263 entries on 233 dates · the books disagree on 64
dates 1–60 of 233 next
May 1969
Tuesday, 6 May 1969
The road to war · From the books
On television, President Helou sets Lebanese sovereignty as the limit of support for the Palestinians.
Lebanon was left without a cabinet for months after 6 May, when President Charles Helou said on television that backing the Palestinian cause must not put Lebanon's sovereignty and security at risk. He and the army had open support only from Christian politicians; no leading Sunni would take office.
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May 1973
Monday, 14 May 1973
The road to war · From the books day (doubtful)
Guerrillas blow up oil tanks at the Zahrani refinery.
Hanf lists the bombing of oil tanks at the Zahrani refinery, near Sidon, by Popular Front members among the provocations of the May 1973 crisis.
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June 1973
Thursday, 14 June 1973
The road to war · From the books
Amin al-Hafiz resigns; Taqi al-Din al-Sulh succeeds him.
On 14 June 1973, a month after Melkart, Amin al-Hafiz resigned. Chamoun, Gemayel and Frangieh kept Jumblatt from the interior ministry under Taqi al-Din al-Sulh, chosen chiefly for his Iraqi leanings.
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October 1973
Saturday, 6 October 1973
The road to war · From the books range (6–25 October 1973)
Israel wrecks the Barouk radar in the October War; Lebanon stays out.
During the October War Israel destroyed the Mount Barouk radar Lebanon had lent Syria, and its jets crossed the Bekaa to strike Damascus, though Lebanon took no part. In Zahle the bishop and residents sent relief to Damascus for the Syrian army and nursed wounded soldiers at Tal Chiha hospital.
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January 1975
Monday, 6 January 1975
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The army launched an attack in Tripoli
The army succeeded, after a tense day of occasional shootings, to invest and control the old town of Tripoli where many outlaws have been hiding for the past 6 months. Two civilians died, 12 were wounded, and 75 persons were arrested.
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March 1975
Tuesday, 4 March 1975
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The Kataeb march in Beirut in support of the army.
On 4 March 1975 the Kataeb rallied in East Beirut for the army, which Muslim leaders and the Left blamed for the Sidon shooting. Hanf finds that rival pro- and anti-army marches helped brand the army a Christian instrument.
Sources differ: Picard places the march on the day after the Sidon demonstration.
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Wednesday, 19 March 1975
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Imam Moussa Sadr remained the spiritual leader of the Shiite community until he was 65 years old.
The Imam was 48 years old. His mandate was extended unanimously by the General assembly of the Superior Shiite Council.
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April 1975
Monday, 14 April 1975
The Lebanese war · Added from the books range
Fighting spreads; Christian enclaves in the southern suburbs are emptied.
On 14 April, the day after Ain al-Rummaneh, armed young men held the streets of Chiyah and Ashrafieh and fedayeen began attacks in the coastal Chouf. Palestinian fighters then overran and looted the Christian enclaves of Haret Hreik and Chiyah, expelling most people; that April some 40,000 people had to leave the Christian pockets of the south-western suburbs.
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June 1975
Friday, 6 June 1975
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Musa al-Sadr announces the Amal movement.
Musa al-Sadr made the founding of Amal public. He already had armed men, as a blast at a Fatah training camp near Baalbek showed soon afterwards.
Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne date Amal's creation to July 1975 (its public revelation by the explosion of 5 July).
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September 1975
Sunday, 14 September 1975
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Massacre at Beit Millat in Akkar.
Most of Akkar's Christians left for the predominantly Christian regions after gunmen overran and looted Beit Millat, a Maronite village of Akkar, and shot many of its people.
Sources differ: The attackers were Saiqa and Syrian militias (Tegho Bou Nassif) or Sunnis of Akkar (Hanf). About ten dead, or 'a large part' of the village.
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Friday, 19 September 1975
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Beirut was the theater of numerous troubles - street fights, plastic bomb attacks, and fires were reported. The downtown, the heart of the old Beirut, was in fire too, and the heart of the Lebanese full of fear. At night, a cease-fire was announced.
