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 27th, 30th of every month

‹ earlierlater ›

any date

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecany month
12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031any day

30 entries on 30 dates · the books disagree on 30

October 1975

Monday, 27 October 1975

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The Murr tower was occupied by the Mourabitun, and the Holliday Inn-Phoenicia region was held by the Phalange Party.
What the books addBegun in late October 1975 (20 October in de Clerck and Malsagne's chronology), the Battle of the Hotels ran for five months, ending when the Holiday Inn fell on 20-22 March 1976. Traboulsi links its launch to Black Saturday in December.

Other date in the books: Monday, 20 October 1975

\_this day in full \_on this day

Thursday, 30 October 1975

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Yarmouk units enter the Bekaa near Zahleh.
Yarmouk units, a Palestinian force trained by the Syrian army, entered the Bekaa plain near Zahleh by way of Bar Elias. The bishop's diary shows that the Palestinian fighters in the district had until then been Fatah and its Lebanese allies.

Sources differ: Hanf dates the Yarmouk Brigade's crossing to 20 December.

\_this day in full \_on this day

January 1976

Friday, 30 January 1976

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Lieutenant Ahmed Khatib left the Hasbaya barracks and announced the creation, in the Bekaa, of the Army of Arab Lebanon.
What the books addHistorians date Lieutenant Ahmad al-Khatib's breakaway to 21 January (de Clerck and Malsagne, in the Bekaa) or 22 January (Julie Tegho Bou Nassif, from the diary of the Greek Catholic bishop of Zahleh); Hanf places the mutiny in the south. About 300-400 Muslim soldiers followed him at first. The entry of 30 January may record a later step.

Other dates in the books: Wednesday, 21 January 1976, Thursday, 22 January 1976

\_this day in full \_on this day

March 1976

Saturday, 27 March 1976

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Assad and Jumblatt break after a seven-hour meeting.
The lasting rupture between Kamal Jumblatt and President Assad came at a meeting of some seven hours in Damascus. Assad refused what Jumblatt sought, a decisive military defeat of the Lebanese Front and Frangieh's departure, saying the Constitutional Document already gave him most of it. The same day the Maronite leaders met the patriarch at Bkerké.

Sources differ: Ménargues reports a further long meeting in mid-May.

\_this day in full \_on this day

May 1976

Thursday, 27 May 1976

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Linda Joumblatt, Kamal Joumblatt's 55 years old sister, was cowardly assassinated in her home in Beirut. A group of armed men broke into her apartment and opened fire on her. She was killed while her daughters Nouha, 28 years old, and Samar, 18 years old were injured.
What the books addOn 2 June Bashir Gemayel, having asked for a secret meeting with Kamal Jumblatt, offered him condolences and information on who had killed her. Traboulsi names her Linda al-Atrash and puts her apartment in East Beirut.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 2 June 1976

\_this day in full \_on this day

June 1976

Sunday, 27 June 1976

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The Phalange Party, the NLP, and the Guardians of the Cedar launched the 'Camps Battle'.
What the books addYara El Khoury dates the start of the final offensive on Jisr al-Basha and Tal al-Za'tar to 22 June 1976, and Hanf's account (Jisr al-Basha stormed eight days after the first assault, on 1 July) points to the same week. The camps had been blockaded since January. Hanf says Chamoun's Tigers and Christian units of the army led the attack, the Kataeb joining later; a joint command of Bashir Gemayel (Kataeb), Dany Chamoun and Nabil Karam (NLP), Fawzi Mahfouz (Tanzim) and Etienne Saqr (Guardians of the Cedar) coordinated it (de Clerck and Malsagne).

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 22 June 1976

\_this day in full \_on this day

March 1977

Sunday, 27 March 1977

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The Arab League decided to renew the mandate of the Arab Strike Force for another six months.
What the books addThe force is usually called the Arab Deterrent Force (ADF) in English.

Other date in the books: Monday, 18 October 1976

\_this day in full \_on this day

October 1979

Saturday, 27 October 1979

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

A car bomb exploded in basta, next to the office of the Army of Arabic Lebanon provoking 8 deaths and 32 injuries. The attack was followed by a strike in West Beirut.

