63 entries on 61 dates · the books disagree on 63
dates 1–60 of 61 next
November 1969
Monday, 3 November 1969
The road to war · From the books
The Cairo Agreement is signed between the Lebanese army and the PLO.
Only Raymond Eddé and his bloc voted against the agreement, which deputies ratified without seeing its full, secret text. Concluded in Cairo through Egyptian mediation by Yasir Arafat and army commander General Emile Bustani, it affirmed Lebanese sovereignty but let guerrillas keep armed units in the camps and observation posts near the border and move to and from the Arqoub.
Sources differ: Three dates: 3 November (de Clerck & Malsagne, Traboulsi's chronology; Hanf's negotiation of 1-3 November ends that day), 8 November (Traboulsi's chapter 9) and 13 November (Picard). 3 November has the most, and mutually independent, support; Traboulsi contradicts himself.
\_this day in full \_on this day
November 1972
Friday, 3 November 1972
The road to war · From the books
Workers at the Ghandour factories begin an open-ended strike.
On 3 November 1972 an indefinite strike began at the Ghandour confectionery group, Lebanon's largest non-unionised industrial workforce. Workers wanted their factory committee recognised, the right to unionise, equal wages for women and higher pay.
Sources differ: Workforce: 1,200 in Shiyah (Traboulsi) or about 1,250 in Choueifat plus 350 in Chiyah (Tufaro).
\_this day in full \_on this day
December 1972
Friday, 15 December 1972
The road to war · From the books
Ghandour locks out and dismisses its workers.
Talks failed; the company locked out and sacked its whole workforce. Traboulsi says it reopened after a week, taking back all but 100 it saw as ringleaders; Tufaro describes a six-month lockout that fresh protests ended, with the demands unmet.
Sources differ: Length of the lockout: one week (Traboulsi) against a declared six months (Tufaro).
\_this day in full \_on this day
May 1973
Thursday, 3 May 1973
The road to war · From the books day (disputed)
The Lebanese air force bombs Palestinian camps in Beirut.
The Lebanese air force was used against the camps: Hanf writes that it bombed Burj al-Barajneh in response to rockets launched at the airport from inside the camp.
Sources differ: 3 May and Burj al-Barajneh (Traboulsi) against 2 May and the Sabra-Shatila area (de Clerck & Malsagne); Hanf gives Burj al-Barajneh without a day. They may be separate raids.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 2 May 1973
\_this day in full \_on this day
February 1975
Thursday, 20 February 1975
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Pierre Gemayel calls for a referendum on the armed Palestinian presence.
Kataeb leader Pierre Gemayel called for a referendum on whether Palestinian commandos should stay in Lebanon. He had already pressed the PLO to rein in its breakaway factions, and spoke of 'two governments and two armies'.
Sources differ: Traboulsi and Picard give no day.
\_this day in full \_on this day
April 1975
Tuesday, 15 April 1975
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A cease-fire was reached
After more than three days of anguish, with 120 deaths and many injuries, two suspects were handed over to the Justice. Beirut and its surroundings have been the theater of violent clashes between the Phalange Party and Palestinian militias. Also, Zghortiotes and Tripolitans fought in Tripoli. A cease-fire was declared at night and all parties reached an agreement, the execution of which was entrusted to the Internal Security Forces.
What the books addAfter several days of fighting (Hanf; four, says Traboulsi), Pierre Gemayel gave up to the police two militiamen implicated in the Ain al-Rummaneh shooting. Early Syrian mediation failed to stop this round, which de Clerck and Malsagne end with a cease-fire on 16 May 1975; no book confirms a truce on 15 April.
Other date in the books: Friday, 16 May 1975
\_this day in full \_on this day
October 1975
Monday, 20 October 1975
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The Battle of the Hotels begins.
The battle for Beirut's seafront hotels began. The Sunni Murabitun militia, allied with the National Movement and the PLO, fought from the Murr tower against the Kataeb in the Holiday Inn. Five months of close-quarters fighting wrecked central Beirut.
Sources differ: Traboulsi dates the launch of the battle to after Black Saturday (6 December).
\_this day in full \_on this day
December 1975
Monday, 15 December 1975
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
After a week of dreadful combats, the first phases of the 18th cease-fire agreement were executed with the evacuation of the towers and big hotels in the capital.
What the books addHanf has the Murabitun, discreetly backed by the Palestinians, going on the offensive against the Kataeb downtown and around the hotels on 8 December and seizing the Phoenicia and St Georges. Traboulsi places an army attempt to retake the two hotels on 9 December.