What the books addDe Clerck and Malsagne date the start of fighting in central Beirut to the night of 17-18 September 1975; Hanf and Traboulsi hold the Kataeb responsible for shelling the old souks. A cease-fire and the setting-up of the National Dialogue Committee followed.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 17 September 1975
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October 1975
Saturday, 4 October 1975
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Interior Security Forces held in check a land attack against the Beirut International Airport where 4 armed men tried to kidnap an airplane in order to go to Cairo.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Religious leaders meet at Bkerke and condemn the violence.
Lebanon's religious leaders, every community represented, jointly condemned the violence after a summit hosted by Patriarch Khuraych at Bkerke and continued at Dar al-Fatwa, seat of Mufti Hassan Khaled.
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November 1975
Wednesday, 19 November 1975
The Lebanese war · Added from the books range
French envoy Maurice Couve de Murville begins a mediation mission.
Giscard d'Estaing's envoy Maurice Couve de Murville was in Beirut on 19-30 November, then Damascus until 2 December. Paris did not call it a mediation (Picard: a fact-finding mission); de Clerck and Malsagne find it made no headway.
Sources differ: Picard calls the mission successful; de Clerck and Malsagne say it achieved nothing notable.
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December 1975
Saturday, 6 December 1975
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The assassination of four young Phalangists on the Fanar road provoked horrible killings in the streets of Beirut.
The capital was rapidly set ablaze. It was the apocalypse. Militias launched street fights resulting in tens of innocent victims. Violence was at its peek and nothing seemed to end this thirst for blood.
What the books addThe bodies of four young Kataeb members were found on 6 December 1975, while Pierre Gemayel was in Damascus; Muslims seized at makeshift checkpoints by the port were killed in reprisal. Accounts place the bodies in the Metn (Hanf), near Tal al-Za'tar (Haugbolle) or outside the electricity company offices (Fisk). De Clerck and Malsagne blame Joseph Saadeh, whose son was among the four. Only Fisk puts Bashir Gemayel in Damascus and cites Phalangist officers saying he ordered the reprisal. The Muslim dead number about 200 (Hanf, Traboulsi, de Clerck and Malsagne) or several dozen (Picard); Fisk gives at least 300 Muslims, and probably as many Christians, in the reprisals.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Pierre Gemayel visits Damascus.
At Assad's invitation, Pierre Gemayel took a Kataeb delegation to Damascus to set out his ideas for a new National Pact, the party's first visit there since the war began. Black Saturday took place in Beirut that day.
Sources differ: Fisk says it was Bashir Gemayel who was in Damascus.
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January 1976
Sunday, 4 January 1976
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The siege of Tal al-Za'tar camp begins.
Christian militias besieged Tal al-Za'tar, the Palestinian camp in East Beirut, until it fell on 12 August 1976.
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Wednesday, 14 January 1976
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Christian militias take the Dbayeh camp.
Militiamen of the National Liberal Party's Tigers and the Phalange took Dbayeh, a Palestinian camp north of Beirut whose refugees were mostly Christian, and expelled its people. Traboulsi and de Clerck and Malsagne treat it as the Christian militias' first drive to purge their territory of Palestinian and Muslim pockets.
Sources differ: Traboulsi gives 13 January.
Other date in the books: Tuesday, 13 January 1976
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February 1976
Saturday, 14 February 1976
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Frangieh announces the 'Constitutional Document'.
Laws would need both the president's and the premier's signatures, parliament would elect the premier, Christians and Muslims would share its seats equally, and the three top posts stayed with the same communities: so ran the Constitutional Document agreed in Damascus, which Frangieh issued as a new National Pact. The Kataeb approved it; Kamal Jumblatt and the National Movement opposed it for confirming the sectarian system.
Sources differ: Traboulsi's chronology dates the declaration to 7 February, the day of the Damascus trip; Hanf, de Clerck and Malsagne and Yara El Khoury give 14 February. De Clerck and Malsagne (p. 296) also write that the Christian camp accepted the Document 'from 21 January', before its publication.
Other date in the books: Saturday, 7 February 1976
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March 1976
Sunday, 14 March 1976
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Syria sounds out the United States on a military intervention.
Richard Murphy, the US ambassador in Damascus, heard a hint from Syria's chief of staff, Hikmat Shihabi, that Syrian troops might enter Lebanon. That day the short-lived Front for Freedom and Man in Lebanon held its last meeting.
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May 1976
Thursday, 6 May 1976
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Jocelyne Khoueiry and six young women defend a building in Beirut.
