chronologies
day by day
1968/2025
\_All chronologies
\_The road to war
(1968/1974)
\_The Lebanese war
(1975/1990)
\_After the war
(1991/2005)
\_July 2006, the books
(2006)
\_Since 2005
(2005/2025)
\_All by dates
(one grid)
\_On this day
\_Search
(words and dates)
\_Lebanese War
(the original chronology)
\_July War 2006
(minute by minute)

Search the chronologies

all by dates · all chronologies
111101 entriesfrom the booksonly where the books disagree
chronologiesallThe road to war 1968–1974The Lebanese war 1975–1990After the war 1991–2005July 2006, as the books tell it 2006Since 2005 2005–2025
681968696970197071717272737374747575767677777878797980198081818282838384848585868687878888898990199091919292939394949595969697979898999900200001010202030304040505060607070808090910201011111212131314141515161617171818191920202021212222232324242525any year

the 12th, 13th, 21st of every month

‹ earlierlater ›

any date

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecany month
12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031any day

56 entries on 47 dates · the books disagree on 56

October 1975

Tuesday, 21 October 1975

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Kamal El Assad was reelected president of the Chamber by 47 votes against one. At the same time, Beirut was still under fire and the list of victims, whether kidnapped, executed, or shot by snipers or mortar shells, kept growing.

Other date in the books: Monday, 20 October 1975

\_this day in full \_on this day

December 1975

Friday, 12 December 1975

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Sixty people are killed in Zahleh.
Six days after Black Saturday, assaults and shelling by Palestine Liberation Army and Yarmouk units killed sixty Christians of Zahleh; Bishop Bassul called it a massacre.

Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne blame attacks by the PLA and Yarmouk units; Tegho Bou Nassif blames fedayeen shelling.

\_this day in full \_on this day

January 1976

Wednesday, 21 January 1976

The Lebanese war · Added from the books 21-22 January

Army helicopters and boats evacuate Jiyeh but not Damour or Saadiyat.
Damour and Saadiyat, defended only by National Liberal Party militiamen, were not evacuated, while on 21 and 22 January army helicopters and boats took refugees from neighbouring Jiyeh to Jounieh.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 20 January 1976

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Ta'labaya, near Zahleh, falls to the PLA.
Bishop Yuhanna Bassul of Zahleh's diary records the dawn fall of Ta'labaya, a Bekaa village, to a surprise assault by the Palestine Liberation Army and Yarmouk brigades, and the forced departure of its Christians.

Sources differ: Hanf (p. 210) dates a Palestinian seizure of Ta'labaya, with its people expelled, to December 1975; de Clerck and Malsagne (p. 154) record 35 killed there from that month.

\_this day in full \_on this day

March 1976

Sunday, 21 March 1976

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The ' Holiday Inn ' occupied by the Phalange Party fell in the hands of the Mourabitun and their allies.
According to some sources, the Phalange Party succeeded in evacuating some of its militiamen who took with them seven dead bodies, three of which were young girls. According to other sources, 65 militiamen were able to run away using an underground passage. The Holiday Inn had been subject to repeated assaults for the past ten months.
What the books addMourabitoun and Palestinian fighters, backed by Lebanese Arab Army artillery, took the 24-storey Holiday Inn after a fight waged floor by floor, day and night, from 20 to 22 March 1976 (Traboulsi dates the fall to 22 March). The Kataeb withdrew to the Fattal building near the port. The five-month Battle of the Hotels was over, and Beirut was split along the Green Line.
Art and memory
  • novel Rabee Jaber's novel Birds of the Holiday Inn (2011) is set around the hotel during the battles for downtown Beirut.
  • photograph In November 2002 Haugbolle photographed the ruined Holiday Inn behind a huge banner of the Roman temple at Baalbek; the picture illustrates his discussion of nostalgia.
  • novel George Shami's documentary novel What Is Left of the Fighting (Madha baqa min al-qital, 2003) followed young militiamen through the 1976 hotels battle.

Other dates in the books: Saturday, 20 March 1976, Monday, 22 March 1976

\_this day in full \_on this day

April 1976

Monday, 12 April 1976

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Assad attacks the National Movement and offers to intervene.
Pierre Gemayel called it a historic speech: in Damascus, President Assad said Syria was ready to send forces into Lebanon to protect any oppressed group, Christian or Muslim, and attacked the PLO and National Movement leaders.

Sources differ: Traboulsi's chronology lists 'al-Asad's speech attacking LNM' under '13 March', apparently a misprint for 12 April.