Other date in the books: Sunday, 22 April 1979

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 1980

Saturday, 27 September 1980

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

At Saydet el-Bir, Bashir Gemayel's circle decides to seek power.
Sixteen men, Lieutenant-Colonel Michel Aoun among them, met Bashir Gemayel at the Saydet el-Bir convent on 27 September 1980, where he decided to take power and its preparation began. That day L'Orient-Le Jour's front page said Selim Hoss, who had resigned as prime minister in March, had agreed to go on handling current affairs.

Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne depend on Ménargues for this meeting.

\_this day in full \_on this day

October 1980

Monday, 27 October 1980

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The Phalange Party and the NLP fought in Ain el Remmaneh. Camille Chamoun threatened to withdraw from the Lebanese Front.
What the books addThe National Liberal holdouts in Ain el-Remmaneh were led by Elias Hannouche ('Hannache'). Hanf and de Clerck and Malsagne place the end of their autonomy in late October 1980 (de Clerck: Lebanese Forces in control of East Beirut on 31 October); Ménargues dates the decisive Lebanese Forces assault to the second half of November. There may have been two rounds.

Other dates in the books: Friday, 31 October 1980, Friday, 28 November 1980

\_this day in full \_on this day

June 1981

Tuesday, 30 June 1981

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

95 militiamen from the Lebanese Forces were evacuated from Zahleh with their individual weapons after having surrendered their heavy weapons to the Arab Strike Force and to the Internal Security Forces. An Internal Security Forces unit was positioned in the neighborhoods of Zahleh.
What the books addMénargues has some 600 Internal Security Forces gendarmes entering Zahleh on 30 June, ending the siege, and the 95 fighters from outside the town leaving by bus over a mountain road behind a Syrian colonel's car, past Syrian troops posted along it; Hanf says they left under Saudi escort. Siege toll: 200 dead and over 2,000 wounded (Ménargues), over 200 and 2,000 (de Clerck and Malsagne), 300 and 3,000 by the Phalange's count (Fisk).
Art and memory
  • place Of 38 civilians in a warehouse basement by Zahleh's disused railway, one child survived when tank fire toppled the building; after the siege Fisk also found the town's dead under wooden crosses in a makeshift graveyard.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 1 July 1981

\_this day in full \_on this day

July 1982

Tuesday, 27 July 1982

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

On the eve of the return to Beirut of the US envoy, and the opening of the conference of the Arab Committee, Israel bombed West Beirut. The Palestinian forces retorted by shelling East Beirut. 112 deaths and 232 injuries were reported so far.
What the books addAmong the targets on 27 July was an apartment building on Iskandar Street where, according to Robert Fisk, almost a hundred people were killed.

Other date in the books: Monday, 26 July 1982

\_this day in full \_on this day

November 1983

Wednesday, 30 November 1983

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

President Gemayel met with the American President at the White House.
What the books addHanf writes that in Washington on 1 December the Americans pressed Gemayel to come to terms with the Druze and Shi'is and ruled out any change to the 17 May agreement.

Other date in the books: Thursday, 1 December 1983

\_this day in full \_on this day

May 1985

Monday, 27 May 1985

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

A British teacher at the AUB is shot in the head by would-be kidnappers.
Would-be kidnappers shot a British teacher on the AUB staff in the head after he apparently tried to fight them off.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 22 May 1985

\_this day in full \_on this day

August 1985

Friday, 30 August 1985

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The Lebanese Forces ended their military presence in Zahleh and closed their offices in the town.
What the books addHanf dates the Lebanese Forces' withdrawal to 31 August, after Shia militias had shelled Zahleh from 11 August and Christian notables mediated; Syrian troops entered on 7 September.

Other date in the books: Sunday, 11 August 1985

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 1985

Monday, 30 September 1985

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Three diplomats from the Soviet embassy and the chancellery's doctor were kidnapped in West Beirut. One of them was killed later, while the three others were released on October 30. Twelve Western nationals remained held hostages by Islamist organizations.
What the books addFisk dates it 1 October 1985, de Clerck and Malsagne September. Arkady Katkov was killed. Fisk thinks Sunni fundamentalists wanted Moscow to make Syria halt its Tripoli offensive against Tawheed. The others' release is credited probably to the KGB and Syria by de Clerck and Malsagne, to Syrian mediation by Hanf.