Jocelyne Khoueiry and six other young women defended a building against 300 Palestinian fighters.
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August 1976
Friday, 6 August 1976
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Christian militias take Nabaa; its Shi'i population leaves.
Christian militias occupied the Shi'i and Palestinian district of Nabaa in East Beirut after Imam Musa Sadr negotiated the departure of its Shi'i inhabitants. Tens of thousands fled to the southern suburbs and West Beirut.
Sources differ: Traboulsi's chronology dates the fall of Nabaa to 12 August, with Tal al-Za'tar. The numbers displaced range from more than 40,000 (de Clerck and Malsagne) to 100,000 (Picard) or 200,000 Muslims of East Beirut (Traboulsi).
Art and memory- place Displaced Christians later occupied the abandoned houses of Nabaa, while displaced Muslims and Palestinians occupied houses in Damour.
Other date in the books: Thursday, 12 August 1976
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September 1976
Saturday, 4 September 1976
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Bleeding continued in the ports. Massive emigration went on in the same intensity. Hundreds of families flew every day by sea escaping from hell.
What the books addHistorians disagree on 1976: Haugbolle ranks it among the war's largest emigration waves, while de Clerck and Malsagne see many returning that year after nearly 400,000 Lebanese had left by 1975. Haugbolle notes that no official figures exist.
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November 1976
December 1976
January 1977
February 1977
Friday, 4 February 1977
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Government promulgated a decree concerning wartime conflicts between owners and renters.
The decree stipulated mainly that rent contracts remained operative, while backlogs will be staggered on 18 months with no interest for all rents under 5,000 Lebanese Pounds. As to destroyed properties, there were three possibilities: reconstruct, compensate the renters, or give them shares.
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Monday, 14 February 1977
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The ambassador of the United States returned to Lebanon.
Intense diplomatic activity was carried on in Beirut. The French Minister of Foreign Affairs started an official visit. The American Secretary of State met, during a visit to the Middle East, with President Sarkis in Beirut reassuring him that the United States supports the independence, unity and territorial integrity of the country. He announced a 50 million dollars aid to Lebanon.
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March 1977
Saturday, 19 March 1977
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
An airplane was hijacked between Turkey and Lebanon.
The operation began 50 minutes after a Boeing 727 on the Diarbakin-Ankara route took off with 182 passengers aboard and 6 crewmembers. Two hijackers forced the airplane to head towards Beirut where it landed at 4pm. The Lebanese authorities took charge of the situation and began negotiations with the hijackers. Ultimately, the passengers were released and the police arrested the hijackers.
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June 1977
October 1977
Wednesday, 19 October 1977
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A sensational hold up took place in the Kantari sector. Gangsters attacked a customs wagon and seized a 2 810 000 LP booty.
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
In order to deal with the economic recession caused by the two-year crisis and the unbearable increase of the cost of living, the government decided to help both employers and salaried. He raised the minimum wage to 415 LP and granted facilities to the employers.
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November 1977
Monday, 14 November 1977
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
During the last meeting of the Arab Ministers of Interior and Foreign Affairs that started in Tunis on November 12, Arab Leaders examined the situation in Southern Lebanon. They emphasized the necessity for an immediate and complete execution of the Cairo agreement. Israel informed Lebanon that it would not tolerate any Palestinian presence in the South.
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Saturday, 19 November 1977
The Lebanese war · Added from the books range
Sadat's visit to Jerusalem overturns alliances in Lebanon (context).
Sadat was in Jerusalem from 19 to 21 November and spoke to the Knesset; he had said on 9 November that he was willing to go. Historians see the Lebanese camps realigning from then on: Syria, left isolated, moved towards the PLO, whose fighters resumed operations from the south, and the Lebanese Front looked to Israel. Hanf concludes that Egypt's peace made war in Lebanon inevitable.
Sources differ: Traboulsi gives 19-21 November; Hanf gives the arrival on 19 November.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 9 November 1977
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January 1978
Friday, 6 January 1978
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Begin Plan concerning the settlement of Palestinians in Lebanon made some noise.