\_this day in full \_on this day

August 1976

Thursday, 12 August 1976

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Tell El Zaatar assault and massacre
After a siege that lasted 52 days, the Tell El Zaatar Palestinian camp fell in the hands of the Lebanese Forces as a result of an ultimate assault launched at dawn. It was in total confusion that the 12000 camp residents were evacuated. In retaliation, kidnappings were reported in West Beirut. 2000 people died in fighting during the entire siege, and 4000 were wounded. The surviving cilvilians were settled by The PLO in other camps and in Damour.
What the books addTal al-Za'tar fell on 12 August 1976 (13 August in Ménargues) after more than 70 assaults. Ménargues and Hanf count a siege of 52-53 days from the final offensive; de Clerck and Malsagne and Traboulsi count six months from the January blockade. An ICRC report cited by de Clerck and Malsagne puts the dead at about 2,500 residents and defenders and up to 800 attackers; many died trying to escape. The Tigers and the Guardians of the Cedar led the last assault, reportedly with Syrian and Israeli officers present. The camp was bulldozed and never rebuilt.
Art and memory
  • novel Liana Badr's novel The Eye of the Mirror tells of a girl growing up in Tal al-Za'tar during the siege of 1976.
  • artwork Ziad Rahbani made the siege of Tal al-Za'tar widely known through one of his musical works.
  • film Georges Hachem's film Balle perdue (2010) is set in late summer 1976 north of Beirut, in the lull that followed the fall of Tal al-Za'tar.
  • place Tal al-Za'tar was bulldozed after its fall in 1976; neither it nor Jisr al-Basha, both levelled that year, has been rebuilt.
  • testimony Nayla Hachem's testimony describes her relief work in 1976 at the siege of Tal al-Za'tar, the fall of Nabaa and the massacres; she was a nurse, later an ICRC delegate.
  • book In Camille Chamoun's war diary, Tal al-Za'tar's fall in August 1976 was a triumph of fighters of every class.
  • artwork The play Silence, ça tourne (2025) is built on the testimony of a Swedish nurse who survived the siege of Tal al-Za'tar.

Other dates in the books: Sunday, 4 January 1976, Friday, 13 August 1976

\_this day in full \_on this day

January 1977

Wednesday, 12 January 1977

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The collection of heavy and light arms continued while the government was helping the victims of the war and trying to boost the economy.
What the books addUnder the Riyadh decisions of October 1976 all parties were to give up heavy weapons to the Arab Deterrent Force; the Hoss government set a 5 December 1976 deadline (Traboulsi). Fisk reports the militias did not hand them in; Hanf, that the Palestinians moved most of theirs south of the 'red line'.

Other date in the books: Monday, 18 October 1976

\_this day in full \_on this day

Friday, 21 January 1977

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

The Lebanese Front's seminar defines Lebanon as a 'plurality of civilisations'.
Lebanese Front leaders met in seminar at the Sayyidat al-Bir convent. They discussed partition, dismissed the independence-era institutions as outdated and called Lebanon a set of 'civilisational groups'. The Front also issued constitutional reform proposals.

Sources differ: Original entry 110 dates a three-day Lebanese 'Forces' seminar at Broumana to 23 January; it may be the same meeting.

\_this day in full \_on this day

March 1978

Tuesday, 21 March 1978

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Israel announces a ceasefire in the south; Operation Litani ends.
Fisk puts the cost of Operation Litani at as many as 2,000 Lebanese and Palestinian dead and 20 Israelis. On 21 March, its last day, Israel announced a ceasefire, but its guns shelled Tyre from nine that morning; it held the south up to the Litani except the Tyre pocket.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 14 March 1978

\_this day in full \_on this day

May 1978

Friday, 12 May 1978

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Seiman Frangieh and Rachid Karameh reconciled under the auspices of the Syrian commander of the Arab Strike Force in Northern Lebanon.
What the books addDe Clerck and Malsagne record that Frangieh had quit the Lebanese Front the day before over its ties with Israel. The reconciliation, Hanf notes, made the north a pro-Syrian bloc.

