of attacks on the IDF, following the massacres at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps. |
| 1988 |
Before leaving office President Gamayel appointed General Aoun as acting Maronite Prime Minister. The administration of Sunni Prime Minister Selim al-Hoss refused to step down. |
| 1989 |
Sunni representatives at the assembly block the Presidential aspirations of General Aoun. |
| Aug 15, 1989 |
The Progressive Socialist Party, Amal, Hizbollah, and pro-Syrian Palestinian militias formed the National Front. They vowed to overthrow the regime of General Aoun. |
| Aug 24, 1989 |
The National Front launched an offensive against the forces of General Aoun. |
| Sep 22, 1989 |
Both sides agreed to an Arab League sponsored cease fire. Over 800 people had already been killed in fighting by this point. |
| Sep 30, 1989 |
Thirty-one Christian and 31 Moslem assembly delegates met in Tail, Saudi Arabia to discuss ways the Lebanese government might be reformed so as to make it more inclusive of Lebanon's many minorities. |
| Sep 30 - Oct 10, 1989 |
In Tail, Sunni delegates voted down three proposals. One called for the Vice Premier to always be a Shi'i, one called for an extension of the term of the Speaker of the Assembly, and one suggested that the Sunni Prime Minister should be elected by the Assembly. |
| Oct 12, 1989 |
The Lebanese parliament voted to enlarge itself to 108 seats, to establish an even ratio between Muslims and Christians, and to limit the powers of the presidency. This was done in response to demands by the National Front at Tail. The Sunnis were able to keep most of the positions that were traditionally theirs. |
| Nov 24, 1989 |
Ilayas al-Hrawi was elected president, setting up a power struggle within the Maronite establishment between Hrawi and ousted former Prime Minister General Aoun who still remained in control of his forces and refused to allow the reforms to be implemented. General Aoun was eventually deposed with the assistance of Syria, paving the way for governmental reforms designed to make the political system more inclusive. |
| Feb 1990 |
Fighting broke out in Beirut between the forces of General Aoun and the Lebanese Forces led by Samir Geagas. A cease fire was agreed to on February 19. By then 600 had died and 2000 had been injured. |
| Apr 1 - Jul 31, 1990 |
President Hrawi, French diplomats, and representatives from the Vatican negotiated with General Aoun in an attempt to get him to agree to the terms of the Tail agreement. |
| Sep 21, 1990 |
President Hrawi signed the terms of the Tail agreement into law. The agreement provided for a larger assembly, an even Christian to Moslem ratio, a weaker Presidency, and a stronger Cabinet. |
| Oct 10, 1990 |
President Hrawi asked for Syrian assistance in disarming the forces of General Awn. |
| Oct 12, 1990 |
General Awn sought asylum in the French embassy. |
| Jan 9, 1991 |
The Syrian-backed government of Sunni Prime Minister Umar Karami won a vote of confidence from the National Assembly. |
| Mar 19, 1991 |
The Lebanese army attacked the Southern Lebanese Army as part of its enforcement of the Tail agreement. Sunni delegates had insisted on such actions. |
| May 1991 |
Most militias began to voluntarily disarm themselves including the Sunni militia Mouabioun. The Hizbollah and the Southern Lebanese Army refused to disarm themselves. |
| Jan 15, 1992 |
The government asked the militias to disarm themselves of all small weapons. Most militias refused. |
| Feb 19, 1992 |
Prime Minister Karami announced that national monetary reserves would no longer be used to stabilize the Lebanese pound. Massive inflation resulted and there were immediate outbursts of public discontent ranging from demonstrations to strikes. |
| May 6, 1992 |
Prime Minister Karami resigned. The Confederation of Trade Unions had called a four day nationwide strike to protest the economic policies adopted by Karami. |
| May 13, 1992 |
Rashid al-Soln, a Sunni, was appointed Prime Minister and asked to form a new government. |
| May 29, 1992 |
Rashid al-Soln and his cabinet received a vote of confidence from the National Assembly. |
| Jul 24, 1992 |
It was announced that parliamentary elections would be held in three stages: on August 23 and 30, and on September 6. The Christian Maronites, the Druze, and several prominent Sunnis boycotted the elections on the grounds that they were not prepared to take part so soon. |
| Sep 9, 1992 |
The results of the elections were announced. Amal, Hizbollah, and the party of former Sunni Prime Minister Michael al-Muirr, all had strong showings. |
| Oct 22, 1992 |
Following the election, Rafiq al-Hariri, a Moaronite Christian, was appointed Prime Minister and asked to form a new government. |
| Nov 12, 1992 |
Rafiq al-Hariri and his cabinet were given a vote of confidence by the National Assembly. |
| May 12, 1993 |
The Beirut City Court of Appeals ordered the daily "Al-Safir" to stop publication for a period of one week for "endangering the security of the state". They had published an article that was highly critical of the Saudi Arabian royal family with whom Prime Minister Hariri has close personal ties. |
| Sep 8, 1993 |
Lebanon demands that the PLO in its peace agreement with Israel guarantee the right of return of all Palestinian refugees. As a matter of policy, Lebanon has maintained that the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are only temporary residents and should return to their original homes. |
| Sep 13, 1993 |
Lebanese troops kill 9 protestors in Beirut during a demonstration by hundreds of Hizbollah supporters against the PLO-Israeli peace accord. Note: The Lebanese government banned all public protests earlier this year. |
| Sep 13, 1993 |
Palestinian opponents of the PLO-Israeli peace accord march in Lebanon's refugee camps. PLO supporters in Lebanon celebrate. |
| Sep 14, 1993 |
About 15,000 Hizbollah supporters attend the funeral of 8 protestors killed by Lebanese troops at a demonstration yesterday. At the funeral, mourners condemn the Lebanese government and call for the death of its leaders. Note: At this point in time, 8 protesters have died. Another dies from injuries sustained at the protest about a week and a half later. |
| Sep 19, 1993 |
About 7,000 Hizbollah supporters rally in a southern suburb of Beirut in protest of the killing by government troops of 8 Hizbollah protesters at a demonstration last week. The government does not consider this to be in violation of its anti-demonstration edict because the rally is considered a gathering of mourners. Note: Hizbollah is the only militia in Lebanon that has not disarmed since the end of the civil war. Hizbollah claims that it needs its weapons to fight Israel. The Lebanese government seems content to accept this state of affairs as long as Hizbollah uses it weapons only on Israel and the Israeli-supported SLA. |
| Sep 21, 1993 |
About 3,000 Hizbollah supporters rally on the road to Beirut where 8 Hizbollah demonstrators were killed by government troops last week. |
| Oct 24, 1993 |
About 3,000 Hizbollah supporters rally to mark the 40th day of mourning for 9 protestors killed by the Lebanese army. |
| Dec 1993 |
The construction company Soldiers won the contract to rebuild Beirut. This contract is estimated to be worth up to 1.8 billion US dollars. The Sunni Moslem clergy complained that Soldiers should not be allowed to rebuild Sunni religious property in the city. Such a task, they argued, should belong to the Sunnis themselves. The government is yet to reverse its decision. For most this year political developments came to a stand still as border clashes between Israel and Hizbollah intensified and as economic reform issues gained importance. |
| Dec 20, 1993 |
A bomb explodes at the Phalange Party headquarters in east Beirut. |
| Dec 30, 1993 |
The spiritual guide of Hizbollah issues a religious decree banning the purchase of shares of a $1.82 billion company entrusted with reconstructing central Beirut. |
| 1994 |
Throughout the year there are several assassinations, assassination attempts and bombings that seem to be part of an power struggle between those who support and oppose PLO chairman Arafat and the PLO-Israeli peace accord. Note: Such incidents will not be further noted unless otherwise noteworthy. |
| Jan 29, 1994 |
Members of Abu Nidal's FRC are blamed for the assassination of a Jordanian diplomat in Lebanon. |
| Feb 12, 1994 |
A Palestinian man is charged with "terrorist acts" for giving lessons in how to build bombs and booby traps. |
| Feb 27, 1994 |
A bomb explodes in a Maronite church killing 10 worshipers. No one claims responsibility but the government eventually blames the LF and outlaws the organization. The LF denies the accusation and accuses the government of using the bombing as an excuse to clamp down on its political rivals. Note: The LF was the major Christian militia during the civil war and became a political party after the war. |
| Feb 28, 1994 |
Rival Shi'i militias, Amal and Hizbollah, fight against each other with machine guns and rocket propelled hand grenades at a southern Lebanese village. |
| Mar 7, 1994 |
A Palestinian school in southern Lebanon is attacked with grenades. |
| Mar 11, 1994 |
Hundreds of armed Hizbollah members attend a rally by thousands of protestors to mark Jerusalem day. The government orders the arrest of the armed Hizbollah members. |
| Mar 11, 1994 |
Lebanon introduces the death penalty for politically motivated murders in an attempt to clamp down on terrorist attacks. |
| Mar 16, 1994 |
Army sappers defuse a bomb at a school in Christian east Beirut. Note: Several bombs targeting Christians have been planted in the past few months. Such bombs will not be further noted unless there are fatalities or the incident is otherwise noteworthy. |
| Mar 21, 1994 |
Hizbollah hands over 11 of its members to the Lebanese army. The men are among those accused of bearing arms during the March 11 Jerusalem Day celebration. |
| Mar 26, 1994 |
Lebanese Prime Minister Harari announces that he would not ban Hizbollah as long as it restricts its activities to attacks on Israeli forces occupying southern Lebanon. |
| Apr 1, 1994 |
Lebanon's Maronite Christian patriarch accuses the Syrian-backed government of bias against the once-dominant Christians. |
| Apr 1994 |
Lebanese troops seize several arms caches belonging to Palestinian groups, especially the FRC. They also shut down a FRC training camp. |
| Apr 18, 1994 |
A local commander of the Amal militia is killed by a car bomb in southern Lebanon. |
| Apr 22, 1994 |
LF leader Samir Geagea is detained for questioning in the February 27 bombing of a Maronite church. |
| Apr 23 - 24, 1994 |
Hundreds of LF supporters protest the detention of LF leader Samir Geagea. |
| Apr 24, 1994 |
Lebanese troops fire into the air to disperse a crowd banned from attending Sunday mass at the seat of the Maronite Christian Patriarchy. This is part of a government crackdown on the LF. |
| May 1, 1994 |
Lebanon's only Druze radio station goes off the air, becoming the first casualty of a government ban on private newscasts. |
| May 10, 1994 |
A Hizbollah-run television station breaks the government ban on private newscasts. |
| May 12, 1994 |
A bomb kills a prominent member of the Amal militia in southern Lebanon. |
| Jun 1, 1994 |
It is announced that Lebanese troops will deploy in the mainly-Druze Shouf mountains later this month to facilitate the return of thousands of Christians who fled their houses during Lebanon's civil war. Druze leader Walid Jumblatt supports the move and announces a plan to repatriate the Christian villagers. |
| Jun 2 - 13, 1994 |
A Hizbollah television and radio station defies the government ban on private news broadcasts. |
| Jun 23, 1994 |
A bomb kills a Hizbollah commander in southern Lebanon. |
| Sep 9, 1994 |
Lebanon's social affairs minister says that half of the estimated 900,000 people who had fled Lebanon during the 1975 to 1990 civil war have returned home and that tens of thousands are returning every year. |
| Oct 16 - 17, 1994 |
Syrian forces in Lebanon arrest several Fatah officials. |
| Oct 30, 1994 |
Lebanon's foreign minister calls on Arab states to take in some of the Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. |
| Nov 19, 1994 |