The Lebanese reacted with firmness and indignation to the conspiracy initiated by foreign countries. According to Salim El Hoss, 'Every project expecting the settlement of Palestinians outside of their land is rejected.' The President of the Republic also rejected any project stipulating the permanent settlement of Palestinians in Lebanon. 'Our country should determine itself what it is able to offer. It is unfair to solve the Palestinian question by creating a Lebanese problem. We will make every effort to let our right prevail', he said.
What the books addHanf notes that in December 1977 Menachem Begin, Israel's prime minister, had excluded any return of the Palestinian refugees in neighbouring countries.
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March 1978
Tuesday, 14 March 1978
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Israel invaded the South, after an operation executed by the Fedayin on March 11 at Tel Aviv.
25,000 men backed by the aviation, armored vehicles and artillery invaded, within 2 hours, a tenth of Lebanon and forced Palestinians to withdraw to the North of the Litani. A first estimate reported 700 deaths and 160,000 displaced persons. Refugees rushed to Beirut causing a serious social problem. Air raids bombarded Damour, Ouzaï, and Tyr.
What the books addHistorians date the start of Operation Litani to 14 March (de Clerck and Malsagne, Traboulsi, Quéméner; de Clerck's chronology gives 15 March) and its end to 21 March. Up to 25,000 Israeli soldiers and 120 tanks took part (de Clerck and Malsagne). Estimates of the dead range from about 300 Palestinian fighters (de Clerck and Malsagne) to about 2,000 people, mostly civilians (Fisk; de Clerck and Malsagne; Picard). Estimates of the displaced range from 150,000 (Hanf's refugee table) and more than 200,000 (de Clerck and Malsagne, Picard) to 285,000 (Lebanese government figure cited by Fisk). On 15 March Israeli aircraft bombed the Palestinian camps of Beirut, Tyre and Damour.
Art and memory- film Maroun Baghdadi's 1979 film We Are All For The Fatherland denounced what the Israeli invasion had done to South Lebanon.
- testimony Robert Fisk's eyewitness account of the invasion describes refugees on the coast road, the killing of women and children in two cars at Adloun by an Israeli landing party, the bombing of Aadchit and the shelling of Tyre.
- place The 'Amil association was founded after Israel's 1978 invasion by Kamel Mohanna, a paediatrician from South Lebanon, to bring emergency relief to war victims.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 15 March 1978
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Sunday, 19 March 1978
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Security council adopted the 425 Resolution which stipulated the expedition of 4,000 blue helmets to confirm the withdrawal of the Israeli forces. They had also to assist the Lebanese government in the restoration of its authority in the region.
What the books addResolution 425 was adopted with Resolution 426, which set up the force; the USSR abstained (de Clerck and Malsagne). UNIFIL later numbered about 6,000 soldiers, with France providing the largest first contingent (1,290 men).
Other date in the books: Saturday, 18 March 1978
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April 1978
Wednesday, 19 April 1978
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Hoss government, formed in December of 1976, resigned. El Hoss himself was soon asked, on April 28, to form the new government.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Haddad's militia attacks UNIFIL headquarters at Naqoura.
Eight UN soldiers, six Irish and two Dutch, were wounded when mortar, RPG and heavy machine-gun fire hit UNIFIL's Naqoura headquarters, inside Haddad's enclave, at midnight. Israel ordered Haddad to end the siege only once the UN asked it.
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May 1978
June 1978
Tuesday, 6 June 1978
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Lebanese Front stiffened its position.
It considered that the Palestinian Resistance did not have its place in Lebanon anymore. The Front proclaimed that all the agreements with the PLO were null and void. The Front hoped that the Lebanese army replaces the primarily Syrian Arab Strike Force. President Sarkis was determined to dispatch the army to the South.
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September 1978
Tuesday, 19 September 1978
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
In Lebanon strikes multiplied.
In East Beirut, a strike was organized to protest against the presence of the 'Green Helmets', while in West Beirut protests were against the mysterious disappearance of Imama Moussa Sadr. Christian leaders did not want to renew the Arab Strike Force's mandate unless it was done under new conditions.
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October 1978
Wednesday, 4 October 1978
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The bombardments reached Bikfaya and Beit-Mery while in East Beirut there was a shortage of food and medications. The Security Council called for the urgent ending of the combats.
What the books addAccording to de Clerck and Malsagne, the Security Council's call for a ceasefire came on 6 October.