Other date in the books: Thursday, 11 May 1978

\_this day in full \_on this day

June 1978

Tuesday, 13 June 1978

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

A dramatic event was reported in Zghorta. A chock commando killed Tony Frangieh, deputy and son of the President Sleiman Frangieh, his wife Vera and their daughter Jihane, at their home in Ehden. The murder of Tony Frangieh took place while the conflict between the Phalange Party and the Zghortiotes was at its peak.
What the books addHistorians date the Ehden killings to 13 June (de Clerck and Malsagne) or 14 June (Hanf). A unit of some 200 men (Traboulsi) led by Samir Geagea attacked the Frangieh residence; besides Tony Frangieh, his wife and their three-year-old daughter, about thirty relatives and supporters were killed. The Phalange presented the raid as retaliation for the killing of their local leader Jud al-Bayeh in early June; Bashir Gemayel denied ordering the killing of the family. The raid also turned on control of the Chekka cement works. Syrian troops then occupied Ehden and much of the north.
Art and memory
  • book De Clerck and Malsagne refer to a 2016 article by Dan Naor on how the Frangieh family made Ehden a resistance myth.
  • testimony Women mourners keened at Tony Frangieh's funeral in 1978 until his father, the former president, stepped in to quiet them.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 14 June 1978

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Israel completes its withdrawal but hands the border strip to Major Haddad.
UNIFIL was kept out of a border belt 5 to 10 km deep that stayed in the hands of Major Saad Haddad's militia when Israeli troops officially left South Lebanon.

Sources differ: Hanf gives 12 June; Picard says July.

Other date in the books: Monday, 12 June 1978

\_this day in full \_on this day

February 1979

Monday, 12 February 1979

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Brian Urqhart, the assistant Secretary General of the United Nations, examined with Lebanese officials the modalities of the Army's deployment in the South next to the UNIFL Israel nevertheless rejected the program.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 18 April 1979

\_this day in full \_on this day

March 1979

Tuesday, 13 March 1979

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Parliament adopts a law to rebuild the army and send it south.
The new defence law set up a Higher Defence Council and a Military Council, allocated military posts by sect among the six main communities, allowed the army to be used only with national consensus, and planned its deployment to the UNIFIL area in the south.

Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne give 13 March 1979 in their text and 13 May in their chronology, where the entry sits between February and March, so 13 May is probably a slip. Picard gives March 1979.

Other dates in the books: Wednesday, 18 April 1979, Sunday, 13 May 1979

\_this day in full \_on this day

November 1979

Monday, 12 November 1979

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The work document that Lebanon was going to present in Tunis, contained 6 main points: exercising pressure on the United States to end Israeli aggressions, freezing the actions of the Fedayin, laying the Lebanese authority in the South, banning any illegal armed presence, re-activating the Beiteddine Committee, and grouping guerillas in some specified zones.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 20 November 1979

\_this day in full \_on this day

January 1980

Monday, 21 January 1980

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The Lebanese army projected to deploy in South Lebanon while Israel was strongly opposed to this project.
What the books addDeploying the army, Sarkis insisted on his return from an Arab meeting at Ta'if in February 1980, should come before political reform (Traboulsi). Amal and the Phalange newspaper al-Amal also called for the army to be sent south (Traboulsi; Hanf).

Other date in the books: Thursday, 20 March 1980

\_this day in full \_on this day

December 1980

Friday, 12 December 1980

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Bashir Gemayel presents President Sarkis with a federal plan.
An army-backed coup before the 1982 presidential election was what a confidential paper drafted for Bashir Gemayel by Karim Pakradouni proposed; he and Sarkis went over it at Baabda. Its aims: ending Syria's occupation, the curbing, then destruction, of the Palestinian organisations, and a federal system replacing the 1926 constitution. Sarkis asked for time, never answering directly.

Sources differ: Traboulsi names Pakradouni and Abou Khalil as authors and says Elie Hobeika and Zahi Boustani took the plan to Iraq; Ménargues names Pakradouni, with edits by Antoine Najm.

\_this day in full \_on this day

Sunday, 21 December 1980

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The situation worsened in Zahleh under heavy bombardments. These confrontations between Zahliotes and soldiers from the Arab Strike Force continued until December 26 when a cease-fire eased the tension.
What the books addThe crisis began on 20 December when Elias Hannouche, a former Tiger commander backed by Syria, seized the old National Liberal office in Zahle. After an ambush inside the town killed five Syrian soldiers on 22 December, Syrian artillery opened fire on it (Ménargues; Hanf counts an officer and five soldiers). De Clerck and Malsagne date the bombardment to 21 December and call it the first round of the battle of Zahle. Most of the former Tigers then joined the Lebanese Forces, and Syrian troops stayed positioned around the town until the siege of spring 1981.

Other dates in the books: Saturday, 20 December 1980, Monday, 22 December 1980

\_this day in full \_on this day

April 1981

Sunday, 12 April 1981

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Following several days of violent confrontations with the Phalange militia, the Arab Strike Force completed its occupation of the most strategic hills of Zahleh. The supply channels between the capital of the Bekaa and Mount Lebanon were closed.
What the books addMénargues writes that Syrian special forces, landed by helicopter at dawn on 10 April, soon took the heights of Qalaat Aramta and Deir Charfé around Zahleh, leaving its defenders almost encircled.