Other dates in the books: Monday, 8 December 1975, Tuesday, 9 December 1975
\_this day in full \_on this day
Saturday, 20 December 1975
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
PLA troops cross from Syria and besiege Zahleh.
Syrian guns in the Anti-Lebanon shelled Zahleh as 3,000 men of the PLA's Yarmouk Brigade, under Syrian officers, crossed the border and besieged it from 20 December: Syria was now intervening directly.
Sources differ: Tegho Bou Nassif dates the first Yarmouk infiltration near Zahleh to 30 October 1975.
\_this day in full \_on this day
January 1976
Tuesday, 20 January 1976
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Damour massacre
Avenging the massacre of Karantina by Christian forces 2 days before, Palestinians and leftist Muslims attacked the Christian city of Damour, located about 20 kilometers south of Beirut, and murdered 350 civilians.
What the books addThe siege of Damour had begun on 9 January, before the fall of Karantina; the main massacre began on 20 January (Hanf, Ménargues, Fisk, de Clerck and Malsagne; Traboulsi gives 22 or 24 January). Jiyeh fell the same day. The attackers were mainly PLA, Saiqa and Fatah units, with Lebanese leftist parties. Estimates of the dead range from about 150 bodies found plus 200 missing (Fisk) and 300-584 (de Clerck and Malsagne) to about 900 (Ménargues); some 5,000 people fled by land and sea.
Art and memory- film Ziad Doueiri's The Insult (2017) recalls the Damour massacre.
- photograph The German magazine Stern published a photograph taken during the Damour massacre of January 1976.
- novel Farid and Michel Gharib's novel Damour, Man Anti (1978) tells of Damour up to the massacre.
Other dates in the books: Friday, 9 January 1976, Friday, 16 January 1976, Monday, 19 January 1976, Thursday, 22 January 1976, Saturday, 24 January 1976
\_this day in full \_on this day
March 1976
Monday, 15 March 1976
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Lieutenant Ahmed Khatib, chief of the ' Army of Arab Lebanon ', rejoined Ahdab's reformist movement. Barracks fell in the hands of protesters. 68 deputies signed a petition claiming the departure of Sleiman Frangieh who refused to leave his post, despite all the pressures against him.
What the books addThe deputies' petition demanding Frangieh's resignation is dated 11 March in Traboulsi's chronology and 13 March by de Clerck and Malsagne; Picard and Traboulsi's chronology count 68 signatures out of 99, Traboulsi's narrative 69. On 15 March Syrian-controlled PLA and Saiqa units halted a march on the Baabda palace by the Lebanese Arab Army and al-Ahdab's followers. Within days Khatib's force grew to a few thousand men and held most of the army's heavy weapons.
Other dates in the books: Thursday, 11 March 1976, Saturday, 13 March 1976
\_this day in full \_on this day
April 1976
Thursday, 15 April 1976
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Despite the extension of the truce, several fronts were set ablaze, including those in Beirut.
A new agreement, called the Damascus Agreement, was likely to be applied in the next 48 hours. Syrian and Resistance leaders had signed it. The agreement stipulated ending hostilities, reactivating the 'Supreme Military Committee', refusing the partition of Lebanon, rejecting American arrangements and plans in Lebanon, continuing the Syrian initiative and refusing the internationalization or the 'Arabization' of the Lebanese crisis. Also, an agreement had been reached stipulating the withdrawal of Syrian troops that entered the Bekaa region on April 10, back to the Masnaa borderline.
What the books addTraboulsi's chronology puts the Syrian-PLO accord to restore order in Beirut on 11 April. Around 9 April Syrian army tanks entered the Bekaa at Anjar, Judaydat Yabus and Bayadir al-Adas (Traboulsi), some forty in all according to Yara El Khoury, as Saiqa fighters set about ending the siege of Zahleh.
Other dates in the books: Friday, 9 April 1976, Sunday, 11 April 1976
\_this day in full \_on this day
June 1976
Tuesday, 15 June 1976
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Lebanese Front approved the application of the solutions of the sub-summit, concerning the dispatch, to Lebanon, of a peace force including Libyan, Algerian, Syrian, Sudanese, Saudi, and Palestinian contingents.