Other date in the books: Tuesday, 1 October 1985

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 1986

Saturday, 27 September 1986

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

500 fighters led by Elie Hobeika entered Achrafieh where they fought ferociously with Geagea's men. The Lebanese Forces and the army rebuffed the infiltration. 65 persons lost their lives in the operation while 200 others were wounded.
What the books addDates differ: 27 September (de Clerck and Malsagne), 29 September (Hanf), or by 26 September (Ménargues). Hanf has the Lebanese army halting an attack launched across the green line from West Beirut, after which former comrades killed a few hundred of Hobeika's men.

Other dates in the books: Friday, 26 September 1986, Monday, 29 September 1986

\_this day in full \_on this day

April 1988

Saturday, 30 April 1988

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The body of Bishop Albert Khoreiche was discovered in the forest of Chnaiir, provoking consternation in every milieu. He had disappeared eight days earlier in mysterious conditions.
What the books addDe Clerck and Malsagne (p. 420) identify the victim as head of the Maronite religious court and nephew of the former Patriarch Khoreiche. His body was discovered in a Ghazir forest on 1 May 1988, and the killing was attributed to the Lebanese Forces.

Other date in the books: Sunday, 1 May 1988

\_this day in full \_on this day

May 1988

Friday, 27 May 1988

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Syrians deploy in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
What the books addHanf (p. 317) dates the Syrian entry into the southern suburbs to 17 May 1988; de Clerck and Malsagne write 19 May (with the year printed as 1989). Neither gives 27 May.

Other dates in the books: Friday, 6 May 1988, Tuesday, 17 May 1988

\_this day in full \_on this day

June 1988

Monday, 27 June 1988

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Chatila falls in the hands of the Palestinian dissidents.
What the books addDe Clerck (pp. 170, 576) dates the fall of Chatila to 28 June 1988, after 59 days of shelling; Arafat's fighters were escorted to Ain al-Hilweh.

Other dates in the books: Tuesday, 28 June 1988, Friday, 8 July 1988

\_this day in full \_on this day

January 1989

Monday, 30 January 1989

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Following negotiations conducted in Damascus, the pro-Syrian Amal movement and the pro-Iranian Hezbollah sign an agreement putting an end to their armed conflict that cost the life of 400 persons in 10 months.
What the books addThe dates differ: Hanf says Amal and Hezbollah suspended their war on 25 January, and also writes that the Syrian-Iranian ceasefire took until the spring. De Clerck and Malsagne date the ceasefire to February 1989. Picard names Syria and Iran as sponsors. Death tolls depend on the source and the period: some sources put civilian deaths at about 2,000 for 1988-1990 (de Clerck and Malsagne); an al-Nahar-based count gives 635 dead across 147 incidents between 1985 and 1991; Georges Corm estimated 2,000 dead for 1988-1989.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 25 January 1989

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 1989

Wednesday, 27 September 1989

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

Lakhdar Ibrahimi announces that the parliamentary meeting will take place in Taef (in Saudi Arabia) on September 30th.
What the books addThe meeting date of 30 September was already part of the troika's 13 September proposals (Hanf). De Clerck and Malsagne say 63 of the 73 surviving deputies gathered in Taif on 30 September. Hanf dates the formal opening to 1 October.

Other dates in the books: Wednesday, 13 September 1989, Saturday, 30 September 1989

\_this day in full \_on this day

January 1990

Saturday, 27 January 1990

The Lebanese war · Added from the books

Fighting breaks out between the army and the Lebanese Forces over a school in Furn al-Chebbak.
Both sides had Iraqi weapons. The spark was a school in Furn al-Chebbak, a strategic point between Baabda and East Beirut, which the Lebanese Forces had requisitioned and Aoun's government wanted back for the Ministry of Education. When the militia would not leave, the army fired, and heavy fighting broke out in many places within hours.

Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne date the outbreak at Furn al-Chubbak to 31 January (entry 1177); Picard's chronology gives 30 January.

Other date in the books: Wednesday, 31 January 1990

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 1990

Thursday, 27 September 1990

The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology

The blockade against the Eastern region gets tougher and tougher. The goal is proclaimed: force General Aoun to give up before schools reopen.
What the books addHanf notes the blockade had little support even outside the enclave, as civilians rather than Aoun's soldiers bore it. On 28 September 1990, he records, Lahoud's troops tightened it by taking every checkpoint around Aoun's area; Aoun's followers protested daily there and at Baabda.