LF leader Geagea, the major Christian warlord of the Lebanese Civil War, goes on trial for the February bombing of a Maronite church and crimes related to Lebanon's civil war. Many feel that this trial is politically motivated. This is because Geagea is the only major warlord to be put on trial and his now banned party, the LF, constitutes the most serious opponent to the Syrian-dominated order in post-war Lebanon. |
| Nov 19, 1994 |
Palestinians in southern Lebanon burn tires and stage strikes in protest against the killings of 12 people in inter-Palestinian fighting in Gaza. |
| Nov 25, 1994 |
8 are killed in day-long fighting between supporters and opponents of PLO leader Yasser Arafat in the Rashidiyyeh refugee camp near the southern port of Tyre. Fighting breaks out when about 400 Arafat supporters seize 6 military posts manned by 200 dissidents led by Munir al-Maqdah, a former Fatah commander who split with Arafat over the PLO-Israeli peace accord. Anti-Arafat guerrillas seem to be victorious. |
| Nov 30, 1994 |
The Lebanese government demands that Palestinians in refugee camps give up their weapons and threatens to send in its troops to disarm the Palestinians if they do not disarm voluntarily. This threat, to date, has not been carried out. |
| Dec 21, 1994 |
A car bomb kills 3 in Beirut's Shi'i southern suburbs. Hizbollah blames Israel for the blast. |
| Dec 28, 1994 |
PFLP guerrillas clash with Fatah guerrillas in a refugee camp in southern Lebanon. |
| Feb 10, 1995 |
Lebanon army intelligence officers and Palestinian gunmen clash on the edge of a refugee camp outside the southern city of Sidon. There are also reports of fighting between pro-PLO and anti-PLO forces. |
| Feb 10, 1995 |
Bodyguards of 2 top Shi'i politicians fight a 10-minute gun battle with each other in Beirut. |
| Apr 3, 1995 |
A Lebanese court fines the editors of a Christian opposition newspaper $5,200 for running an article in 1993 that "evokes sectarian strife" in Lebanon. |
| Apr 12, 1995 |
The UN agency caring for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon says that more than 300,000 Palestinians in Lebanon are not getting sufficient medical care due to rising costs. |
| Apr 22, 1995 |
Lebanese police shoot dead the wife of a FRC guerilla when they break into his house to arrest him. |
| May 8, 1995 |
Lebanon security forces, cracking down on the FRC storm a guerrilla depot in the Bekaa valley and seize an ammunition cache. |
| Jun 1995 |
Two Hizbollah leaders are killed by bombs in southern Lebanon in 2 separate incidents. |
| Jun 5, 1995 |
Reuters reports that the most important Shi'i fast of Ashoura is causing divisions among Lebanon's Shi'i and Sunni communities. For the past few years, the Shi'i have been celebrating the holiday "more aggressively" and have been bringing their celebrations to new areas of Beirut, including some Sunni areas. This has angered some Sunni residents and some minor incidents between Sunnis and Shi'i have occurred. |
| Jun 12 - 13, 1995 |
4 die in clashes between pro-Fatah and anti-Fatah Palestinians in a southern Lebanon refugee camp. |
| Jun 24, 1995 |
LF leader Geagea is convicted of the murder of a rival in 1990 and sentenced to life imprisonment. Many Christians ask why Geagea is tried and convicted of acts related to Lebanon's civil war but not other former warlords with blood on their hands. |
| Jul 20, 1995 |
Reuters reports that Lebanon has arrested hundreds of armed protestors in southern Lebanon in which police clashed with the protesters. While the protests are sponsored by labor unions, the government accuses many Palestinians who participated of undertaking "acts of disturbance" on instructions from "outside Lebanon." |
| Jul 28, 1995 |
PLO chairman Arafat says that Palestinian refugees in Lebanon will never be permanently settled there. Note: It has been the policy of the PLO that Palestinian refugees are not to be permanently settled anywhere outside of their original homes. |
| Aug 31, 1995 |
Amal supporters go on strike on the 17th anniversary of the disappearance of Imam Moussa Sadir, a Shi'i cleric who founded Amal. |
| Aug 31, 1995 |
5 Palestinian guerrillas die in what seems to be an accidental blast at a PFLP (General Command) training base in eastern Lebanon. |
| Aug 31, 1995 |
Masked gunmen assassinate the head of the al-Ahbash association. The al-Ahbash association is a pro-Syrian, non-violent, ultra-religious, Sunni Moslem philanthropic organization with a large following in Lebanon. The association has been growing in strength and is beginning to challenge the Jama al-Islamiya, which was previously the dominant Sunni Islamic group in Lebanon. |
| Sep 10, 1995 |
Reuters reports that Lebanon has turned back several hundred Palestinians who had been expelled from Libya and arrived on 2 ships last week. |
| Sep 12, 1995 |
An officer of PLO chairman Arafat's Fatah faction is found stabbed to death near an southern Lebanon refugee camp. |
| Sep 13, 1995 |
A protest strike on the 2nd anniversary of the PLO-Israeli peace deal paralyzes the Ain el Hilweh refugee camp in southern Lebanon. |
| Sep 22, 1995 |
Lebanon eases restrictions against Palestinians with Lebanese travel documents taken this month to curb the entry of Palestinians expelled from Libya. The decision follows protests from Lebanon-based Palestinian groups and strikes in refugee camps to protest against both the restrictions and Libya's expulsion of all of its Palestinians. |
| Sep 28, 1995 |
Palestinians in southern Lebanon refugee camps protest against the latest agreement in the Israeli-PLO peace process which is signed today in Washington DC |
| Oct 11, 1995 |
A bomb explodes in Israeli-occupied southern Lebanon, killing 3 Israeli soldiers and injuring 6 others. Hezbollah is the main suspect in the bombing. (Reuters, October 15) |
| Oct 15, 1995 |
Hizbollah plants a bomb in south Lebanon, killing 6 Israeli soldiers. An Israeli intelligence official warned of reprisals against villages in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Nov 5, 1995 |
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin is assassinated at a peace rally in Tel Aviv. The Middle East peace process will slow significantly following this murder. |
| Nov 13, 1995 |
Israeli warplanes fired 26 missiles at the hills around Naameh, south of Beirut, in an attack against a military base of the hardline PFLP-GC. Two members of PFLP-GC died during the attack, while 8 others were injured. (AFP) |
| Nov 26 - Dec 14, 1995 |
Lebanon's Catholic bishops hold their first post-war synod, urging Christians to stop fleeing Lebanon and inviting back to Lebanon the 800,000 Christians who left during the civil war. The bishop's voiced their concerns about the influence of Syria on Lebanese affairs and called upon Christians to take an active role in the country's public affairs. (Reuters; AFP) |
| Nov 28, 1995 |
Hezbollah forces launch a rocket attack on northern Israel, forcing thousands to flee to bomb shelters. (Reuters) |
| Dec 11, 1995 |
PFLP leader George Habash calls for a boycott of the upcoming elections in regions of Palestinian self-rule as a way of demonstrating objections to the agreement between Israel and the PLO. (Reuters) |
| Jan 1, 1996 |
Reports indicate that a total of 285 people died in Lebanon in 1995 as a result of violence, the lowest total since the end of the country's civil war. More than half of the fatalities--175 people--were killed in clashes between Moslem guerillas and Israeli troops and their allies in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Jan 13, 1996 |
Lebanese security forces defused a bobby-trapped van parked next to the office of an al-Ahbash member. The van contained enough explosives to destroy markets nearby the Beirut office. (AFP) |
| Jan 20, 1996 |
Yassar Arafat became the first democratically elected leader of the Palestinian people, winning 88.1% of the vote in elections mandated by the Israeli-PLO agreement. Arafat's Fatah party also won a majority of seats in the newly established legislative council. A high percentage of the eligible 1 million voters participated in the elections. However, Palestinian refugees living in Lebanon, as well as those in Syria and Jordan, were not eligible to vote. (Reuters) |
| Jan 27, 1996 |
SLA reported that 4 Palestinian guerillas were killed as they tried to infiltrate the Israeli security zone in southern Lebanon. The guerillas were members of PFLP-GC. (AFP) |
| Jan 31, 1996 |
An appeal hearing for 3 former members of the PFLP for the 1976 murder of the US ambassador to Beirut came to a close, with prosecutors demanding 20 year sentences for the accused. (Reuters) |
| Feb 15, 1996 |
A Lebanese magistrate called for the death penalty against Palestinian fundamentalist leader Abu Mahjan for the August 1995 murder of Sheikh Nizar Halabi, a Sunni Moslem and leader of the Al-Ahbash movement. Abu Mahjan and 20 of his followers in Usbat al-Ansar were previously indicted for a variety of terrorist acts against both Muslim and Christian targets. The Palestinian leader remains at large but is suspected to be hiding within a Palestinian refugee camp. (AFP) |
| Mar 10, 1996 |
SLA officials report that Hizbollah forces killed 2 Israeli soldiers, and wounded 4 others, in an attack in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Mar 11, 1996 |
Lebanon declined an invitation to an Arab peace summit, noting that it refused to acknowledge that "freedom fighters" in Lebanon were terrorists. (Reuters) |
| Mar 20, 1996 |
An Israeli officer, who was a Druze, died when a Hizbollah suicide bomber hurled himself at an army convoy in south Lebanon. (AFP) |
| Mar 31, 1996 |
A day of fighting between Hizbollah and Israeli troops along the border erupted after 2 Lebanese civilians were killed. The fighting ended as Israel appealed to Syria to intervene diplomatically. (Reuters) |
| Apr 5, 1996 |
French President Jacques Chirac visited southern Lebanon and called for the restoration of Lebanon's full sovereignty. Chirac met with leaders of several religious communities in Lebanon in an effort to encourage cooperation among them. (AFP) |
| Apr 10 - 26, 1996 |
Israel launches an offensive against Hizbollah targets in southern Lebanon, known as "Operation Grapes of Wrath." During the offensive, more than 200 people (mostly civilians) were killed in Lebanon total and hundreds more were wounded. More than 400,000 were forced from their homes in Lebanon. About 55 Israelis were wounded during the campaign, but there were no Israeli fatalities. (Reuters) (Day-to-day chronology from Reuters North American Newswire, April 26, 1996) APRIL 11 Israeli helicopters and jets blast Lebanon, rocketing Beirut for first time in 14 years as Israel's patience with pro-Iranian Hizbollah attacks runs out. APRIL 12 Israeli helicopters and jets attack Beirut. APRIL 13 Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres says the offensive named "Operation Grapes of Wrath" will go on until Hizbollah stops rocketing Israel. Israeli helicopter blasts ambulance full of refugees fleeing south Lebanon, killing four girls and two women; Israel says a guerrilla was also inside. APRIL 14 Israel steps up shelling of Beirut and hundreds of thousands of civilians flee southern Lebanon when Israel tells them to leave or face onslaught. APRIL 15 Israeli jets attack electricity station near Beirut. France sends Foreign Minister Herve de Charette to seek truce but Peres says: "It's too early to negotiate." APRIL 16 Israeli helicopters shell Palestinian guerrilla chief's house in refugee camp, and Hizbollah rockets northern Israel. De Charette fails to get Israel to halt the blitz. APRIL 17 Israeli jets and guns pound south Lebanon for seventh day as [the] US and France step up diplomatic moves. Blitz so far involved 1,000 aircraft sorties and 11,000 shells. APRIL 18 President Clinton orders Secretary of State Warren Christopher to Middle East and calls for cease-fire after Israeli shells kill 102 refugees at U.N. peacekeeping post in bloodiest day of blitz. Peres [places] blame for civilian casualties on Hizbollah who shelled Israel from near the post. APRIL 19 Clinton and other leaders at Moscow summit call for immediate cease-fire. Clinton's peace envoy Dennis Ross meets Israeli leaders to pave the way for Christopher's diplomatic shuttle. Fighting rages on. APRIL 20 Christopher holds "good and productive" talks with Syrian President Hafez al-Assad but makes clear search for cease-fire has way to go. Assad meets de Charette, Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny Primakov and Italian Foreign Minister Susanna Agnelli representing European Union. Fighting rages on. APRIL 21 Israel eases air raids but heavy guns keep up barrage. Christopher sees Peres, then returns to Damascus. "We have some difficult questions to work through," he says. APRIL 22 Christopher meets Assad again, then Peres. Israel widens air strikes, pounding Palestinian bases as Lebanon observes day of mourning for 155 people killed so far. APRIL 23 Both sides keep up rain of rockets and shells. Christopher fails to gain audience with Assad. He also calls off visit to Beirut on advice of U.S. military. De Charette meets Syrian and Lebanese leaders, says his idea for security committee to guarantee a cease-fire is getting support. APRIL 24 Christopher meets Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri in Lebanon after spending five hours with Assad. Israeli warships pound coast road to Beirut, cutting off south for seventh day. Hizbollah fire 17 rockets at Israel. APRIL 25 Talks seem to enter critical phase; Christopher holds late-night meeting with Assad. US officials hint talks with Assad and meeting Christopher is about to hold with Peres could be vital. "Differences remain, and not negligible differences," State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns says. APRIL 26 Christopher and Peres in Jerusalem and Hariri in Beirut announce cease-fire for 4 a.m. (9 p.m EDT) April 27.' |