What the books addPicard (2016) dates to 9 June 1976 the Arab League Council resolution, taken in Cairo, that created an Arab peace force. Hanf has some 2,000 Sudanese arriving first, then Libyans; Picard (2002) says Tripoli sent 500 men in June.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 9 June 1976
\_this day in full \_on this day
November 1976
Monday, 15 November 1976
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Phase 2 of the peace plan started.
The Arab Strike Force including mainly Syrians started to advance on various axes leading to the heart of the capital, as well as the Chouf, the Kesrouan, and Jbeil. 8,000 infantrymen and 250 armored vehicles converged towards the districts of Beirut and the front line.
What the books addHanf puts the entry of about 6,000 Syrian soldiers, in the peace force's green helmets, into East and West Beirut on 14 November. Fisk's report in The Times of 16 November dated their occupation of the whole city to the previous morning, with 6,000 men and hundreds of tanks; the last firing, near the port, ended on 16 November, Fisk recounts.
Other dates in the books: Sunday, 14 November 1976, Tuesday, 16 November 1976
\_this day in full \_on this day
September 1977
Tuesday, 20 September 1977
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
While bombardments and fights were taking place along the border since September 16, Radio Israel announced that Israel had sent a warning to Syria, indicating that no Syrian troop movement will be tolerated in Southern Lebanon.
What the books addRobert Fisk, who reported from the area, saw Israeli tanks on Lebanese soil near Ibl al-Saqi and Israeli shelling of Christian villages such as Rachaya al-Fukhar, where Palestinian guerrillas had dug in.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 21 September 1977
\_this day in full \_on this day
March 1978
Wednesday, 15 March 1978
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Israeli aircraft bomb the Palestinian camps of Beirut, Tyre and Damour.
Operation Litani brought Israeli air raids on the Palestinian camps of Beirut and Tyre and on Damour, which had taken in survivors of Tal al-Za'tar. In the south, Israeli forces killed at least 200 Fatah fighters.
Sources differ: Entry 176 (14 March) already mentions air raids on Damour, Ouzai and Tyre.
\_this day in full \_on this day
October 1978
Tuesday, 3 October 1978
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
France took the initiative of a cease-fire in Beirut and suggested the repositioning of the Arab Strike Force, as well as the interposition of a Lebanese Force between the belligerents.
Other date in the books: Monday, 16 October 1978
\_this day in full \_on this day
May 1979
Tuesday, 15 May 1979
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Phalange Party and the LNP merged under the sign of cooperation with the State.
What the books addDe Clerck and Malsagne date the start of the fighting between Kataeb and National Liberal Party militias to 12 May 1979, at Furn el-Chebbak; clashes recurred in various places until July 1980.
Other date in the books: Saturday, 12 May 1979
\_this day in full \_on this day
November 1980
Thursday, 20 November 1980
The Lebanese war · Added from the books about 20 November (range 20-28 November)
The Lebanese Forces storm the last Tiger stronghold in Ain el-Remmaneh (Ménargues's dating).
In Ménargues's account Ain el-Remmaneh, long a National Liberal district, sheltered those who refused Bashir Gemayel's authority, under Elias Hannouche ('Hannache'). About ten days after the two car bombs of 10 November, Bashir sent in his elite units. Hannouche and many of his men slipped across the demarcation line into Syrian-protected West Beirut, and the LF secured the district only after 48 hours of fighting. Afterwards a single LF insignia replaced the militia badges on every unit's uniform, on Bashir's orders.
Sources differ: Entries 403-405 end the Ain el-Remmaneh fighting in late October; de Clerck and Malsagne have LF control of East Beirut on 31 October; Hanf, about three months after 7 July.
Other date in the books: Friday, 28 November 1980
\_this day in full \_on this day
December 1980
Saturday, 20 December 1980
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Elias Hannouche's men seize the National Liberal office in Zahle; fighting with Syrian troops.
Rocket, mortar and heavy machine-gun fire swept central Zahle until about 11 p.m., when Syrian troops and Elias Hannouche's men withdrew. Under Syrian protection, Hannouche had seized the former National Liberal Party office early that morning with some forty men; local Lebanese Forces failed to dislodge them, Syrian soldiers intervened, and an LF fighter was killed.
Sources differ: Hanf gives November and December without a day.
\_this day in full \_on this day
January 1981
Saturday, 3 January 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
After its withdrawal from Ain El Remmaneh on October 31, 1980 the Army repositioned on the main road axes in the region.