Other date in the books: Friday, 10 April 1981

\_this day in full \_on this day

May 1981

Tuesday, 12 May 1981

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

SAM missiles were launched against Israeli spy airplanes.
What the books addMénargues's run of drone losses begins on 14 May, when a Syrian SAM-6 downed an Israeli reconnaissance drone over the Bekaa; more were lost on 19, 22 (two) and 25 May.

Other date in the books: Thursday, 14 May 1981

\_this day in full \_on this day

July 1981

Tuesday, 21 July 1981

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

While the bombardment continued in South Lebanon, the Security Council ordered a cease-fire; but the latter wasn't observed despite the presence of the US envoy Philip Habib in the region.
What the books addMénargues dates to 22 July Reagan's indefinite freeze on F-16 deliveries to Israel and a unanimous Security Council call for an immediate cease-fire, which Arafat accepted at once.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 22 July 1981

\_this day in full \_on this day

January 1982

Tuesday, 12 January 1982

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Israeli Defence Minister Ariel Sharon makes a secret visit to the Christian-held zone of Lebanon.
Sharon came in person to see the ground and the Christians' political situation before the planned operation. Six days later, on 19 January, the LF sent a delegation to Tel Aviv to coordinate with the Israeli army.

Sources differ: Ménargues is inconsistent: his narrative gives 12–13 January, the Plan M annex 12 January, and since he puts the 19 January trip six days after the visit, that implies 13 January.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 19 January 1982

\_this day in full \_on this day

April 1982

Wednesday, 21 April 1982

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Six successive raids were reported within 90 minutes against Aramoun, Naameh and Damour, putting an end to a cease-fire that lasted 9 months. This new aggression claimed the lives of 80 victims.
What the books addFisk, on the coast road when it began, dates the Damour raid to 22 April: Israeli jets struck for over two hours, killing at least 19 Palestinians; Israel cited the death of a soldier on a mine in the south. For Fisk it previewed the invasion.

Other date in the books: Thursday, 22 April 1982

\_this day in full \_on this day

November 1982

Sunday, 21 November 1982

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

In a message addressed to the nation, the chief of State declared : 'Lebanon will recover its independence by all means.'

Other date in the books: Monday, 22 November 1982

\_this day in full \_on this day

August 1983

Sunday, 21 August 1983

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The first signs of an imminent Israeli redeployment in the south of the Awali river multiplied. Lebanon urged the United States to intervene in order to delay this initiative.
What the books addIsrael announced the pullback on 20 July. On 16 August Moshe Arens told Gemayel in East Beirut that Israel would leave the mountains even if the fighting had not stopped, and he announced a withdrawal for 15 September. According to de Clerck and Malsagne, the United States tried without success to dissuade Israel.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 16 August 1983

\_this day in full \_on this day

January 1985

Saturday, 12 January 1985

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The army deployed on the coastal road South of Beirut and in the Iqlim EL Kharroub after the withdrawal of the Lebanese Forces and the PSP militiamen. The government appointed Edmond Naim Governor of the Central Bank, Michel Samaha CEO of Télé Liban, Mohammed Beydoun president of the Council of the South, and Ayoub Hemayed General Director of the Information.
What the books addDe Clerck and Malsagne say Edmond Naim succeeded Michel el-Khoury at the Central Bank because both the militia chiefs and the unity cabinet could accept him.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 9 January 1985

\_this day in full \_on this day

March 1985

Tuesday, 12 March 1985

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

The 'intifada' of Samir Geagea and Elie Hobeika takes over the Lebanese Forces.
Calling for an 'independent Christian decision' and an end to concessions to Syria, Samir Geagea, Elie Hobeika and Karim Pakradouni led a revolt within the Lebanese Forces against President Amin Gemayel and the Kataeb leadership. The rebels took the LF headquarters in Ashrafieh after its main barracks north of Beirut; the army had to keep them apart from Kataeb loyalists.

Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne say the intifada ousted LF commander Fouad Abou Nader, the president's nephew; Hanf presents it as a revolt against the Kataeb leadership and the president. De Clerck and Malsagne's figure of about 1,000 dead covers both intifadas (1985 and 1986) together.

Art and memory
  • testimony Jocelyne Khoueiry, in the Kataeb women's unit since 1975, quit and went back to civilian life after Geagea's intifada of March 1985; she felt 'our cause had been betrayed'.
  • place Shellfire and snipers hit the Rizk Hospital in Ashrafieh in 1985, when East Beirut's militia factions fought each other.