Other date in the books: Friday, 6 October 1978
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November 1978
January 1979
Friday, 19 January 1979
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Israeli army launched a triple air, ground and sea operation against Arnoun, Aichieh and the costal region. These events caused 16 dead, 12 injured and 25 prisoners.
Concurrently, the Security Council renewed the UNIFL mandate until Beirut elaborated a program re-establishing its authority in Southern Lebanon.
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February 1979
Wednesday, 14 February 1979
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Revolution in Iran: Lebanon's Shi'is find a patron abroad.
Iran became an Islamic Republic after the Shah's overthrow; its new defence minister, Mustapha Chamran, had directed a technical school in south Lebanon founded by Sadr. With Musa al-Sadr's disappearance in Libya, the revolution quickly mobilised the Shi'is of Beirut and the south and gave Amal fresh strength.
Sources differ: De Clerck and Malsagne give 14 February 1979 for the birth of the Islamic Republic; Hanf and Traboulsi date the overthrow of the Shah to January 1979. These may be different stages of the revolution.
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April 1979
May 1979
Sunday, 6 May 1979
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Israeli aviation, aiming at a Palestinian target, killed five innocents and injured 15 others in a wedding ceremony in the Akkar. All the victims were Lebanese with, among them, several kids.
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June 1979
Thursday, 14 June 1979
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
After having renewed the UNIFL mandate for six months, the United Nations proclaimed the validity of the Armistice Commission. The Security Council deplored Israeli aggressions and asked all parties to cooperate with the blue helmets.
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August 1979
Tuesday, 14 August 1979
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Tension reached its peak everywhere in Lebanon.
Heavy fights opposed the Lebanese Forces to the Lebanese army at the Beirut River's Corniche and in Oyoune el Simane.
Other date in the books: Monday, 18 June 1979
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October 1979
Thursday, 4 October 1979
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A light earthquake shook the region of Saida without any victim.
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Minister of Foreign affairs, Fouad Boutros, called upon the United Nations to end Israeli aggressions in the South, to freeze the activities of the Fedayin, to reinforce the UNIFL, and to dissociate the Lebanese problem from the regional crisis.
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December 1979
Wednesday, 19 December 1979
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
An ongoing manifestation in Tripoli went out of control. The demonstrators protesting against the increase of the cost of living, vandalized Tripoli's seraglio and molested the Mohafez of Northern Lebanon. The administrations and public services clerks in Tripoli decided to stop working for 3 days.
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March 1980
Tuesday, 4 March 1980
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The mutilated body of Selim Laouzi was found in the forests of Aramoun ten days after his kidnapping.
What the books addFisk reads the mutilation of al-Lawzi's body as a warning to the Lebanese press: the flesh of his writing hand had been removed, by knife or acid, and two shots fired into his neck from behind. A shepherd found him, half under snow, in the Aramoun woods on 5 March.
Other date in the books: Wednesday, 5 March 1980
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Thursday, 6 March 1980
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Units from the Arab Strike Force positioned in the Sin el Fil- Dekouaneh-Mekalles region started to gather in order to withdraw towards Jamhour-Aley. The total withdrawal should be executed by Saturday night and the Lebanese army would replace the Syrian soldiers.
What the books addHanf: clashes among the Christian militias grew more frequent after the partial Syrian withdrawal, which removed Syrian checkpoints on the roads into East Beirut and between Achrafieh and the Christian suburbs and gave the militias one unbroken territory for the first time since 1976.
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May 1980
June 1980
Wednesday, 4 June 1980
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Bashir Gemayel and President Sarkis meet in secret.
Bashir Gemayel and President Elias Sarkis, long at odds over Bashir's Kataeb militia, met quietly around noon. Sarkis said that he was resisting too, by his own means; Bashir wanted him to speak up for him with the American leadership. The ground had been laid by Johnny Abdo, head of army intelligence, and Bashir's adviser Zahi Boustani, who had struck up a rapport.
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Friday, 6 June 1980
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Selim el Hoss resigned from office. President Sarkis accepted his resignation on June 16.
What the books addMénargues dates the resignation to March 1980, after repeated deadlock between Hoss and Sarkis over the army; Hoss stayed on as caretaker until Shafiq Wazzan's appointment in late October.
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dates 1–60 of 233 next