What the books addDates differ. De Clerck and Malsagne's chronology has the Lebanese Forces controlling East Beirut from 31 October 1980. Ménargues puts the LF's 48-hour assault on Ain al-Remmaneh, held by Elias Hannouche's Chamounists, ten days after the 10 November car bombs, around 20 November 1980.
Other dates in the books: Friday, 31 October 1980, Thursday, 20 November 1980
\_this day in full \_on this day
April 1981
Sunday, 5 April 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Israel says it will not stand by over Zahleh; the US Secretary of State is in Jerusalem.
Haig reached Jerusalem on his first official visit as Secretary of State and discussed Lebanon at length with Begin. Hours earlier, leaving a cabinet meeting almost wholly on Lebanon, Foreign Minister Yitzhak Shamir had said Israel could not stay passive.
Sources differ: Hanf attributes the 'will not stand by' statement to Begin; Ménargues to Shamir.
\_this day in full \_on this day
July 1981
Monday, 20 July 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Iraq opens a channel to the Lebanese Forces.
Iraq, fighting Syria's ally Iran, provided aid after a pro-Iraqi Baathist lawyer, Gebran Majdalani, offered Bashir Gemayel direct ties with Baghdad. LF envoys met Tariq Aziz in Paris in mid-August and went to Baghdad in December.
Sources differ: Ménargues says the Lebanese Forces refused Iraqi money; Traboulsi says Iraq gave money as well as arms.
\_this day in full \_on this day
December 1981
Tuesday, 15 December 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A bomb attack destroyed the Iraqi embassy. 20 persons were killed including the ambassador and 100 were wounded.
What the books addMénargues dates the bombing to 16 December. The six-storey embassy at Ramlet al-Baida was destroyed by an explosives-laden car driven by Shiite suicide attackers; a group nobody knew claimed it, and the ambassador's body took four days to find. It followed heavy fighting in West Beirut on 4 December between Amal and pro-Iraqi Baathists, and a Lebanese Forces visit to Baghdad.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 16 December 1981
\_this day in full \_on this day
June 1982
Thursday, 3 June 1982
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The Israeli ambassador in London, Shlomo Argov, is shot and gravely wounded.
Abu Nidal's dissident group, hostile to the PLO leadership, carried out the shooting, which Arafat condemned. Israel used it as the pretext for bombing Beirut the next day and for the invasion. De Clerck and Malsagne cite Ronen Bergman, who attributes the London attack to the Mossad.
Sources differ: Bergman's attribution to the Mossad, reported by de Clerck and Malsagne, is not shared by the other books.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Sunday, 20 June 1982
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A Public Salvation Committee was constituted. It included: Bechjr Gemayel, Walid Joumblatt, Nabih Berry, Nasri Maalouf, Chafic Wazzan, and Fouad Boutros. Walid Joumblatt resigned from office a few days later.
What the books addMénargues and Fisk date the decision to form the committee to 14 June; Traboulsi has it convening on 20 June. Philip Habib attended its sessions of 22 and 23 June. Its agenda, Traboulsi notes, dealt with the PLO's withdrawal, not the Israeli occupation; Jumblatt quit the committee and the cabinet rather than 'deal the final blow to the Palestinians', and Berri stopped taking part.
Other dates in the books: Monday, 14 June 1982, Tuesday, 22 June 1982
\_this day in full \_on this day
July 1982
Saturday, 3 July 1982
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
While waiting for the PLO's response to the Israeli conditions, West Beirut was under a tight blockade.
Other date in the books: Friday, 2 July 1982
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
More than 100,000 Israelis demonstrate in Tel Aviv against the war.
The demonstration, which called for negotiations with the Palestinians, was organised by a 'Committee against the war in Lebanon' set up at the end of June. Before that, also at the end of June, thousands had demonstrated outside Begin's home while the cabinet met.
Sources differ: Ménargues dates the protest outside Begin's home to 'Sunday 28 June'; 28 June 1982 was a Monday.
\_this day in full \_on this day
September 1982
Wednesday, 15 September 1982
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The Israeli army enters West Beirut.
Israel said it was preventing a 'bloodbath' when its troops moved into West Beirut at 5 a.m., hours after Bashir Gemayel's death was announced, in breach of commitments given through Philip Habib. Leftist militias resisted in places. The Israeli army surrounded the Sabra and Chatila camps without entering them.
Other date in the books: Tuesday, 14 September 1982
\_this day in full \_on this day
November 1982
Saturday, 20 November 1982
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Lebanese Forces and the Progressive Socialist Party militiamen started a merciless war in the cazas of Aley and the Chouf.