\_this day in full \_on this day

November 1985

Wednesday, 13 November 1985

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The Eastern regions went on strike to protest against the suicide truck killing attempt perpetrated against the leaders of the Lebanese Front gathered in the St Georges convent in Awkar. The assault caused 4 dead and 36 wounded, including Elie Karameh, Edouard Honein, and Fouad Ephrame Boustany who were slightly injured.
What the books addHobeika and President Gemayel escaped injury only because they were not in their cars when these were attacked; Chamoun, Elie Karami and other Lebanese Front leaders were hurt. Hanf places these attempts in a series that, in his view, hardened the confrontation over the Damascus agreement.

Other date in the books: Saturday, 28 December 1985

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 1986

Friday, 12 September 1986

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Another US national, James Cicippio was kidnapped on the AUB campus, therefore raising the number of Americans kidnapped to 6.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 9 September 1986

\_this day in full \_on this day

October 1986

Tuesday, 21 October 1986

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Hussein Husseini was reelected Speaker of the National Assembly. A seventh US national, Edward Tracy was kidnapped in West Beirut.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 9 September 1986

\_this day in full \_on this day

November 1988

Saturday, 12 November 1988

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Aoun's cabinet sends General Sami al-Khatib before the military court.
Aoun's cabinet referred Sami al-Khatib to the military court. Two days earlier Salim al-Hoss had made him, a Sunni, army commander, a post normally held by a Maronite, and Aoun's government had at once called it an attempt at partition. The army was split: about 15,000 men under Aoun, 12,000 under Hoss.

Sources differ: De Clerck dates al-Khatib's appointment to 10 November; existing entry 1105 gives 9 November; Hanf says early November.

Other date in the books: Thursday, 10 November 1988

\_this day in full \_on this day

June 1989

Monday, 12 June 1989

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The EEC gives its full support to the committee composed by the three Chiefs of State (Algerian, Saudi Arabian, and Moroccan) constituted during the Casablanca Summit in order to find a solution to the Lebanese crisis.
What the books addThe committee was set up at the Arab summit in Casablanca, which opened on 23 May 1989 (Hanf).

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 23 May 1989

\_this day in full \_on this day

August 1989

Sunday, 13 August 1989

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

The army repels an offensive by the PSP and its allies, backed by Syrian troops, on Souk el-Gharb.
The army held its lines at Souk el-Gharb after about five hours of close combat, repelling Druze and Palestinian fighters backed by Syrian troops whose apparent target was the presidential palace in Baabda. De Clerck and Malsagne say Jumblatt lost about a hundred fighters.

Sources differ: The book's chronology calls it an attempt by the Syrian army and allied militias to enter East Beirut; its narrative and Hanf describe a PSP-led attack with Syrian support.

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 1989

Wednesday, 13 September 1989

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

The troika proposes an immediate ceasefire, an end to the blockade and a meeting of parliament in Saudi Arabia on 30 September.
Hanf judges the new plan largely favourable to Syria. A committee would search ships for arms bound for Aoun; land routes would go unpatrolled. Syria, asked in the troika's first draft to pull back in part within six months, now had two years, then positions in the Bekaa and the mountains.

Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne date the plan to 17 September.

Other date in the books: Sunday, 17 September 1989

\_this day in full \_on this day

May 1990

Monday, 21 May 1990

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

A Vatican-mediated ceasefire between the army and the Lebanese Forces takes effect.
A Vatican-mediated ceasefire took effect between Aoun's army and the Lebanese Forces. Mutual exhaustion held it; their hatred did not abate, and the Christian enclave stayed divided between them through the summer.

Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne date the truce to 26 May. Accounts of when the war ended differ: March (Quéméner), May (Traboulsi, Fisk), July (Picard).

Other date in the books: Saturday, 26 May 1990

\_this day in full \_on this day

August 1990

Tuesday, 21 August 1990

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The second Lebanese Republic was born and the National Assembly approved with a majority of 48 deputies the constitutional reforms included in the Taef agreement. However, General Aoun continued to contest the legality of the Chamber.
What the books addSources disagree on the dates. Hanf dates the parliamentary vote (48 for, 1 against, 2 abstentions out of 51 deputies) to 26 August 1990 and its promulgation by President Hrawi to 21 September 1990. De Clerck and Malsagne, and Picard, give 21 September as the date the constitutional law was adopted. Haugbolle says parliament approved the Taif Agreement in August 1990. Traboulsi's postscript gives '21 September' but places it in 1991, probably by mistake. The vote started the Taif timetable: six months to disband the militias, and two years before Syrian troops withdrew to the Bekaa. Aoun called it a comedy, arguing that parliament had been dissolved.