| May 9, 1996 |
The UN issued a report stating that the bombing of a UN camp in Lebanon by Israel did not appear to be the result of either technical or procedural errors, as Israel claimed. The US criticized the report. (Reuters) A roadside bomb planted by Hizbollah forces in southern Lebanon wounded two SLA members. This was the first incident of Hizbollah violence since April's ceasefire agreement. (Reuters) |
| May 10, 1996 |
Another Hizbollah bomb exploded in southern Lebanon, seriously injuring a member of the SLA. (Some reports say that the SLA member was killed.) (Reuters) |
| May 12, 1996 |
Israeli planes fired rockets on suspected Hizbollah bases in Lebanon after two more Hizbollah attacks injured 5 Israeli soldiers. (Reuters) |
| May 14, 1996 |
Clashes between Israeli troops and Moslem guerilla forces in southern Lebanon leave one member of Hizbollah dead. (Reuters) |
| May 19, 1996 |
Both Hizbollah and Syria accuse Israel of breaking the April ceasefire after Israeli shells in southern Lebanon kill a civilian woman. (Reuters) The recent series of attacks speed up multilateral diplomatic efforts to develop and implement a cease-fire monitoring force in Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| May 20, 1996 |
A Lebanese court convicted former LF leader Samir Geagea for the murder of his rival, a leader of the Christian Phalange Party, in 1980. Geagea has been in prison since 1994 for another murder conviction. (Kaleidoscope) |
| May 22, 1996 |
Human Rights Watch calls upon the US to halt weapons shipments to Israel until the country vows to end attacks on civilians in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| May 23, 1996 |
Israeli forces launched a high-explosive artillery shell into southern Lebanon, but no casualties were reported. (Reuters) |
| May 27, 1996 |
More than 200,000 people gathered throughout Lebanon to commemorate the ancient Shi'ite martyr Imam Hussein, killed in 680 by Sunni Muslem troops. The rallies were seen as a massive show of public support for Hizbollah. (AFP) |
| May 29, 1996 |
Tensions between Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri and Hizbollah leaders became apparent as Hariri voiced the state's opposition to the politics of the Shi'ite Moslem group in "unusually harsh terms." The Prime Minister argues that Hizbollah's political agenda was based on an attempt to weaken the Lebanese state. (Reuters) |
| May 30, 1996 |
Hizbollah attacks resulted in the deaths of 4 Israeli soldiers, and wounded 7 others, as two bombs exploded within 15 minutes of one another in a southern Lebanese town, bringing to 11 the number of Israeli soldiers killed by Hizbollah in 1996. Hizbollah claimed that the attacks were retaliation for civilian deaths in Lebanon. (Reuters) Benjamin Netanyahu, a critic of the Israeli-Palestinian peace accord, is elected Prime Minister of Israel. |
| Jun 6, 1996 |
Hizbollah set off a bomb near an Isreali patrol in southern Lebanon. No injuries were reported. (Reuters) |
| Jun 10, 1996 |
Hizbollah ambushed Isreali soldiers on patrol in southern Lebanon. Five Israelis and one Shi'ite guerilla were killed in the attack, and 6 more Isrealis were wounded. Israel launched a retalitory attack, killing one additional Hizbollah fighter. (Reuters) |
| Jun 14, 1996 |
SLA forces killed a Hizbollah guerilla during an gunfire exchange between the two groups in the occupied zone in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) Bahrain asked for Lebanon's assistance in stopping Hizbollah training of Shi'ite rebels in Bahrain who are trying to overthrow the Sunni-run government there. (AFP) |
| Jun 24, 1996 |
For the first time since April, Hizbollah launched a rocket attack on Israeli posts in southern Lebanon. The attack caused no casualties. (Reuters) |
| Jun 29, 1996 |
Hizbollah launched a mortar bomb attack on nine Israeli and SLA outposts in southern Lebanon, injuring 3 SLA fighters. Retaliatory attacks by Israel apparently resulted in the death of one Hizbollah guerilla. (Reuters) |
| Jul 2, 1996 |
Israeli warplanes fired four rockets at a base of the Palestinian National Liberation Organization (PNLO)--a PLO splinter group--in southeastern Lebanon. The PNLO had claimed responsibility for a recent West Bank attack in which 3 Israeli soldiers were killed and 2 were wounded. (Reuters) |
| Jul 7, 1996 |
Two Israeli soldiers received minor injuries during overnight clashes between Hizbollah and Israeli troops in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Jul 10, 1996 |
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu told US President Clinton that he would move forward with the peace process with Syria only after all Hizbollah attacks on Israeli troops ceased. Hizbollah leaders denied that Netanyahu would be able to crush Hezbollah. (Reuters) |
| Jul 11, 1996 |
In a move intended to appease Druze leader Walid Joumblat, the Lebanese parliament voted for a new election plan which called for single constituency votes in 4 of 5 Lebanon's regions. The fifth region-- Mount Lebanon--would be broken into six districts. While this region is Christian-dominated, the majority of the Lebanese Druze population also live in Mount Lebanon. If it were to become a single-constituency district, the Druze would likely have no representation in the parliament. (UPI) |
| Jul 12, 1996 |
Two-and-a-half months after securing a cease-fire agreement in Lebanon, the Lebanon, Israel, Syria, France, and the US agreed to a 5-nation monitoring mechanism to ensure that no civilians were targeted in conflicts in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Jul 13, 1996 |
Former LF leader and two-time murderer Samir Geagea was found not guilty of planning a 1994 church bombing in Beirut. Both he and his deputy, Fuad Malek, were found guilty of forming armed militias after the civil war. (Kaleidoscope) |
| Jul 21, 1996 |
Based on a deal negotiated by German mediators, Lebanon handed over to Israel the bodies of 2 Israeli soldiers captured in 1986. In exchange, Israel will return to Lebanon the bodies of 123 fallen guerillas and the SLA will free more than 40 prisoners in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Jul 25, 1996 |
A Hizbollah bomb seriously injured one civilian in southern Lebanon. Hizbollah spokesmen claimed that the attack also killed an SLA security officer. In a subsequent clash, Israeli forces killed two Shi'ite guerillas. (Reuters) |
| Jul 30, 1996 |
The UN Security Council renewed for six months (through January 31, 1997) the mandate of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNFIL). |
| Aug 6, 1996 |
Hizbollah shelling kills 1 Isreali soldier and wounds 2 others at posts in southern Lebanon. To date in 1996, Hizbollah has killed 17 Israelis. (Reuters, August 7)6 August 1996: Hizbollah shelling kills 1 Isreali soldier and wounds 2 others at posts in southern Lebanon. To date in 1996, Hizbollah has killed 17 Israelis. (Reuters, August 7) |
| Aug 7, 1996 |
Israeli planes launched rockets on Hezbollah targets and Syrian troops in eastern Lebanon in retaliation for Hizbollah shelling on Isreali troops. |
| Aug 8, 1996 |
As the 5-nation monitoring team for Lebanon met for the first time, Israel launched air raids on a Hizbollah radio station and ammunition depot. (Reuters) |
| Aug 13, 1996 |
Following an August 9 decision by Lebanon's Constitutional Court that the election laws passed in July were unconstitutional, the parliament amended the law but maintained the provisions dividing Mount Lebanon into districts. The revised law notes that the division is justified by extraordinary circumstances. (APS Diplomatic Recorder, August 17) |
| Aug 18, 1996 |
The first round of elections for Lebanon's parliament is held. Unlike in 1992 elections, Christians in the Mount Lebanon region participated in the elections and posed a challenge to the Syrian-controlled government. Election observers reported that gross irregularities and violent outbreaks--including one death--marred the elections. In the end, a candidate list headed by pro-Syrian Druze leader Walid Jumblatt won all 8 seats in the Druze dominated district, and pro-government candidates won 32 of the 35 seats contested in this round of elections. (Reuters; Financial Times, August 20; AFP, August 19) |
| Aug 25, 1996 |
Elections were held in northern Lebanon, where the electorate included 5,000 newly eligible voters from the Wadi Khaled tribes. Boutrus Harb, a Christian critic of Syria's influence over Lebanon, captured the most votes in the traditionally pro-Syrian region. (AFP; AFP, August 26) |
| Aug 28, 1996 |
SLA mortar fire hit a UN post in southern Lebanon, slightly injuring a Finnish peacekeeper. (Reuters) A Hizbollah ambush along the south Lebanon border killed one Israeli soldier and wounds another. (Reuters, August 30) |
| Aug 29, 1996 |
A clash in southern Lebanon resulted in the death of one Israeli soldier and the wounding of two Lebanese civilians. (Reuters, August 30) |
| Sep 1, 1996 |
Voting for legislators took place in Beirut, where parliamentary seats follow the region's population patterns; there are six Sunni Moslem seats, two Shiites, one Druze, five Armenians, two Greek Orthodox, one Maronite Christian, one Greek Catholic and one protestant. Allegations of corruption marred this round of voting. (AFP) |
| Sep 7, 1996 |
Syria averted a divisive vote in Lebanon's fourth round of parliamentary elections by forging an alliance between rival opposition groups Amal and Hizbollah for seats in southern Lebanon. This alliance won 21 of the 23 seats reserved for south Lebanon. (Reuters; AFP, September 9) |
| Sep 13, 1996 |
Israeli forces ambushed Hizbollah forces in southern Lebanon, killing one guerilla. Later, Israeli helicopters launched rockets at suspected Hizbollah posts in the region. (Reuters) |
| Sep 15, 1996 |
The final round of elections took place in eastern Lebanon. As in the south, Syria played an active role in forming the list of candidates for this region in an effort to quell tensions among pro-government groups. Under a deal brokered by Syria, Hizbollah leaders were able to select the Maronite Christian candidate for the Baalbeck-Hermel region. (Reuters) |
| Sep 17, 1996 |
A gunfight broke out at a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon between a Saadi clan of PLO guerillas and members the small faction Osbet al-Ansar (Band of Supporters). Abu Obaidah, the leader of the latter group, was severely wounded during the attack. (Reuters) The Lebanese cabinet granted broadcasting licenses to a handful of television and radio stations under pro-Syrian, pro-government ownership. The government then ordered the shutdown of the approximately 45 TV stations and almost 100 radio stations that are led by opposition forces. Members of both the Lebanese Druze and Christian communities condemned the decision. (AFP) |
| Sep 19, 1996 |