What the books addOn 8 November 1982 PSP men attacked a Christian funeral in Kfar Nabrakh, a mixed Chouf village, killing eleven, in reaction to a Lebanese Forces checkpoint set up nearby. Some twenty houses were burned and nine villagers abducted; their bodies were found in a well on 23 November. De Clerck and Malsagne call it the Mountain War's first massacre.
Other dates in the books: Monday, 8 November 1982, Tuesday, 23 November 1982
\_this day in full \_on this day
May 1983
Sunday, 15 May 1983
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Deputies are briefed on the agreement with Israel in closed session.
Behind closed doors the deputies went through the text. Foreign Minister Elie Salem argued that Israeli observers for a limited time were better than continued occupation, and Saeb Salam did much to win them over.
Sources differ: Hanf and Fisk date the parliamentary vote to 14 or 15 June (entry 676); in de Clerck and Malsagne's chronology parliament approved the agreement on 17 May.
\_this day in full \_on this day
July 1983
Wednesday, 20 July 1983
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Israel announces it will pull back from the Chouf and Aley.
With Gemayel in Washington, Israel announced an early pull-back from the mountains above Beirut, dismaying Western ambassadors; Fisk explains that the army, and the multinational force with it, would be drawn into the Druze-Christian war.
Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne say Arens announced a withdrawal for 15 September, without dating the announcement.
\_this day in full \_on this day
January 1984
Sunday, 15 January 1984
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Ships from the sixth US fleet were positioned off Beirut. They were retaliating to the bombing of Marines' headquarters in the capital.
Other date in the books: Monday, 9 January 1984
\_this day in full \_on this day
December 1984
Saturday, 15 December 1984
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Army's deployment plan between Madfoun and the Awali river as well as in the Iqlim El Kharroub was finally executed. The entire population went on strike in South Lebanon to protest against the military operation of December 13.
What the books addHanf dates the army's advance into the Sidon region to 9 January 1985, as Israel began pulling back. Some of the 15 December deployment may have been north of the Awali, which he does not detail. The southern strike is not in the books.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 9 January 1985
\_this day in full \_on this day
March 1985
Friday, 15 March 1985
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
British businessman Brian Levick is kidnapped in West Beirut.
On rue Australie five gunmen took Brian Levick, the Coral oil company's British general manager, out of his car; Terry Anderson was seized twelve and a half hours later.
Other date in the books: Tuesday, 8 January 1985
\_this day in full \_on this day
May 1985
Monday, 20 May 1985
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
After 20 hours of ferocious combats, Amal and the sixth brigade took control of the Palestinian camps.
What the books addAmal, with the army's mainly Shia Sixth Brigade, attacked Sabra, Chatila and Bourj al-Barajneh on 19 or 20 May. Bourj al-Barajneh held out under siege, Chatila's defenders kept a small area, and Sabra was overrun and razed. Hanf reports massacres when Sabra and Chatila fell, with estimates of 800 to 2,000 Palestinians killed by Shia militiamen in 1985.
Art and memory- novel Hanan al-Shaykh placed her 1992 novel Beirut Blues (Barid Bayrut) in the War of the Camps, during the summer of 1985.
Other dates in the books: Sunday, 19 May 1985, Wednesday, 22 May 1985
\_this day in full \_on this day
November 1985
Wednesday, 20 November 1985
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Violent combats opposed Amal and the PSP in West Beirut. Five days of hell followed for the residents of this region. 65 persons were killed and 250 were wounded.
What the books addHanf's 'Flag War': on 21 November alone, Shi'i and Druze fighters fought with tanks and artillery, leaving 65 dead and over 400 abducted. PSP militiamen had replaced the national flags Sixth Brigade soldiers put on public buildings for Independence Day with their party banner.
Other date in the books: Thursday, 21 November 1985
\_this day in full \_on this day
January 1986
Wednesday, 15 January 1986
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
In eight hours of violent fights, 100 persons were killed, and the chief of staff of the Lebanese Forces, Samir Geagea, evinced Elie Hobeika sending him into exile.