Other dates in the books: Sunday, 26 August 1990, Friday, 21 September 1990

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 1990

Friday, 21 September 1990

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

President Hrawi promulgates the amended Constitution of the Second Republic.
Hrawi promulgated the revised Constitution, with the Taif reforms written in, and announced on air that it would found the Second Republic. Three ex-army commanders then urged Aoun's soldiers to accept General Lahoud's authority; some officers did.

Sources differ: Hanf calls 21 September the promulgation, after a vote on 26 August; de Clerck and Malsagne and Picard call it the adoption. Entry 1204 dates the vote to 21 August.

\_this day in full \_on this day

October 1990

Friday, 12 October 1990

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

On the eve of the assault, Aoun vows to fight to the end.
Elie Hobeika gave assurances on 12 October, as Syrian tanks and artillery took up positions in Beirut's southern suburbs. That evening at Baabda Aoun vowed to fight to the finish, but sent his supporters home after a young man tried to kill him before midnight.

Sources differ: Picard's chronology dates the Syrian air attack itself to 12 October.

\_this day in full \_on this day

Saturday, 13 October 1990

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

A quick operation following a bombardment by the Syrian aviation permitted to the Lebanese army loyal to the Hoss government to take control of the Baabda palace and Yarze. General Aoun capitulated to avoid bloody fights and took refuge at the French embassy. Fights, according to some estimates, cause 700 deaths.
What the books addAt about 7 a.m. on 13 October 1990 Syrian aircraft started bombing Baabda, and Syrian and Lebanese armour moved in from West Beirut and the mountains. Some two and a half hours later Aoun went to the French embassy; with Ambassador René Ala mediating, and at Hrawi's demand, he told his troops over the radio to obey General Lahoud. Within about eight hours the fighting had ended. Tolls vary: over 200 dead in a single morning (de Clerck and Malsagne); some 400 Syrian soldiers dead (Hanf); 160 Syrian soldiers dead at Dahr el-Wahash alone, by Syrian figures (Fisk); and an initial government figure of 36 dead (Fisk). Picard's chronology places the Syrian attack on 12 October.

Other date in the books: Friday, 12 October 1990

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Syrian troops execute captured soldiers of Aoun's army.
Some of Aoun's units did not hear, or ignored, his order to stop fighting. At Dahr el-Wahash, above Baabda, they fired on Syrian infantry after the surrender; Syrian sources told Fisk they lost 160 men there. Syrian troops then executed captured Aoun soldiers, about a hundred (Hanf), and killed fifteen villagers in Bsous. Fisk found dozens of bodies in the Baabda hospital mortuary, many shot through the back of the head. About twenty senior officers were taken to Anjar or to Syria.

Sources differ: Figures differ by source and are partly second-hand (Syrian sources quoted by Fisk).

Art and memory
  • testimony Robert Fisk's eyewitness account of the Baabda mortuary and the Dahr el-Wahash ridge after 13 October 1990 is the most detailed record in the supplied books of the executions that followed Aoun's surrender.

\_this day in full \_on this day

Sunday, 21 October 1990

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The leader of the National Liberal Party, Dany Chamoun, his wife Ingrid and his two kids Tarek and Julian were savagely assassinated in there home in Baabda.
What the books addDe Clerck and Malsagne count the murder of Dany Chamoun, his wife and two of their children as the last act of violence between Christian factions. The place is given as Baabda (Confluences) or 'his east Beirut home' (Fisk). Chamoun had backed Aoun, though critically, and was opposed to Syria's presence. Hanf notes that many blamed Syria, but judges that killing a whole family suggests a militia vendetta; Fisk likens it to the Phalangists' earlier killing of Tony Frangieh, his wife and baby. Samir Geagea was later tried for the murder (Picard).

Other date in the books: Saturday, 13 October 1990

\_this day in full \_on this day

April 2003

Sunday, 13 April 2003

After the war · From the books

'Remember, so as not to return': a campaign for a national day of memory.
In al-Safir leading politicians openly backed remembering the war for the first time. On 13 April hundreds gathered in Martyrs' Square, handing out flowers and collecting signatures for a national memory day and a memorial; earlier, the Association Mémoire pour l'Avenir and the families' Committee had screened war documentaries unseen in Lebanon at Masrah al-Medina.
Art and memory
  • place Architect Mona El-Hallak came upon the Barakat building, above the old demarcation line at Sodeco, in 1996, and from 1997 led APSAD's campaign to save it. In 2003 the municipality expropriated it for $3 million for Beit Beirut.
  • film Films Haugbolle cites on postwar amnesia include Ghassan Salhab's Beyrouth Fantôme (1999) and Terra Incognita (2002); the novel Ya Salam (1999) by Najwa Barakat follows former militiamen in peacetime.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 8 April 2003