The SAL reported that 2 Israeli soldiers were killed, and another 2 were injured, in an ambush by Hizbollah guerilla forces. Later reports indicated that 8 soldiers were injured. (Reuters) In response to the ambush, Israel launched three air raids on Hizbollah targets in southern Lebanon. Hizbollah reported that the attacks injured a civilian woman, in violation of the April cease-fire agreement. (Reuters) |
| Sep 20, 1996 |
Lebanese President Hrawi met with Syrian President Assad to discuss heightening tensions between Lebanon and Israel. (Reuters) |
| Sep 21, 1996 |
Clashes broke out throughout southern Lebanon between Israeli soldiers and Hizbollah forces, with each side reported to have launched rockets and artillery fire. (Reuters) |
| Sep 22, 1996 |
Lebanese officials arrested 11 sympathizers of the Sunni opposition group the People's Lebanese Congress in Beirut for burning the US flag. The group stated that they were burning the flag to voice opposition to US involvement in Lebanon's parliamentary elections. (AFP) |
| Sep 24, 1996 |
Hizbollah launched two separate ambushes in southern Lebanon, injuring 4 SLA fighters. (Reuters, September 25) |
| Sep 25, 1996 |
Israel fired four rockets at Hizbollah bases in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Sep 26, 1996 |
Palestinians in southern Lebanese refugee camps staged an anti-Israel strike to protest the killing of 7 Palestinians in the West Bank by Israeli troops. |
| Oct 9, 1996 |
Almost 200 people demonstrated outside the government palace in Beirut, protesting the restrictive media rules announced in September. Plain-clothes intelligence officers broke up the protest. Following a meeting with Christian leader Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir, Prime Minister Hariri announced that religious leaders, not the state-run channels, would remain responsible for the broadcast of religious news. (AFP, October 11) |
| Oct 11, 1996 |
The Israeli army reported that its troops had killed 2 Amal soldiers, and wounded one guerilla, in clashes in southern Lebanon (Reuters, October 12) |
| Oct 12, 1996 |
Israel launched an artillery attack on a south Lebanese village, wounding 13 civilians--eight of whom were from one family. The attack was in retaliation for Hizbollah mortar attacks on Israeli bases, in which no injuries were reported. (Reuters) |
| Oct 18, 1996 |
The five-nation group formed to monitor the Israeli-Lebanese cease-fire announced that Israel was responsible for the civilian injuries in southern Lebanon on Oct. 12 and that it "deplored" the damage caused by the attack. (Reuters) A roadside bomb, planted by Hizbollah, exploded in southern Lebanon and killed 2 SLA fighters, while seriously wounding 2 others. The militiamen were the 15th and 16th SLA fighters killed in Lebanon in 1996. (Reuters) |
| Oct 25, 1996 |
A Hizbollah bomb killed 2 Israeli soldiers and wounded 4 others. (Reuters, November 9) |
| Oct 31, 1996 |
Two guerillas from the Amal movement were killed during clashes with Israeli forces within the occupation zone. (Reuters, November 3) |
| Nov 3, 1996 |
A SLA fighter died when a Hizbollah-planted bomb exploded in Israeli-occupied southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Nov 9, 1996 |
One Israeli soldier died, and two more were wounded, in an ambush by Hizbollah forces. (Reuters) |
| Nov 13, 1996 |
A SLA militiaman died after receiving fatal wounds during clashes with Hizbollah forces. (Reuters) |
| Nov 22, 1996 |
Israel released a man from a Druze community in southern Lebanon who had been arrested and secretly transported to Israel because of suspicions that he was a member of Hezbollah. (AFP) |
| Nov 28, 1996 |
Baton-wielding Lebanese police forces broke up a demonstration in Beirut protesting Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri's government. Police reportedly arrested 70 protestors who were demonstrating against the government's poor record on social reforms and Hariri's edict to impose censorship and shut down a number of television and radio stations. (Reuters; Kaleidoscope) |
| Nov 30, 1996 |
Israeli troops killed 2 Arab guerillas alnong the border of the occupied zone of southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Dec 4, 1996 |
The Israeli army announced that it had formed an elite unit--known as the Egoz unit--to battle terrorism in southern Lebanon and that it had killed at least 16 guerillas in the year since it had been put into practice. (Reuters) A bomb exploded near the home of the parents of Abu Mahjan, the Palestinian being tried in absentia for the August 1995 murder of a Sunni fundamentalist leader. No group claimed responsibilty for the bombing. (AFP) |
| Dec 13, 1996 |
Israel reports that Katyusha rockets fired from Lebanon had struck northern Israel. Hizbollah denied launching these rockets, but the international monitoring group found it responsible for the launch of at least one rocket. Israel later claimed that the PFLP-GC was responsible for the rocket attack. (Reuters, December 15; December 18; AFP, December 24) |
| Dec 14, 1996 |
Two Arab guerillas died and one Israeli soldier was injured in clashes in southern Lebanon. (Reuters, December 15) |
| Dec 15, 1996 |
Israel launched three separate rocket attacks on Hizbollah bases in southern Lebanon as Lebanese leaders prepared to meet with US officials about increasing aid for Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Dec 16, 1996 |
US President Clinton refused to lift his country's ban on travel to Lebanon as international donors agreed to give Lebanon over $3 billion in long-term aid. |
| Dec 18, 1996 |
Israeli warplanes three times launched rockets on suspected Hizbollah bases outside of the Israeli occupied zone of southern Lebanon. (Reuter) |
| Dec 19, 1996 |
After Hizbollah launched a mortar attack on Israeli posts, Israel fired 2 air-to-surface missiles at suspected Hizbollah targets. |
| Dec 24, 1996 |
Two Israeli soldiers died, and two more suffered injuries, following the detonation of a large explosive in southern Lebanon. Hizbollah claimed responsibility for the attacks. During 1996, twenty-six Israeli soldiers died in clashes with Hizbollah, and another weighty-six suffered injuries. (AFP) |
| Jan 1, 1997 |
A total of 27 Israeli soldiers died in fighting in south Lebanon in 1996Cthe highest total in 11 years. In addition, 19 SLA fighters died. Fifty-four Arab guerillas mostly members of HizbollahCalso perished during fighting in 1996, as did 155 Lebanese civilians. Lebanon's National News Agency reported that, excluding the 17 days of fighting in April, guerilla forces launched 365 attacks on Israeli or SLA forces during 1996. (Reuters) |
| Jan 3 - 5, 1997 |
Israel launches a series of rocket attacks against suspected Hizbollah targets in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Jan 8, 1997 |
Israeli warplanes launched two air raid strikes against suspected Hizbollah guerrilla targets in south Lebanon after Katyusha rockets from Lebanon hit northern Israel. Both Hizbollah and Amal denied involvement with the rocket attack. Earlier in the day, one Israeli soldier was killed and 4 others were wounded in a clash with Amal guerilla forces. Israeli forces reported that 3 guerillas also died in the clashes. (Reuters) |
| Jan 10, 1997 |
Lebanese security forces arrested two members of the Syrian-based Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) who were suspected of being involved with the January 8 rocket launch on Israel. (Reuters) |
| Jan 16, 1997 |
Both Hizbollah and PFLP-GC condemned an agreement made between PLO leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli leaders on a partial Israeli withdrawal from the town of Hebron. (AFP) |
| Jan 19, 1997 |
The bodyguard of a Fatah leader is shot dead in a Palestinian refugee camp. No group claimed responsibility for the murder. |
| Jan 29, 1997 |
Israel launched its twelfth air raid attack of the year on suspected Hizbollah targets in Lebanon. (Hizbollah) |
| Jan 30, 1997 |
A Hizbollah bomb killed 3 Israeli soldiers and seriously wounded another on foot patrol in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Feb 5, 1997 |
Seventy-three Israeli soldiers en route to southern Lebanon died when their helicopter crashed. The accident re-opened questions concerning Israel's continued involvement in Lebanon. (New York Times, February 6) |
| Feb 9, 1997 |
A clash between Hizbollah guerillas and Israeli forces involving bombs, machine guns, and anti-tank rockets, left 7 Israeli soldiers wounded. (Reuters) |
| Feb 11, 1997 |
Israel launched a series of attacks against Hizbollah and PFLP-GC guerilla bases in Lebanon. The attacks disabled a Hizbollah radio station. At least one civilian was injured in the attack. (Reuters; Reuters, February 13) |
| Feb 13, 1997 |
Israeli helicopters launched an attack on Palestinian and Hizbollah targets north of the Israeli-occupied sector of Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Feb 21, 1997 |
Lebanon's top Shiite Moslem cleric, Sheikh Mohammad Mahdi Shamseddin, and the head of the Egypt's Sunni Moslem bastion, agreed during a meeting in Cairo that all Moslems were one people and that no fundamental differences existed between Shi'ites and Sunnis. (AFP) |
| Feb 27, 1997 |
An Israeli attack on guerilla targets resulted in the shelling of a market town in southern Lebanon, outside of the Israeli-occupied zone. The attack caused no casualties but did significantly damage structures in the town. (Reuters) |
| Feb 28, 1997 |
Five Hizbollah guerillas and one Israeli soldier were killed in a series of retaliatory clashes in southern Lebanon. This was the fifth Israeli soldier killed in Lebanon in 1997. (Reuters) |
| Mar 2, 1997 |
Israeli launched its twentieth raid of the year of guerilla targets in Lebanon. No injuries were reported. (Reuters) |
| Mar 3, 1997 |
A Hizbollah machine-gun attack left two SLA militiamen wounded. Israel and Hizbollah launched a retaliatory artillery attack. (Reuters) |
| Mar 8, 1997 |
Isreali forces raided Hizbollah targets in southern Lebanon, launching a total of 4 rockets. (Reuters) |
| Mar 9, 1997 |
Muslim guerilla forces wounded an Isreali soldier in southern Lebanon. Israel responded by launching its 23rd air ride of the year at Hizbollah targets. (Reuters) |
| Mar 10, 1997 |
An Israeli soldier was wounded when a car bomb exploded in southern Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| Mar 22, 1997 |
Palestinians in refugee camps in Lebanon held a massive strike to protest Israel's construction of a new Jewish settlement in Arab east Jerusalem. (AFP) |
| Mar 24, 1997 |
A Palestinian and two Lebanese--all followers of Abu Mahjan--were hanged in Beirut for the August 1995 murder of Sunni fundamentalist Sheick Halabi. Abu Mahjan, considered to be the mastermind of the murder, remains missing but is believed to hiding in a Palestinian refugee camp, off limits to the Lebanese army. (AFP) |
| Apr 9, 1997 |
A roadside bomb in south Lebanon wounded 4 SLA members. (Reuters) |
| Apr 13, 1997 |
A roadside bomb in south Lebanon killed one member of the SLA and wounded 2 others. (Reuters) |
| Apr 15, 1997 |
Israeli troops crossed into non-Israeli Lebanon and raided a Hizbollah base, killing two guerillas and wounding several others. (Reuters) |
| Apr 18, 1997 |
On the one-year anniversary of the killing of over 100 Lebanese civilians, fighting with fists and sticks broke out between backers of Hizbollah and Amal. (Reuters) |
| May 1, 1997 |
An Israeli military leader reported that Hizbollah was having difficulty gaining new recruits. (Reuters) |
| May 9, 1997 |
Lebanon's Judicial Council sentenced Samir Geagea, former leader of the now-disbanded Christian Lebanese Forces, to death for the attempted murder of a government official in 1991. The Council immediately commuted the sentence to life in prison. (AFP) |
| May 10, 1997 |
Pope John Paul II arrived in Lebanon for a 32-hour visit, intended to help Christians in Lebanon become fully integrated in the post-war society. Druze leader Walid Jumblatt expressed hope that the Pope would encourage Christians in Lebanon to work for and accept a secular Lebanon. (AFP, April 30) At the end of his visit, the Pope issued an Apostolic Exhortation entitled "A New Hope for Lebanon," in which he called for Lebanon's complete independence and implored Christians to remain in Lebanon, despite complaints of discrimination. (Reuters) |