What the books addHistorians date Geagea's takeover to 15 January 1986 (de Clerck and Malsagne; Picard's chronology dates Gemayel's rejection of the accord to the same day). Traboulsi's narrative gives 12 March 1986 instead. De Clerck and Malsagne put the dead at about 800, far above the 100 given here. Hobeika was flown out by army helicopter after an army mediation backed by the patriarch, was briefly exiled in France, then settled in Zahle under Syrian protection.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 12 March 1986
\_this day in full \_on this day
April 1987
Sunday, 5 April 1987
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
An agreement was concluded between the National Palestinian Salvation Front and the Amal movement under the aegis of Ghazi Kanaan. This agreement stipulated a global cease-fire and the end of the camps' blockade in Beirut
What the books addUnder the 5 April accord, reached by Amal, the PLO and the pro-Syrian Palestinian National Salvation Front with the Syrian general Ghazi Kanaan present, the blockade was to be lifted, the wounded taken out and the PLO was to leave three villages near Sidon. Food and medicine then reached Chatila and Bourj al-Barajneh, the first since March. Picard dates the end of the siege to an Amal-Palestinian agreement of 11 September 1987; Hanf has Amal lifting the blockade only on 18 January 1988.
Other dates in the books: Friday, 11 September 1987, Monday, 18 January 1988
\_this day in full \_on this day
June 1987
Friday, 5 June 1987
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
A general strike paralyses the country for five days.
A general strike, part of the CGTL's drive for peace and an economic rescue plan, shut the country down for close to five days.
Sources differ: Hanf lists CGTL political strikes in 1987 for April, July, August, September and November, but none in June. The strike began four days after Karami's assassination, on the day Husseini resigned (original entry 1003).
\_this day in full \_on this day
January 1988
Wednesday, 20 January 1988
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The camps war, that lasted three years, seems to come close to an end with the deployment of the Syrian army and the Lebanese Army sixth brigade, replacing Amal around Chatila and Bourj-Brajneh.
What the books addHanf (p. 315) dates the lifting of Amal's blockade of the camps to 18 January 1988. The sources disagree on when the war of the camps ended: September 1987 (Picard's chronology), January 1988 (Picard, Hanf, de Clerck) or late 1988 (Hanf, p. 304).
Other dates in the books: Friday, 11 September 1987, Monday, 18 January 1988
\_this day in full \_on this day
April 1988
Tuesday, 5 April 1988
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The Amal-Hezbollah war begins in the south.
Amal launched an offensive to disarm Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Brief fighting, notably at Nabatiyeh and Ghaziyeh, went Amal's way, and armed Hezbollah fighters vanished from view there. A three-phase 'war of brothers' had begun, lasting until November 1990.
Sources differ: Existing entry 1068 dates the fall of Nabatiyeh to Amal to 6 April. Picard's chronology gives 28 November 1988 for the beginning of Amal-Hezbollah clashes. The Confluences article is by the same authors as de Clerck's book.
\_this day in full \_on this day
March 1989
Friday, 3 March 1989
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
General Aoun orders a naval blockade of the militia ports of Khalde, Jiyeh and Ouzai.
Aoun had the navy and helicopter units close Khalde, Jiyeh and Ouzai, ports the PSP and Amal had kept, though Syria had officially warned him off militias beyond his own area. Frangieh's Marada had given Selaata port to the army.
Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne date the closure order to 6 March (see entry 1129).
\_this day in full \_on this day
May 1989
Wednesday, 3 May 1989
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Lakhdar Ibrahimi, General Secretary of the Arab League, arrives in Beirut looking to find a diplomatic solution to the crisis.
What the books addLakhdar Brahimi was Deputy (assistant) Secretary-General of the Arab League, not its Secretary-General. After the Casablanca summit he headed the troika's secretariat in Jeddah.
Other date in the books: Tuesday, 23 May 1989
\_this day in full \_on this day
July 1989
Wednesday, 5 July 1989
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
In a joint declaration from Paris, Presidents Mitterand and Gorbatchev call for an immediate cease-fire.
What the books addHanf dates a joint declaration by Presidents Gorbachev and Mitterrand on Lebanon, welcoming the Arab troika's efforts, to 5 June 1989.
Other date in the books: Monday, 5 June 1989
\_this day in full \_on this day
August 1989
Tuesday, 15 August 1989
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Pope John Paul II publicly condemns Syria as an occupying power in Lebanon.
Pope John Paul II dropped the Vatican's neutrality: urging international intervention and Syria's withdrawal, he named Syria, with Israel, an occupying power. His widely reported statement came on 15 August 1989, the Assumption, two days after Souk el-Gharb.