\_this day in full \_on this day

July 2006

Wednesday, 12 July 2006

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books

Hezbollah captures two Israeli soldiers at the border near Zar'it.
Shortly after 9 a.m. a Hezbollah unit ambushed two Israeli army Humvees patrolling the border fence near Zar'it, opposite Ayta al-Shaab, killing three soldiers and taking two wounded reservists, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, into Lebanon under cover of a rocket and mortar barrage. Five more Israeli soldiers died that day, four in a tank blown up during a pursuit across the border and one by mortar fire, bringing the army's dead to eight. Hezbollah announced that it would exchange the captives for prisoners held in Israel.

Sources differ: Time: 34 Days (Israeli reconstruction) puts the attack shortly after 9:00; Abirached quotes Hezbollah's statement giving 'around 9:05'; 34 Days dates Al-Manar's announcement to 10:15.

Reports at the time: The archive's first report of the capture comes at 10:40 (Al-Manar via AFP), 25 minutes after the time 34 Days gives for Al-Manar's announcement. The toll of eight soldiers appears only at 22:30, after reports of three (17:10) and four in a tank (18:05). Archive times are wire-feed publication times, not event times.

The reports of that day, as they came in

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books

First Israeli raids on the South and the coastal bridges.
Israel's 'Just Reward' offensive opened with roughly forty air strikes in the South; its bombing there and in Beirut caused serious damage to infrastructure.

Sources differ: Dieckhoff (pdf:192) dates the bombing of bridges and roads across the country from the next day, 13 July.

Reports at the time: The archive records two civilians killed near Ayta al-Shaab at 12:25 on 12 July, strikes on the Zahrani bridge from 17:45 and on Saida's Awali bridge at 22:30.

The reports of that day, as they came in

Since 2005 · From the books

Hezbollah captures two Israeli soldiers; Israel launches a war on Lebanon.
Hezbollah fighters attacked an Israeli patrol across the border on the morning of 12 July and took two soldiers, whom the party offered to trade for Arab prisoners. Dozens of Israeli air raids on the South followed; strikes on the airport, bridges and roads and an air and sea blockade came next. The war's day-by-day record is in 111101's July 2006 archive (/facts/history/july2006/).

Sources differ: Abirached quotes Hezbollah's announcement of the capture 'around 9.05'; Harel & Issacharoff place the burnt-out vehicles and the start of the search at about 9.45 a.m. These are different moments, not necessarily a conflict.

\_this day in full (July 2006, as the books tell it) \_this day in full (Since 2005) \_on this day

Thursday, 13 July 2006

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books

Beirut airport, twenty-one bridges and the Damascus road are bombed.
Israel bombed Beirut airport's runways, some twenty-one bridges and the Beirut–Damascus highway, cutting air traffic and the main roads to Syria. Visitors, many from the Gulf, were stuck; Western states evacuated their citizens, dual nationals included, by sea.

Sources differ: 34 Days puts the runway strike on the night of 12 July; Abirached and Dieckhoff date the strikes to 13 July.

Reports at the time: The archive's first report of the runways being hit is 06:30 on 13 July, after the Damour bridge (00:50); helicopters struck the airport's fuel tanks again in the evening.

The reports of that day, as they came in

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 12 July 2006

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books

Israel imposes an air and sea blockade on Lebanon.
Israel closed Lebanon's air space and coast. The blockade stayed in force until 7 September, over three weeks past the ceasefire, and hindered the export of books and newspapers printed in Lebanon.

Sources differ: Start date: 13 July (Abirached; Dieckhoff 'from the next day'), 12 July (Mermier).

Reports at the time: The archive reports a 'general blockade' at 10:05 on 13 July, supporting Abirached's date.

The reports of that day, as they came in

Other date in the books: Friday, 14 July 2006

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books range

The Jiyeh power station's fuel tanks are bombed; an oil slick spreads along the coast.
Some 150 km of coast, up to the Syrian border, was fouled after Israeli strikes on 13 and 15 July hit the fuel tanks of the Jiyeh power station, 25 km south of Beirut. Thousands of tonnes of fuel oil burned or ran into the sea; fishing was devastated, and the ongoing war delayed the clean-up.

Sources differ: Verdeil puts the spill at 10,000-15,000 tonnes; Bustos gives the full contents of the depot, 35,000 tonnes, some of which burned and some spilled. The two figures measure different things.

Reports at the time: No archive report for 13-15 July mentions Jiyeh; the fires and the slick first appear on 26 July, and the strike notes put Jiyeh under 16 July.