| May 12, 1997 |
Four SLA fighters and an Israeli soldier were injured when Hizbollah forces attacked their post in southern Lebanon. Israel retaliated by firing six rockets at suspected Hizbollah bases, in Israel's 27th air raid in Lebanon in 1997. (Reuters) |
| May 15, 1997 |
Three Israeli soldiers were injured after Hizbollah guerillas ambushed their base. (Reuters) In a separate clash, Hizbollah guerillas killed one Israeli soldier and wounded five others. Israel responded by launching 2 air raids against Hizbollah targets. Isreali sources claimed that one guerilla was killed in these attacks, but Hezbollah denied the report. (Reuters) Over night, three Israeli soldiers died during clashes with Hizbollah forces. Lebanese army forces were also involved after the Israeli army apparently shot at one of its bases. (Reuters, May 16) |
| May 16, 1997 |
Israel launched two separate air raids on Hizbollah targets. At the same time, Israeli officials--prompted by the loss of three soldiers--stated that Israel had no plans to take over Lebanese territory and is interested in reaching a peace agreement with Lebanon. |
| May 17, 1997 |
The SLA reported that Hizbollah guerillas destroyed a SLA outpost and wounded a SLA militiaman. Israel and SLA shot artillery fire and launched the 44th air raid of the year at Hizbollah regions. (Reuters) |
| May 18, 1997 |
For the third consecutive day, Israel raided Hizbollah targets in Lebanon. (Reuters) |
| May 19, 1997 |
Four Lebanese MPs lost their legislative seats after the country's Constitutional Council discovered irregularities in last year's elections. Three of parliamentarians were Maronite Christians and one was a Sunni Moslem. (AFP) |
| May 21, 1997 |
A roadside bomb exploded in southern Lebanon, injuring an Israeli soldier. (Reuters) During an interview on Arab television, Maronite Christian leader Nasrallah Sfeir stated that Syrian troops have been in Lebanon for too long and that the situation is benefiting neither Lebanon nor Syria. He pointed out that the 1989 Taif accord, approved by the Lebanese National Assembly, had called for Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon within two years, but that this agreement had been ignored. (AFP) |
| May 24, 1997 |
The Israeli army killed one Hizbollah guerilla and wounded three others in north of Israel's occupation zone in southern Lebanon. This was the twelfth Hizbollah guerilla killed in 1997. (Reuters) |
| May 28, 1997 |
A gunfight erupted between members of rival Palestinian factions at a south Lebanon refugee camp. The conflict was between members of the Moslem-fundamentalist Ansarollah (Supporter of God) group and a pro-Syrian group named Sae'qa (Thunder). (Reuters) |
| Jun 4, 1997 |
One Lebanese villager died when four roadside bombs exploded in eastern Lebanon. A Hizbollah guerilla was also injured in the explosion. Hizbollah leaders claim that Israel detonated the bombs via remote control. (Reuters) |
| Jun 6, 1997 |
Hizbollah ambushed an Israeli patrol within the occupied zone of southern Lebanon, wounding several soldiers. (UPI) |
| Jun 11, 1997 |
Hizbollah rocket fire wounded one SLA militiaman in the occupied zone and prompted a retaliatory bombardment by Israeli forces. (UPI) |
| Jun 15, 1997 |
One Israeli soldier died as a result of serious wounds caused by the explosion of a roadside Hizbollah bomb. Three other soldiers were injured in the explosion. (New York Times, June 16) |
| Jun 16, 1997 |
SLA reported that the explosion of a roadside bomb near the Christian town of Jezzine within the Israeli-occupied zone injured a Lebanese civilian. No group took immediate responsibility for the blast. (UPI) |
| Jun 18, 1997 |
The explosion of a roadside bomb killed in Jezzine an SLA fighter and a Lebanese civilian (possibly also an SLA fighter) and injured another man, while another bomb in the occupied region injured two Lebanese policemen. No group claimed immediate responsibility for the blasts. Israel reacted by launching four rockets at Hizbollah positions in the southwest Bekaa valley. (UPI) |
| Jun 19, 1997 |
Residents of Jezzine observed a strike to protest the placement of bombs along roads used by civilians in the town, claiming that the attacks violated the April 1996 cease-fire agreement and demanding that Lebanese officials do something to stop the explosions. Two SLA security officials died following the explosion of another roadside bomb in Jezzine. (The SLA claimed that the men were civilians). (UPI) |
| Jun 21, 1997 |
Six UN peacekeepers, part of UNIFIL, were wounded--two critically--when a roadside bomb exploded as the UNIFIL unit patrolled the border of Israel's occupied region. (UPI) During a visit to Palestinian refugee camps in southern Lebanon, EU envoy Miguel Angel Moratinos promised that the EU would support the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) to help improve the conditions of the refugees. (UPI) Israeli airplanes rocketed suspected Hizbollah posts in Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Jun 27, 1997 |
Israel launched an overnight air raid on Hizbollah positions in Lebanon, firing at least five rockets at a cluster of Shi'ite villages in the Iqlim al- Toffah region. At least one guerilla fighter died and three others were injured. (UPI) |
| Jun 30, 1997 |
An exchange of gunfire between Hizbollah and Israeli forces left two Muslim guerillas dead. (UPI) |
| Jul 1, 1997 |
Hizbollah fighters and Israeli soldiers clashed overnight. Israel claimed that at least one guerilla died during the fighting, while Hizbollah claimed that several Israelis were killed or wounded and had to be evacuated by an Israeli helicopter. (UPI) The French ambassador to Israel announced that France would be willing to commit troops to Lebanon to facilitate Israel's evacuation of the country. (UPI) |
| Jul 2, 1997 |
Hizbollah forces attacked an Israeli convoy within the occupied region of Lebanon. Each side offered conflicting reports on casualties from this attack. Israel later bombarded villages near the southern Lebanon border, injuring one civilian and damaging five houses. (UPI) |
| Jul 3, 1997 |
Israeli jets fired at least six rockets upon PFLP-GC posts in a coastal village south of Beirut, injuring three Palestinians. A member of Hizbollah and a SLA fighter were killed in a separate clash in Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Jul 6, 1997 |
Following the reported killing of an Israeli soldier by Hizbollah forces during a machine gun and rocket-fired grenade attack, Israel launched an artillery attack on Shi'ite villages in the Iqlim al- Toffah region, suspected to be a Hizbollah post. At least one civilian and 7-year-old boy were injured in the Israeli attacks. (UPI) Among 4,000 protestors in the Bekaa Valley, former Hizbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Sobhi Tofaili called for a "Revolution of the Hungry," a protest against declining living standards in Lebanon. Sheikh Sobhi demanded free education and free hospitals for Lebanon and encouraged a campaign of civil disobedience against the Lebanese government, including the refusal to pay taxes. (The Independent, July 7) |
| Jul 10, 1997 |
An overnight attack by Hizbollah, using machine guns and grenades, left one Israeli soldier dead--the twelfth Israeli soldier to die in Lebanon in 1997. Israel responded by inflicting material damage to several posts outside of its occupied zone. (UPI; UPI, July 13) |
| Jul 13, 1997 |
Hizbollah guerillas exchanged fire with Israeli troops and SLA forces. At least two Israeli soldiers were injured in the exchange. (UPI) |
| Jul 14, 1997 |
An Israeli bombardment of Muslim villages left one woman and her son dead and injured the woman's daughter as they worked in a field near the village of Barti. Hizbollah retaliation injured two SLA militiamen. (UPI) |
| Jul 15, 1997 |
Hizbollah launched a rocket attack on Israeli and SLA posts in the occupied region of Lebanon and into northern Israel. The attacks injured 2 Lebanese farmers. The rocket attack was a retaliatory attack for the bombing of Barti. (UPI) |
| Jul 17, 1997 |
The five-nation group monitoring the April 1996 cease-fire condemned both Israel and Hizbollah for the recent round of bombings at or near civilian targets. (UPI) |
| Jul 24, 1997 |
Two separate guerilla attacks injured 6 SLA militiamen near Jezzine. (UPI) |
| Jul 25, 1997 |
For the first time in 23 years, the internationally renowned Baalbeck Festival resumed in Lebanon. The festival is considered to be a symbol of Lebanese pride for members of all the ethnic and religious groups in Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Jul 26, 1997 |
A 70-year-old Lebanese woman was injured during Israeli shelling of the Bekaa valley. (UPI, July 27) |
| Jul 27, 1997 |
Hezbollah bombs injured one civilian woman and damaged three houses near Jezzine, according to SLA reports. Hezbollah confirmed the bombing but not the damage reports. (UPI) |
| Jul 28, 1997 |
Hizbollah and Israeli exchanged attacks throughout the night. Both sides reported that its opponent suffered injuries. (UPI) |
| Jul 30, 1997 |
The US State Department lifted a 10-year ban on travel to Lebanon by US citizens. Secretary of State Albright noted that Lebanon remained very dangerous but had made great strides under Prime Minister Hariri. (New York Times, July 31) |
| Aug 1, 1997 |
After holding her for 40 days, Israel released a Lebanese woman, who had been suspected of assisting the resistance guerillas, from the Khiyam detention camp within the Israeli security zone. It is believed that Israel is holding more than 150 Lebanese (including 5 other women) at Khiyam, a facility which Amnesty International has reported as a site of human rights abuses. Israel reportedly is holding another 75 Lebanese in jails within Israeli territory. (UPI) |
| Aug 4, 1997 |
Following a clash involving both Hezbollah forces and the Lebanese army against Israeli troops, Israeli bombs exploded in a Shi'ite village, killing 5 guerillas and injuring 5 civilians. (UPI) |
| Aug 5, 1997 |
Israeli air strikes against Hizbollah targets in the Bekaa valley killed 2 Lebanese civilians and injured 4 others, including a young boy. (UPI) |
| Aug 7, 1997 |
A mine placed beneath a car exploded near Markaba, within the Israeli-occupied zone, killing a woman and her two children, and injuring the woman's husband. Israel blamed Hizbollah for the massacre, while Hizbollah forces claimed Israel was attempting to cover-up the civilian attacks with which Israel was involved. (UPI) |
| Aug 8, 1997 |
Israeli Air Force jets dropped six rockets on PFLP-GC positions south of Beirut, apparently targeting a tunnel previously used by the PFLP-GC to stockpile ammunition. (UPI) |
| Aug 9, 1997 |
Four Israeli warplanes attacked a Hizbollah artillery post and training facility in the Bekaa valley, killing one guerilla and injuring four others. (UPI) |
| Aug 10, 1997 |
A grenade exploded in an orphanage in Jezzine, injuring one girl. While Israel blamed Hizbollah for the attack, it was not clear who was responsible. An Israeli soldier died following an ambush by Muslim guerillas within the occupied zone of Lebanon. Israel responded with a helicopter air strike and rounds of machine-gun fire at border villages. (UPI) |
| Aug 16, 1997 |
Israeli warplanes struck suspected PFLP bases in the hills of Naameh. PFLP leader Ahmed Jibril denied that the group maintains military posts in this region. (UPI) |
| Aug 18, 1997 |
Six civilians were killed by Israeli artillery fire in the southern port town of Sidon. An additional 32 people were injured. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan expressed concern about the upsurge of violence in Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Aug 19, 1997 |
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu threatened military retaliation against Lebanon after a Hezbollah rockets killed one person and injured three in the Israeli security zone in Lebanon, and injured three others in northern Israel. Hizbollah claimed this attack was in retaliation for the Sidon bombing. (UPI) |
| Aug 20, 1997 |
Israeli warplanes struck a number of Hizbollah targets in southern and eastern Lebanon, injuring several guerillas, as well as civilians. (UPI) |
| Aug 21, 1997 |
A Druze truck driver in southern Lebanon died after a bomb exploded near his truck. Israeli forces and Hizbollah each blamed their opponent for the explosion. (AFP) |