Other date in the books: Friday, 28 September 1990

\_this day in full \_on this day

February 1994

Sunday, 27 February 1994

After the war · From the books

A bomb kills worshippers in a church near Jounieh.
A bomb killed people in the church of Sayidet al-Najat. Samir Geagea, charged over it but acquitted, was then tried over wartime political killings.

Sources differ: Location given as Jounieh (Picard) or Zouk (de Clerck); the church is commonly called Notre-Dame de la Délivrance, the French form of Sayidat al-Najat.

\_this day in full \_on this day

July 2000

Sunday, 30 July 2000

After the war · From the books

Lahoud says the army's role in the south will be defined 'in due course'.
Lahoud's Army Day speech left the army's role undefined, so no national strategy emerged; the government called Hezbollah's continuing fight a 'national struggle'.

Sources differ: 30 July (Picard 2002) or 29 July (Picard 2016).

Other date in the books: Saturday, 29 July 2000

\_this day in full \_on this day

June 2005

Thursday, 30 June 2005

Since 2005 · From the books

Fouad Siniora is chosen as Prime Minister.
A parliament dominated by the 14 March parties chose Fouad Siniora, Rafic Hariri's trusted associate, as prime minister. Israel had retaliated, on a limited scale, for a major Hezbollah attack in the Shebaa Farms launched a few hours before the nomination.

Sources differ: Abirached's chronology has Siniora forming the government on 30 June; Khayat says only that he was designated at the end of June. For the government itself, de Clerck & Malsagne (Confluences) give 19 July (see the following entry).

\_this day in full \_on this day

July 2006

Thursday, 27 July 2006

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

Lebanon's cabinet, Hezbollah ministers included, adopts Siniora's plan.
Five Shiite ministers backed the decision of Siniora's cabinet, that evening, to adopt the plan from his Rome speech, including the army's deployment in the South. To Harel and Issacharoff, Hezbollah's agreement showed how badly the Bint Jbeil fighting had hurt it.

Sources differ: Evening of 27 July (34 Days) against 28 July (Abirached).

Reports at the time: The archive supports 34 Days: the unanimous endorsement is reported at 23:20-23:25 on 27 July; AFP carried it the next morning (08:55 on 28 July), which may explain Abirached's date.

The reports of that day, as they came in

Other date in the books: Friday, 28 July 2006

\_this day in full \_on this day

Sunday, 30 July 2006

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

Qana: a building full of sheltering families is destroyed.
Families sheltering in a house in Qana died early on Sunday 30 July when an Israeli strike brought it down; dozens of civilians were killed, many of them children, though tolls vary widely. Israel halted air raids for 48 hours, Berri declared Hezbollah's terms for an exchange void, and Siniora told Rice to stay away from Beirut. Agnès Levallois argues that the killings, a decade after the 1996 shelling of Qana, changed how the French and Arab press covered the war.

Sources differ: Toll: about thirty (Abirached; Ayad and Donati), 28 including 17 children (34 Days, final), 57 including 21 children (Arab TV via 34 Days), sixty (blogger via 34 Days); the archive's tolls run from 20 to 52 (with 30 children) and over 60.

Reports at the time: Contemporary tolls in the archive: 'at least twenty killed or wounded' (08:10), 35 (09:10), 32 including 14 children (09:50), 51 including 22 children (10:15), 'over 60' (Beawitness), and 52 civilians including 30 children on the day of national mourning (31 July). None gives the lower figure of 28 adopted by 34 Days. The 48-hour suspension appears at 00:22 on 31 July.

The reports of that day, as they came in

Art and memory
  • place Qana was struck twice: Israeli shelling of refugees at the UN headquarters there killed 106 on 18 April 1996, and the village was hit again in 2006. Lebanese regard the dead of both as martyrs.

\_this day in full \_on this day

September 2024

Friday, 27 September 2024

Since 2005 · From the books

Hassan Nasrallah is killed in massive Israeli strikes on the southern suburb.
Bunker-buster raids on Beirut's southern suburb killed Hassan Nasrallah and much of Hezbollah's command. De Clerck and Malsagne say Netanyahu gave the order in New York while France's Emmanuel Macron was pressing for a truce.

Sources differ: The introduction (p. 27) speaks of '85,000 tonnes' of bunker busters, which is hard to credit; a smaller figure or a different unit may have been intended.

\_this day in full \_on this day