Other date in the books: Sunday, 13 August 1989
\_this day in full \_on this day
February 1990
Saturday, 3 February 1990
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
February 3, 4
The army takes control of Dbayeh after a tough battle.
What the books addHanf: the army's counter-offensive of 6 February 1990 reached the coast near Antelias and took Dbayeh, home to Lebanese Forces barracks and the militia's finance department.
Other date in the books: Tuesday, 6 February 1990
\_this day in full \_on this day
Thursday, 15 February 1990
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Despite Mgr Sfeir's pathetic call, a blaze of fire hits the 'Christian country'. The army takes control of Ain el Remmaneh.
What the books addHanf: after the army took Ain al-Rummaneh on 16 February 1990, having attacked the eastern suburbs on the 11th, the Lebanese Forces fell back to Ashrafieh through West Beirut. A Reuters reporter with the troops said it was 'like an earthquake had hit it'.
Other dates in the books: Sunday, 11 February 1990, Friday, 16 February 1990
\_this day in full \_on this day
April 1990
Tuesday, 3 April 1990
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The chief of the Lebanese Forces, Samir Geagea, joins President Hraoui, while General Michel Aoun turns to the Arab Troika. At the same time, the N.L.P. withdraws from the commandment of the Lebanese Forces.
What the books addHanf: Hrawi made unconditional acceptance of Taif the price of help when Geagea, after losing Ain al-Rummaneh, turned to the 'legal authorities' (Hrawi and the Hoss government) and passed four captured Fouga-Magister aircraft to General Lahoud's Qlayaat base. Aoun, low on fuel and ammunition, was supplied by the SSNP and Hobeika's pro-Syrian militia (Hanf); de Clerck and Malsagne also name Frangieh and Jumblatt.
Other date in the books: Friday, 16 February 1990
\_this day in full \_on this day
July 1990
Sunday, 15 July 1990
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Lakhdar Ibrahimi met, for the first time since the Taef agreement, with General Michel Aoun, after having conferred with Presidents Hraoui, Husseini and Hoss. Later on, he met with the chief of the Lebanese Forces, Samir Geagea.
What the books addAoun answered Ibrahimi's offer of a national unity cabinet including himself and Geagea with conditions of his own: a stronger president, no appointed deputies, and the militias dissolved and elections held before the Taif amendments were ratified. Hanf counts at least four meetings between the two in summer 1990; Ibrahimi confessed he could not tell what Aoun wanted.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 11 July 1990
\_this day in full \_on this day
October 1990
Monday, 15 October 1990
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
President Mitterand affirms the he will not hand over General Aoun, arguing that 'It is a question of honor'.
What the books addMitterrand called asylum for Aoun 'a matter of honour' and France granted it, but Beirut refused to let him go; he stayed in the French embassy until taken to France on 29 August 1991.
Other dates in the books: Saturday, 13 October 1990, Thursday, 29 August 1991
\_this day in full \_on this day
November 1990
Monday, 5 November 1990
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Damascus agreement between the Hezbollah and Amal is a copy of the one agreed upon on January 30th 1989. The cease-fire takes effect in the Iqlim-el-Touffah.
What the books addSources differ on dates. Picard has Damascus and Tehran imposing an Amal–Hezbollah ceasefire on 6 November 1990; de Clerck and Malsagne date the inter-Shi'i accord signed in Damascus to 9 November and, with Aoun's fall, treat it as formally ending the 'civil' war. Hanf says both movements withdrew their fighters from Iqlim al-Tuffah after drawn-out Syrian and Iranian mediation. That final round began in December 1989 (de Clerck and Malsagne, Confluences) or, in Hezbollah's official version, in July 1990, with an Amal siege of nearly 100 days.
Other dates in the books: Tuesday, 6 November 1990, Friday, 9 November 1990
\_this day in full \_on this day
December 1990
Wednesday, 5 December 1990
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Lebanese Army controls the port of Beirut and the 5th dock is closed to the maritime traffic.
What the books addHanf says 300 Lebanese Forces militiamen stayed at Karantina and the port after the December 1990 withdrawal, and dates the army's entry into the Fifth Basin and other militia ports to 11 March 1991.
Other dates in the books: Monday, 3 December 1990, Monday, 11 March 1991
\_this day in full \_on this day
March 1991
Wednesday, 20 March 1991
After the war · From the books
The cabinet sets the end of April as the deadline for dissolving all militias.
Except for Hezbollah and the Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army, militias had a month under a 20 March cabinet decision to surrender their arms to the army and wind up their intelligence services; 'the brotherly Syrian army' could enforce it.