The reports of that day, as they came in

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books

Saudi Arabia condemns Hezbollah's 'adventurism'.
Riyadh on 13 July blamed the capture on Hezbollah's 'irresponsible adventurism' yet still endorsed 'legitimate resistance'. Hezbollah had not expected it: no Arab government had openly condemned such an action before.

Sources differ: Night of 12 July (34 Days) against 13 July (Ayad and Donati).

Reports at the time: The archive reports the Saudi statement only at 05:20 on 14 July, a day later than either book.

The reports of that day, as they came in

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 12 July 2006

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books

First Israeli raids on Beirut's southern suburb.
Israeli aircraft struck the southern suburb of Beirut, Hezbollah's stronghold, for the first time.

Sources differ: 34 Days puts the start of the bombing of Dahiyeh on the evening of 14 July (see 2006-07-14-haret-hreik).

Reports at the time: The archive backs Abirached: it cites Hezbollah reporting a strike on its southern-suburb stronghold at 08:30 on 13 July.

The reports of that day, as they came in

\_this day in full \_on this day

August 2006

Saturday, 12 August 2006

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books

Battle of Wadi Saluki.
On Saturday 12 August, after the UN vote, 401st Brigade tanks crossed Wadi Saluki by day towards Randoria and Farun, exposed to Hezbollah missiles from the villages above. Eleven soldiers died at Saluki and Randoria and six more nearby in the last two days; on Sunday the troops halted to await the ceasefire. Reporters asked what the deaths had achieved; officers later found it hard to justify.

Reports at the time: The archive gives 24 Israeli soldiers killed across the South on Saturday 12 August, of whom 34 Days attributes eleven to Saluki-Randoria; a Haaretz item places the tanks' passage of the Saluki on the evening of 13 August.

The reports of that day, as they came in

Other date in the books: Monday, 14 August 2006

\_this day in full \_on this day

Sunday, 13 August 2006

July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books

Israel's cabinet approves the ceasefire as the last bombs fall.
Israel's cabinet approved the ceasefire, with Shaul Mofaz alone abstaining. Heavy bombing went on, Beirut included, and ground forces neither took Khiam nor established themselves on the Litani. That evening an air strike on a house in Brital, near Baalbek, killed five of one family.

Sources differ: Brital: five dead of one family (Daher) against at least seven to nine dead and over thirty wounded (archive).

The reports of that day, as they came in

\_this day in full \_on this day

May 2008

Wednesday, 21 May 2008

Since 2005 · From the books

The Doha agreement ends the crisis.
Talks in Doha under Qatari and Arab League mediation ended the fighting. The parties undertook to elect a president at once, renounce political violence, lift the opposition sit-in, form a unity government with an opposition blocking third and redraw constituencies for 2009. Hezbollah's weapons went unmentioned.

Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne's narrative (pp. 462-463) has 21 May; their chronology (p. 578) has 25 May, combining the Doha accord with Sleiman's election.

\_this day in full \_on this day

November 2015

Thursday, 12 November 2015

Since 2005 · From the books

Double suicide bombing in Burj al-Barajneh, the deadliest since the civil war.
Two suicide bombers struck in quick succession beside a community centre and a bakery in Burj al-Barajneh, in the Shi'i southern suburb; the Islamic State claimed responsibility. Parliament had sat that day for the first time in months.

Sources differ: Dead: 43 in de Clerck and Malsagne's chronology, 44 in their epilogue and Quéméner's calendar, 50 in his narrative, which also places the attack in 'Dbaiyeh', evidently a slip, since the calendar says Burj al-Barajneh.

\_this day in full \_on this day

November 2018

Monday, 12 November 2018

Since 2005 · From the books

Parliament adopts Law 105 on the missing and forcibly disappeared.
Wadad Halwani, head of the committee of families of the kidnapped and disappeared, whose husband was taken in 1982, broke down as deputies applauded. The law created a commission to trace detainees believed alive in Syria, identify remains in mass graves and investigate wartime forced disappearances.

Sources differ: Estimates differ. The most quoted figure, 17,415, comes from the Committee of the Kidnapped and Disappeared (founded 1982); NGOs count 5,000 to 8,000 forced disappearances (Hassoun Abou Jaoudé; de Clerck & Malsagne p. 419).

Art and memory
  • testimony Wadad Halwani founded the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared after her husband was abducted in 1982. He is still missing; the vote renewed her hope.
  • film De Clerck and Malsagne cite Daniele Rugo's documentary The Soil and the Sea (2023), co-produced with Carmen Hassoun Abou Jaoudé, among war-memory works inspired by the missing.

\_this day in full \_on this day