| Aug 22, 1997 |
The explosion of a roadside bomb within occupied Lebanon left one SLA militiaman dead. (UPI) |
| Aug 23, 1997 |
At least one Hezbollah guerilla was injured during an attack on Israeli and SLA forces. Israel launched a series of air strikes following the attack. (UPI) |
| Aug 24, 1997 |
The five-nation monitoring group responsible for enforcing the cease-fire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah finds both sides responsible for recent violations of the agreement. (UPI) |
| Aug 25, 1997 |
An attack by Israeli warplanes inflicted material damage on a PFLP site 10 miles south of Beirut. Israel reacted to the wounding of a SLA soldier by the explosion of a Hizbollah-planted roadside bomb by launching an artillery attack on Shi'ite villages in the Iqlim al- Toffah region, outside of the occupied zone. (UPI) |
| Aug 28, 1997 |
During a burst of fighting within the southern occupied zone and near its northern border, six Israeli soldiers and four Amal guerillas died. Another 20 or more Israeli soldiers were injured in the fierce fighting. (UPI; UPI, September 1) |
| Sep 1, 1997 |
Hizbollah guerillas wounded a SLA soldier in an attack on a SLA post within occupied Lebanon. Israel responded by launching shells near the city of Tyre. (UPI) |
| Sep 2, 1997 |
Two brothers, aged 11 and 12, were wounded when an explosive detonated in a field near Israel's occupied zone. Hizbollah accused Israel of planting such devices. (UPI) |
| Sep 5, 1997 |
Israel lost 12 soldiers in a pre-dawn battle with both guerillas and the Lebanese army. Israeli forces were attempting to land in the town of Ansariyeh, twelve miles north of the Israel's occupied zone, in what has been described as a commando raid when the battle occurred. A Lebanese woman and child were also killed, and six Lebanese civilians and six Moslim guerillas were injured in the battle. (UPI) Following this battle, the five-nation monitoring group issued warnings to both Israeli forces and to guerilla groups in Lebanon that each needed to be more cautious and precise in selecting targets. (UPI, September 9) |
| Sep 7, 1997 |
An Israeli soldier died from wound inflicted by a Hizbollah mortar attack. Hizbollah reported that a number of other Israeli soldiers were injured. (UPI) |
| Sep 10, 1997 |
Lebanese soldiers fired upon Israeli helicopters and gunboats approaching the Lebanese coast and the port city of Sidon. Muslim guerillas attacked an Israeli post in the southern occupied zone of Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Sep 12, 1997 |
Israel launched air strikes on Lebanese army posts near Sidon, outside of Israel's security zone. The strikes killed 6 Lebanese soldiers and one civilian woman and injured 6 more Lebanese soldiers. (UPI) |
| Sep 13, 1997 |
Two Hizbollah guerillas died and one was reported missing following a failed attempt by the men to enter the Israeli security zone. One of the guerillas killed was the son of the secretary-general of Hezbollah, Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah. Nasrallah immediately proclaimed his son a martyr for the Muslim cause in Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Sep 14, 1997 |
A remote-control activated bomb, planted by Hezbollah, exploded in the occupied zone of Lebanon, killing 2 Israeli soldiers and wounding a third. Israel responded by launching a shell attack at seven villages outside of the occupied zone. (UPI) |
| Sep 15, 1997 |
US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright declared that the conflict between Lebanon and Israel was a fundamental obstacle to the Arab-Israeli peace process and that Lebanon's reputation and chances for post-war recovery were hampered by the Lebanese government's failure to bring terrorists in its country to justice. (UPI) |
| Sep 18, 1997 |
Hizbollah forces killed one Israeli soldier and wounded two other soldiers as well as a SLA militiaman in a attack on Israeli posts using machine guns, rocket-launched grenades, and roadside bombs. In a retaliatory attack, Israel shelled villages in the Bekaa Valley, wounding at least five Lebanese civilians. (UPI) |
| Sep 19, 1997 |
Israeli forces arrested five Lebanese within the Israel's occupied zone on the suspicion that the five were plotting to blow up SLA's security headquarters. The five Lebanese were taken to the Khiyam detention camp to be held without trial. (UPI) |
| Sep 21, 1997 |
One member of the Sunni Islamist movement LMIU died and three others suffered wounds when Lebanese security forces stormed a building housing the groups radio station (Voice of Justice) and television station (The Crescent). Another 74 members of LMIU were arrested in the incident. Restrictive broadcast laws adopted a year ago banned both stations. (AFP; AFP, September 23) |
| Sep 23, 1997 |
The Lebanese army fired upon an Israeli gunboat approaching the Lebanese city of Tyre. Israeli Defense Minister Mordechai warned that Israel would retaliate against any attacks by the Lebanese army on Israeli forcs. (UPI) Lebanese security forces surrounded the building housing the radio station Voice of Beirut and forced it to shut down. The station was owned and operated by Sunni Muslim opponent of Prime Minister Hariri. (AFP) |
| Sep 25, 1997 |
Hizbollah guerillas fired upon SLA forces within Isreal's security zone, injuring 2 SLA fighters and a civilian woman. Israel and the SLA retaliated by bombarding villages outside of its security zone. (UPI) |
| Sep 29, 1997 |
A Hizbollah attack on an Israeli army position within the security zone left one Israeli soldier dead. Hizbollah also launched an attack on SLA forces in the western portion of the zone, but no injuries were reported there. |
| Oct 1, 1997 |
A SLA fighter died after suffering severe wounds during a machine-gun and grenade attack on SLA positions in southern Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Oct 5, 1997 |
SLA blamed Hezbollah for a bomb which killed a Lebanese woman and her son in the village of Houla within the Isreali security zone. (UPI) |
| Oct 8, 1997 |
Two roadside bombs planted by Hizbollah exploded in the Israeli security zone, killing at least 2 Israeli soldiers and 1 SLA fighter and injuring 7 other Israeli soldiers. The SLA militia expelled from the border region a Lebanese man, his two wives and eight children. The SLA questioned the man about his 16-year-old son, who fled the security region in September, and then ordered him to leave the Israeli region. (UPI) |
| Oct 14, 1997 |
During an hour-long clash between Muslim guerillas and Israeli forces, an anti-tank rocket exploded, wounding two Israeli soldiers. Israel warplanes then struck at Hizbollah positions in eastern Lebanon, injuring at least one person and damaging the antenna of a Hizbollah radio station. (UPI) |
| Oct 16, 1997 |
The Lebanese parliament voted to allow the country's government to sign an international treaty against taking hostages. Three of the five members of parliament voting against the move were Hizbollah representative. (UPI) |
| Oct 17, 1997 |
Israeli warplanes fired on PFLP posts ten miles south of Beirut. Sources indicated that these posts had already been abandoned by PFLP. No injuries were reported in the attack. A Lebanese civilian was wounded an exchange of shellfire between Hizbollah and Israeli soldiers across the occupied zone. (UPI) |
| Oct 18, 1997 |
A Hizbollah attack on an Israeli tank within the security zone of southern Lebanon left one Israeli soldier dead and two others injured. Israel responded by launching an artillery attack on a cluster of Shi'ite villages outside of Sidon. (UPI) |
| Oct 19, 1997 |
Hizbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah restated his groups overall goal of the "total elimination of Israel." Nasrallah also stated his plans to incorporate more Druze, Christians, and Sunnis into Hizbollah's struggle against Israel. (AFP) |
| Oct 20, 1997 |
For the second time in four days, Israeli warplanes attacked PFLP positions outside of Beirut. (UPI) |
| Oct 22, 1997 |
Israeli planes fired rockets at suspected Hezbollah targets near Sidon in Lebanon. Israeli officials released a Lebanese policeman from Khiyam detention center. Israeli soldiers arrested the policeman two months earlier, as he was visiting his parents in occupied zone, on the suspicion that he had links to the Muslim guerillas in Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Oct 24, 1997 |
In the occupied region of southern Lebanon, Israeli troops shot at and killed three Palestinians affiliated with the Islamic Jihad movement, the members of which are opposed to the Middle East peace process and to Israel's presence in Arab territories. (UPI) |
| Oct 25, 1997 |
Israel launched overnight airstrikes against both Hizbollah and PFLP-GC targets within Lebanon. No casualties were reported. One Palestinian was killed during the attacks. (AFP; AFP, October 26) |
| Oct 31, 1997 |
After an explosion in Israeli-occupied southern Lebanon killed two SLA fighters, Israeli launched a series of air raids against suspected Hizbollah targets near Sidon, as well as Jezzine. |
| Nov 4, 1997 |
As part of an effort to expand its fight against Israel, Hizbollah announced the formation of a group to parallel its Islamic Resistance to be comprised of resistance fighters from non-Shiite communities in Lebanon. (AFP) |
| Nov 6, 1997 |
Four Israeli jets launched rockets on PFLP posts near Beirut. The PFLP reported that the strikes targeted and damaged health, social, and humanitarian centers run by the organization. (UPI) |
| Nov 7, 1997 |
During a visit to Lebanon, Italian President Oscar Luigi Scalfero stated that Israel should observe UN resolutions (especially UN Security Council Resolution 425 (1978)) and withdraw from southern Lebanon. (UPI) A Hizbollah-planted roadside bomb exploded in the Israeli-occupied sector of Lebanon, injuring 2 SLA fighters. Israeli gunners then launched an attack on villages in Iqlim al- Toffah. (UPI) |
| Nov 12, 1997 |
Israel launched another air raid on suspected PFLP-GC posts in the hills of Naame despite repeated statements by PFLP leader Ahmed Jibril that the PFLP has no military posts at this site. (UPI) Ten days after former Hizbollah chief Sheikh Sobhi Tofaili encouraged thousands of people to block the roads to the Bekaa Valley in order to keep out two deputies to whose voting record he objectes, the Lebanese cabinet ordered heightened security in the eastern section of Lebanon. Lebanon had to send in 2000 troops to end the November 2nd blockade. (UPI) |
| Nov 17, 1997 |
Israeli jets fired upon Hizbollah posts in Iqlim al-Toffah. No casualties were reported. (UPI) |
| Nov 19, 1997 |
A SLA militiaman was injured when a roadside bomb, planted by Hizbollah, exploded in the Israeli-occupied zone of Lebanon. Israel responded by again attacking targets in Iqlim al-Toffah. (UPI) |
| Nov 20, 1997 |
In continued fighting, a Hizbollah bomb exploded in southern Lebanon, injuring 4 SLA fighters. (UPI) |
| Nov 23, 1997 |
The SLA reported that 9 Lebanese civilians died during an overnight bombardment of the border town of Beit Leif by Muslim guerillas. At least 7 others were injured in the attack. This was one of 12 reported overnight attacks by Hizbollah and Amal guerillas. Four Amal guerrillas died and two Israelis were injured during another clash at the edge of the border area, near the village of Tair Harfa. Israel responded by firing rockets at suspected guerilla bases just outside of the border region. |
| Nov 24, 1997 |
Israeli forces killed three Muslim guerillas within the occupied zone during a day of persistent fighting in Lebanon. Israel also fired at least 70 shells at the villages of Iqlim al-Toffah, injuring at least 2 Lebanese civilians. (UPI) |
| Dec 5, 1997 |
An assassination attempt against the top Lebanese Shiite cleric, Sheikh Mohamad Mehdi Shamseddine, was unsuccessful. Two unidentified gunmen opened fire at the Sheikh as he prayed at a mosque in south Beirut. (AFP) |
| Dec 11, 1997 |
Lebanon's Central Security Committee began enforcing a censorship law that requires the government to screen all programs before they air on private channels. The move was made in an effort to stop both sexually explicit programming and interviews with anti-government leaders. (AFP) |
| Dec 26, 1997 |