Sources differ: Three dates: 20 March cabinet decision (Hanf, Picard 2002), 23 March vote in parliament (Picard 2016), 28 March ministerial declaration (Picard 2002). They may be successive steps of the same process.
Other dates in the books: Saturday, 23 March 1991, Thursday, 28 March 1991
\_this day in full \_on this day
May 1991
Sunday, 5 May 1991
After the war · From the books
The government plans to find state jobs for 20,000 ex-militiamen.
The government planned to absorb former Christian and Muslim militiamen gradually into the army, security forces and administration. Only one intake followed: 6,000 men and some dozens of officers, announced in October 1993, and about 2,000 civil servants.
Sources differ: Hanf speaks of 20,000 to be trained; the integration actually carried out was 6,000.
\_this day in full \_on this day
March 2000
Sunday, 5 March 2000
After the war · From the books
Israel's cabinet decides on a unilateral withdrawal from the south.
Barak's plan set 7 July 2000 for leaving the 'security zone'. Beirut, deferring to a stalled Damascus, prepared nothing.
Sources differ: Cabinet decision on 5 March (Abirached); Picard places Barak's announcement in April.
\_this day in full \_on this day
October 2004
Sunday, 3 October 2004
After the war · From the books
Hariri hands his resignation to Lahoud.
Hariri took the 1 October attack that wounded Marwan Hamadeh as a breach of the assurances he had been given, and resigned two days later. Lahoud waited more than two weeks before accepting.
Sources differ: See 20 October: Abirached dates the resignation then.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Wednesday, 20 October 2004
After the war · From the books
Rafiq Hariri's resignation takes effect.
He then moved openly towards the anti-Syrian opposition.
Sources differ: Presented 3 October (Khayat), effective 20 October (Abirached).
\_this day in full \_on this day
December 2004
Wednesday, 15 December 2004
After the war · From the books
The opposition unites in the Bristol Declaration.
The Bristol Hotel declaration of Christian and Druze parties, Hariri loyalists and leftists demanded independence and democracy, accepted a Lebanese share in the war, and blamed the postwar crisis on a corrupt state ruling by fear.
Sources differ: 15 December (Haugbolle's text) or 12 December (his own note): the declaration may have been published before the formal meeting, or one date is a slip.
\_this day in full \_on this day
July 2006
Saturday, 15 July 2006
July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books mid July
Villagers fleeing Marwahin are killed on the road to Tyre.
Harel and Issacharoff count 21 dead among people leaving the border village of Marwahin for Tyre when Israeli aircraft struck their vehicle; images of the bodies were broadcast worldwide.
Sources differ: Toll: 21 (34 Days); 18 civilians, mostly children (archive, 13:30); 20 including 15 children (archive strike note citing Reuters).
Reports at the time: The archive dates the attack to 15 July: first five civilians killed by helicopter fire on a minibus and a car (13:05), then eighteen civilians, mostly children, who were leaving on the Israeli army's orders (13:30). The 15 July strike note says 20 dead including 15 children; a 17 July note places the vehicles between Al-Bayyada and Shamaa.
The reports of that day, as they came in
\_this day in full \_on this day
Thursday, 20 July 2006
July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books
Battle of Maroun al-Ras.
Egoz lost a company commander and four men on 20 July in its first clash at Maroun al-Ras, sent in by daylight to back paratroopers who had entered at dawn; the battle lasted two more days.
Sources differ: Israeli dead: five (34 Days) against four among eight dead (Abirached).
Reports at the time: The archive reports four Israeli soldiers killed that evening; a fifth is identified only on 23 July, the day Hezbollah acknowledged the Israeli entry.
The reports of that day, as they came in
July 2006, as the books tell it · From the books
Nasrallah tells Al-Jazeera Hezbollah is intact.
Interviewed on Al-Jazeera, Nasrallah denied taking instructions from Iran or Syria and said Israel had seized on the capture to start a war planned long before. Hezbollah, he claimed, had lost none of its leaders or military strength; victory meant the resistance surviving.
Sources differ: 20 July (Abirached) against 21 July (34 Days).
Reports at the time: The archive reports the interview at 23:10 on 20 July, so 34 Days' date probably reflects its broadcast or reporting the next day.
The reports of that day, as they came in
Other date in the books: Friday, 21 July 2006
\_this day in full \_on this day
dates 1–60 of 61 next