The Israeli army detained twelve residents of a mainly Sunni village in its occupied zone of southern Lebanon after searching homes and buildings throughout the town. (AFP) |
| Jan 1, 1998 |
The PFLP-GC reported that it had killed one Israeli soldier and wounded others during an attack an Israeli unit it the occupied zone of southern Lebanon. (AFP) |
| Feb 27, 1998 |
In separate attacks, Hezbollah forces killed 3 Israeli troops, while Israeli soldiers killed 2 guerillas in southern Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Mar 4, 1998 |
During a 4-day visit to Iran, Druze leader and Lebanese Minister of the Displaced Walid Jumblatt announced that his Progressive Socialist Party was investigating ways in which it could work with Hizbollah to present Israel with a united Lebanese front. (AFP) |
| Mar 20, 1998 |
A move by the Lebanese cabinet to allow civil marriages in the country sparked an outcry of opposition from Christian, Shiite and Sunni leaders throughout Lebanon. Prime Minister introduced the idea, saying that it was a positive first step to getting rid of Lebanon's confessional political system. (AFP) |
| May 13, 1998 |
In the first attacks of the year against Palestinian positions in Lebanon, Israeli air raids near the Bekaa valley left six Palestinian fighters dead and 21 others injured, seven seriously. The raids targeted bases of both PFLP-GC and Fatah-Intifada. (AFP) |
| May 24, 1998 |
Lebanon held its first round of municipal elections in 35 years, with voting beginning in the Mount Lebanon district. The municipal districts are not distributed according to confessional quotas as they are for national elections. In the first round of elections, Hizbollah candidates defeated candidates backed by an alliance between Sunni Prime Minister and Syrian-backed Amal, and opposition Christian candidates proved successful in the Christian-dominated portions of the region. (AFP; AFP, May 26) |
| May 31, 1998 |
Israeli troops killed one civilian and injured another near the town of Arab Salim, while guerrillas seriously injured a SLA soldier. In a separate clash, Israeli troops ambushed suspected guerrillas traveling north of the security zone, but no injuries were reported. (UPI) |
| Jun 2, 1998 |
Sunni fundamentalist Sheikh Saeed Shaaban, one of the founders of Jamaa Islamiya and a leader of LMIU, died after suffering a heart attack in the northern town of Tripoli. (AFP) |
| Jun 3, 1998 |
Sunni fundamentalists, running under the Jamaa Islamiya banner, won a third of the available positions in municipal elections in northern Lebanon. (AFP) |
| Jun 8, 1998 |
Candidates backed by Prime Minister Hariri were victorious in municipal elections in Beirut, where voting turnout was lower than expected, while Hizbollah and Amal candidates split the votes in southern Lebanon. (AFP) |
| Jun 17, 1998 |
Two Israeli soldiers were injured when a Hizbollah bomb exploded near the border of the Israeli security zone. (UPI) |
| Jun 18, 1998 |
In a surprise development, Sunni candidates defeated Hizbollah candidates in municipal elections in the Bekaa valley. All predictions had indicated that Hizbollah would be victorious in this region. (AFP) |
| Jun 25, 1998 |
Israel and Lebanon began the trade of the remains of Israeli soldier for the bodies of 40 slain guerillas and the release of 60 Lebanese prisoners. (UPI) Two Israeli soldiers died and at least four others were wounded during fighting with Hezbollah forces in the Israeli-occupied zone of southern Lebanon. |
| Jul 2, 1998 |
Fighting broke out all along the border of the Israeli security zone, as Israeli forces and Hizbollah troops exchanged mortar and artillery fire. Guerillas penetrated a SLA position in southern Lebanon, but quickly retreated. Both sides reported injuries, and at least one civilian and guerilla reportedly died during the fighting. (UPI) |
| Jul 13, 1998 |
Israeli jets bombed suspected guerilla positions in south Lebanon, injuring a Lebanese civilian and 2 UN peacekeepers from Ireland. (UPI) |
| Jul 21, 1998 |
One SLA fighter died and two others were injured when a Hizbollah bomb exploded in southern Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Jul 22, 1998 |
Israeli jets launched an air raid on suspected Hizbollah positions in eastern Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Jul 30, 1998 |
Hizbollah forces attacked Israeli posts within the occupied zone of Lebanon, killing an Israeli soldier and wounding at least four others. (UPI, July 31) |
| Jul 31, 1998 |
An explosive device killed a SLA fighter in southern Lebanon. The man's 12-year-old sister, with whom he was travelling when the device exploded in his car, was also injured in the attack. No group claimed immediate responsibility for the bombing, and Hizbollah denied any knowledge of the attack. (UPI; UPI, August 4) |
| Aug 9, 1998 |
An explosion near the offices of Fatah in a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon left one man wounded. No group claimed responsibility for the explosion. (AFP) |
| Aug 10, 1998 |
The explosion of a Hizbollah bomb near Jezzine in southern Lebanon left one SLA fighter dead. Hizbollah also fired at Israeli's attempting to install a radar system near the border of the Israeli region. Israel also reported that one of its soldiers and one guerilla were injured in earlier clashes in the occupied region. Israeli gunners attacked a number targets outside of its security zone, damaging a number of Lebanese houses. (UPI) |
| Aug 12, 1998 |
Hizbollah attacked an Israeli position in southern Lebanon and injured 2 Israeli soldiers during the attack. (UPI) |
| Aug 14, 1998 |
Israel launched air raids on PFLP-GC targets in eastern Lebanon and Hizbollah targets in southern Lebanon. No casualties were reported. (AFP) |
| Aug 16, 1998 |
Fighting broke out between the SLA and the Lebanese Communist Party in southern Lebanon, leaving the commander of the communist squad dead and capturing one of his deputies. (UPI) |
| Aug 17, 1998 |
Israeli planes launched an attack on suspected guerilla targets near the northern zone of the Israeli occupied zone of Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Aug 18, 1998 |
In intensive fighting, Muslim guerillas killed an Israeli soldier and injured four others as Israeli forces were attempting to heighten surveillance of guerillas throughout the occupied zone. (UPI) |
| Aug 19, 1998 |
In retaliation to yesterday's attack, Israel fired over 200 shells at suspected guerilla targets within southern Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Aug 21, 1998 |
A roadside bomb exploded near the Beaufort Castle in Israel's security zone overnight, killing two Israeli soldiers. Israel responded by launching an air attack against suspected Hezbollah targets near both Tyre and Sujud. At least one civilian was injured during the air attack. |
| Aug 22, 1998 |
Following a call by the Israeli security minister for attacks on Lebanon's infrastructure whenever an Israeli soldier is killed in Lebanon, Israeli helicopters tried to land near an oil refinery in Lebanon, north of its security border. Lebanese military forces had been placed on alert and were able to stop the helicopters from landing. Lebanese forces remain on alert against Israeli advances. (UPI) |
| Aug 25, 1998 |
Anonymous sources reported that the Palestinian guerilla leader Abu Nidal had been detained in Egypt in July following a coup within his Fatah Revolutionary Council which permanently divided the organization. The FRC denied reports that Abu Nidal, its leader, had either been arrested in Egypt or that he was suffering from leukemia, as other reports had indicated. Egpytian officials also denied these reports.(UPI, August 24; AFP) |
| Aug 25, 1998 |
A SLA militia fighter was killed when a roadside bomb exploded in southern Lebanon. Following an Israeli rocket attack that killed an Amal official, Hizbollah and Amal forces launched Katyusha rockets into northern Israel. Reportedly, the rockets injured 17 people and damaged Israeli infrastructure. (UPI; UPI, September 1) |
| Aug 28, 1998 |
A Hizbollah bomb exploded in southern Lebanon, injuring a SLA fighter in south Lebanon. In a separate incident, a Lebanese civilian was injured after a bomb exploded near Jizzine; no group claimed responsibility for the explosive. (UPI) |
| Sep 1, 1998 |
Hizbollah attacked an Israeli foot patrol in the occupied sector of Lebanon and wounded one Israeli soldier after a Lebanese woman was injured during an Israeli shelling attack. The five-nation monitoring group for Lebanon condemned both sides in this conflict, noting that neither the Israelis nor the Lebanese had done enough to ensure the safety of civilians in the midst of this fighting. (UPI) |
| Sep 8, 1998 |
Israeli jets launched two sustained attacks on suspected terrorist targets near Sujud. No casualty reports were immediately available. (UPI) |
| Sep 9, 1998 |
Four SLA members died and another sustained injuries from an explosion during a Hizbollah guerilla attack on a SLA mobile patrol in southern Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Sep 10, 1998 |
Israel retaliated for yesterday's attack on SLA by shelling a number of villages outside of its security zone, wounding two Lebanese civilians. (UPI) |
| Sep 22, 1998 |
Lebanese officials denied entry into the country to Palestinians planning to attend an Arab conference on population and development in Beirut. The Palestinians carried passports from the Palestinian Authority, an entity that Lebanon does not recognize as legitimate. (UPI) Two Israeli soldiers died in Lebanon. It remained unclear whether their deaths were the result of the explosion of a Hizbollah bomb or an innocent traffic accident. (UPI) |
| Sep 24, 1998 |
Druze leader Walid Jumblatt expressed interest in running for the post of president of Lebanon, a seat usually reserved for a Maronite Christian. Earlier in the year, President Hrawi had called for a rewritten consitution which would end the country's practice of having parliament appoint the president, who had to be a Christian. (AFP; AFP, April 24) |
| Sep 25, 1998 |
Two SLA militiamen sustained injuries when Hizbollah forces opened fire on a SLA patrol in the eastern part of the Israeli-occupied zone. A 10-year-old boy received injuries as Israeli shells rained down on the village of Arab Salim, outside of the Isreali zone. (UPI) |
| Oct 2, 1998 |
SLA forces expelled elderly Druze couples from southern Lebanon. A son of each of the couples had recently defected from the SLA. (AFP) |
| Oct 5, 1998 |
A powerful bomb, planted by Hizbollah, exploded in southern Lebanon and killed at least one Israeli soldier, while injuring two others. A soldier in the Lebanese army suffered head wounds during a shelling attack by Israeli forces throughout the Bekaa Valley. A shop and two houses were damaged in the attack. The five-nation monitoring force found this offensive by Israel to be in violation of the 1996 agreement intended to protect civilians. (UPI; UPI, October 14) |
| Oct 7, 1998 |
While Lebanon's Maronite community welcomed the selection of Emile Lahoud as the president of Lebanon, in a deal blessed by Syrian president Assad, Druze leader Walid Jumblatt strongly criticized the decision. (AFP) |
| Oct 14, 1998 |
Hizbollah guerillas launched a mortar attack along the Lebanon-Israeli border, hitting some sites in northern Israel. One Israeli soldier suffered minor injuries during the attack. |
| Oct 27, 1998 |
Hizbollah forces killed a SLA fighter at his post within the Israeli-occupied zone of Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Nov 4, 1998 |
A 110-pound bomb blew up near Jezzine, killing 3 SLA militiamen and seriously wounding a fourth. Hizbollah claimed responsibility for the attack. The bombing followed two sets of air raids by Isreal on suspected Hizbollah targets in the Bekaa Valley. (UPI) |
| Nov 13, 1998 |
US Secretary of Commerce William Daley declared Lebanon open for US investment for the first time since Americans in Lebanon fell prey to terrorists in the country. (AFP) |
| Nov 16, 1998 |
For the ninth consecutive day, Israel launched air rides on the Bekaa Valley. Three Israeli soldiers died and four others suffered injuries following the explosion of a Hizbollah bomb near an Israeli post within its occupied zone. (UPI) |
| Nov 23, 1998 |
Within the last three weeks, Israel launched 23 air strikes against suspected Hizbollah targets in Lebanon. The strikes have not caused any Hizbollah casualties. One Israeli soldier was killed and two others were injured as Hizbollah launched an attack at the edge of Israel's occupied zone. Two SLA fighters and three Lebanese civilians were also injured in the fighting. Israel responded by launching a series of air attacks on border villages. These attacks injured three Lebanese civilians. (UPI) |
| Nov 24, 1998 |
Emile Lahoud was sworn in as the new president of Lebanon, replacing Elias Hrawi. Lahoud is a Christian Maronite who remains loyal to Syria and encourages strong ties between his government and that of Assad in Syria. (UPI) |
| Nov 26, 1998 |
Two bombs exploded in the western portion of Israel's occupied region in Lebanon, leaving 2 Israeli soldiers dead. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu vowed to re-assess Israel's actions in and plans for Lebanon as these were the sixth and seventh Israeli soldiers killed in Lebanon during the last ten days. (UPI) |
| Nov 29, 1998 |
Hizbollah forces continue to bomb Israeli posts all along the front of its security zone in Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Dec 1, 1998 |
One SLA fighter died and another suffered injuries following two separate explosions near the SLA stronghold of Jezzine. Hizbollah claimed responsibility for both attacks. The attacks coincided with a renewed call from the five-nation monitoring group for all parties involved in the conflict to refrain from harming citizens. (UPI) |
| Dec 2, 1998 |
President Lahoud replaced Prime Minister Hariri with former Prime Minister Selim Hoss, a Sunni Moslim, after Hariri refused a request to stay on in the position. (UPI) |
| Dec 8, 1998 |
An Israeli patrol, backed by 40 soldiers, arrested 11 Lebanese residents of its security zone, accusing them of collaborating with guerillas in the region. The detained included seven women and a 75-year-old man. (UPI) |
| Dec 9 - 10, 1998 |
Israel staged mock air raids, described as "sound bombardment" over Beirut, causing panic among Lebanese civilians, many of whom believe that Israel is practicing for an attack on the city. (UPI) |
| Dec 14, 1998 |
Thousands of Palestinians in Lebanon and throughout the Middle East protested Arafat's decision to annul the anti-Israel clauses included within the Palestinian charter. (AFP) |
| Dec 21, 1998 |
In forming the new government, Lebanese officials broke with tradition and named officials to two security posts on the basis of straight professional credentials. A Greek Catholic was named to a security spot traditionally held for Shiites, and a Shiite was named to a security position traditionally reserved for Maronite Christians. (AFP) |
| Dec 22, 1998 |
Eight Lebanese civilians in the village of Nabi Sheet died when an Israeli rocket attack, intended to hit a Hizbollah radio station, missed its target. Israeli officials apologized for the attack to both Syrian and Lebanese officials. (UPI) |
| Dec 23, 1998 |
Hizbollah launches a rocket attack on towns in northern Israel, leaving 16 people injured. (UPI, December 30) |
| Dec 26, 1998 |
A SLA intelligence officer was shot dead near the Sunni town of Shebaa within the Israeli occupied zone. (AFP, January 7) |
| Dec 30, 1998 |
In the most serious in a series of Israeli army accidents in southern Lebanon, Israeli soldiers killed a fellow soldier and wounded two others while trying preparing to stage an ambush in the occupied zone. The accident raised concerns about Israeli practices and leadership in Lebanon. (UPI) |
| Jan 7, 1999 |
Israeli security forces arrested two brothers, residents of the Sunni village Shebaa, for the murder of a SLA intelligence officer in late December. Twenty-four family members of the arrested men were expelled from Israeli-occupied southern Lebanon. Lebanon's Prime Minister Salim Hoss condemned the expulsion of the family members. (AFP) |
| Feb 1, 1999 |
The Archbishop of Canterbury visited Lebanon and met with leaders from a variety of faiths to try to promote better relations between Christians and Moslems in Lebanon. (AFP) |
| Feb 6, 1999 |
An Israeli shell attack on the town of Majdel Selim, outside of Israel's occupied zone, left 9 Lebanese civilians injured. (UPI, February 7) |
| Feb 7, 1999 |
Two Irish peacekeepers were injured--one seriously--when six Israeli shells hit a UN post in southern Lebanon. The shelling attack followed three guerilla attacks on Israeli and SLA posts in southern Lebanon. (UPI) Marnoite church leader Nasrallah Sfeir condemned the Syrian government's decision to place voting booths for the Syrian election on Lebanese territory. Exiled Christian leader Raymon Edde seconded Sfeir's complaints, noting that the move indicated that Lebanon had become nothing more than a "Syrian province." (AFP) |
| Feb 18, 1999 |
Israeli and SLA forces surrounded the town of Arnoun, near Beaufort Castle, with barbed wire and announced that they would incorporate into its south Lebanese security zone. Israeli officials claimed that Arnoun posed a danger to Israel because it had served as a launching post for Hizbollah attacks. (AFP) |
| Feb 21 - 28, 1999 |
Three Israeli officers and four Hizbollah guerillas died in separate clashes during a week of intense fighting. (UPI, February 28; AFP, February 24) |
| Feb 26, 1999 |
More than 2,000 villagers and students alike marched on the town of Arnoun to protest Israel's claims that the town was now to be included as part of the country's security zone within Lebanon. Representatives of the Shi'ite group Amal also help lead the protest. Following the first such public revolt years, Israel withdrew its claims on Arnoun. (AFP) |
| Feb 28, 1999 |
Brigadier General Erez Gerstein, Israel's most senior military commander in southern Lebanon, was killed when two bombs, planted next to his car by Hizbollah, exploded. An Israeli journalist also died as a result of the blast. Intense fighting followed the announcement of Gerstein's death, including shelling of both Hizbollah and Palestinian targets in Lebanon by Israel. (UPI) |
| Mar 5, 1999 |
The PLO has reportedly allowed the return of several former FRC officials to Palestinian territories following their break with FRC leader Adu Nidal.(AFP) As part of an effort to rid the government of corruption, Lebanese judicial officials ordered the arrest of five oil ministry officials from Hariri's government. (UPI) |
| Mar 21, 1999 |
Amid suspicions of collaboration with Hizbollah by Druze members of the SLA, the SLA questioned over 40 members of the Druze community in southern Lebanon and, as a "punitive measure," ordered that no Druze inhabitants of the security zone could cross out of the zone into Lebanon. (AFP) |
| Apr 1, 1999 |
A clash between DFLP forces and members of the Fatah-Intifada at a Palestinian refugee camp in Lebanon left one DFLP member dead. (AFP) |
| Apr 6, 1999 |
Following the desertion by four SLA members (3 Sunnis and 1 Christian), Israel expelled from the town of Shebaa within its occupied zone 25 family members of the deserters, mostly women, children, and elederly. (AFP) |
| Apr 8, 1999 |
Another 2 SLA security officers posted near Shebaa deserted the SLA, bringing the total to 8 SLA who men have turned themselves in to the Lebanese army in less than month. (AFP) |
| May 3, 1999 |
The explosion of a Hizbollah bomb and a subsequent firefight between Hizbollah and SLA left one Israeli soldier dead, another wounded, and one SLA fighter injured. This was the ninth Israeli killed in southern Lebanon in 1999. In response, Israel bombarded villages around Tyre, inflicting material damage but no casualties. (UPI) |
| May 17, 1999 |
Ehud Barak defeated Netanyahu in a race for the Prime Minister of Israel. During the campaigning, Barak promised that he would withdraw Israeli troops from Lebanon within a year of his election. (UPI; UPI, June 25) Israel launched an artillery attack on several villages just outside of its security zone in southern Lebanon. The attack killed 2 Lebanese civilians, 19- and 20-year-old cousins in the village of Zawtar al-Sharkieh. (UPI) |
| May 18, 1999 |
In retaliation for the killing of two Lebanese civilians, Hizbollah launched a mortar attack on northern Israel, injuring 4 people in Galilee. (UPI) |
| May 19, 1999 |
The head of intelligence for Arafat's Fatah movement in the city of Tyre was assassinated near the southern port of Sidon by unidentified, masked gunmen. (AFP) |
| May 26, 1999 |
Hezbollah attacked twelve Israeli posts in southern Lebanon overnight, firing more than 100 mortar shells. Two guerillas were killed during the attack, and one SLA fighter was injured. In subsequent clashes, one SLA militiaman died and four others suffered injuries. Israel released to the Lebanese army a Lebanese woman who had been arrested in November 1997 and held in prison in Israel for 18 months without trial. (UPI) |
| May 30, 1999 |
Israel reported that the SLA would withdraw from the Christian Lebanese town of Jezzine "imminently." Jezzine has served as a logistical hub for SLA operations in southern Lebanon. This would be the first reduction in the Israeli security zone since 1985. (AFP) |
| May 31, 1999 |
One Irish peacekeeper in southern Lebanon died and another suffered critical injuries during an Israeli shell attack in the region. (UPI) |
| Jun 3, 1999 |
A SLA shell hit the compound of Irish peacekeepers in southern Lebanon. While no one was hurt in this attack, it raised calls in Ireland for withdrawal of troops from the UNIFIL force. Israeli officials stated that Hizbollah forces operate near UNIFIL posts, thus causing the injuries to the peacekeepers. Forty-one Irish soldiers have been injured since arriving in Lebanon in 1978 as peacekeepers. (UPI) |
| Jun 9, 1999 |
The SLA called upon Israel to establish an autonomous government in southern Lebanon before it withdraws its military presence from the region. SLA leaders argued that without such an arrangement, members of SLA and their families remaining in the region would be persecuted by the Lebanese and, specifically, by Hizbollah forces. (AFP) |
| Jun 24, 1999 |
A Lebanese newspaper reported that Israel planned to withdraw SLA forces from the town of Jezzine possibly as early as July as part of a broader agreement between Israel and Syria. (UPI) |
| Jun 24 - 25, 1999 |
Exchanges between Israel and Hizbollah were the most violent in years. Hizbollah shelling of villages in northern Israel killed 2 and wounded 16, while Israeli airstrikes near Beirut left at least 10 people dead and another 74 injured. Reports linked the escalation in violence to complimentary comments made by Syrian leader Assad about Israeli Prime Minister-elect Barak. A peace agreement between Syria and Israel would likely include an agreement to restrain the behavior of Iranian-backed Hizbollah. Hizbollah's attacks may have been intended to disrupt negotiations between Israel and Syria.(UPI) Leaders and officials from countries around the world condemned the attacks. (UPI) |
| Oct 20 - 21, 2004 |
Rafiq Hariri, a Sunni, resigned from his position as Prime Minister and dissolved his cabinet. (Wilson, Scott, 10/21/2004, "Lebanese Premier Quits in Sign of Tension on Syria; Cabinet Dissolved as Pressure Builds Over Larger Neighbor's Political Influence, Military Presence," Washington Post)
|
| Feb 14 - 17, 2005 |
Rafik Hariri, Sunni and former Prime Minister, died in a bomb attack on his motorcade. Some suspected Syrian involvement, which led to a protest of more than 200,000 people over Syria's influence in Lebanon. (Blanford, Nicholas, 02/17/2005, "United in grief and outrage: Sunni, Shia and Christians weep for the 'martyr of Beirut'," The Times (London)) |
| Mar 14, 2005 |
One month after the death of Rafik al-Hariri, approximately 1.2 million protesters gathered to demand the withdrawal of Syrian forces. (US Department of State. 03/08/2006. "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-2005: Lebanon." Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.) |
| Dec 3 - 3, 2006 |
In the Sunni-dominated Tarik el Jdideh neighborhood, a Shi'ite youth was shot and killed while walking home. (Stinson, Jeffrey, 12/08/2006, "Lebanon feels heat of Sunni-Shiite friction; As Hezbollah pushes for more power, sectarian tensions begin to increase," USA Today) |
| Dec 5, 2006 |
Shi'is and Sunnis clashed in Beirut, killing one and injuring 21 others. (The Northern Echo, 12/05/2006, "World in Brief") |
