150 entries on 126 dates · the books disagree on 28
dates 1–60 of 126 next
May 1971
Tuesday, 25 May 1971
The road to war · From the books day (planned strike)
A general strike set for 25 May is put off after a 5 per cent wage rise.
The General Workers' Union set a general strike for 25 May 1971 but deferred it when a 5 per cent wage rise was decreed. It sought 11 per cent more pay, lower rents, state imports of medicines and basic foods, a law for farm labourers and no more arbitrary dismissals.
\_this day in full \_on this day
June 1971
June 1971: day not established
The road to war · From the books
Jordan outlaws Palestinian groups and fighters; the resistance shifts its centre to Beirut.
Tens of thousands of Palestinian fighters, with the resistance's offices, hospitals, research and press centres, were now in Lebanon, chiefly Beirut, its main base once Jordan barred Palestinian political groups and fighters in June 1971.
\_this day in full
summer 1971: day not established
The road to war · From the books
First strikes led by workers' committees in Beirut's industrial suburbs.
By early 1971 OCAL's workers' committees were in the main factories of Beirut's southern suburbs; that summer workers struck at Seven-Up, Snibois, Unifid and Pioneer-Jabre. Some strikes were broken up by force; beyond the rehiring of some sacked workers, no demand was met.
\_this day in full
August 1971
Wednesday, 18 August 1971
The road to war · From the books
Yuhanna Bassul is elected Greek Catholic bishop of Zahle.
Elected Greek Catholic bishop of Zahle on 18 August 1971, Yuhanna Bassul was welcomed with ceremony in the town and in Christian villages of the northern Bekaa. His journals, covering 1971-1976 and long unknown, are a rare source on how the war came to Zahle.
Art and memory- book Bishop Yuhanna Bassul's journals for 1971-1976, kept at the Greek Catholic archbishopric of Sayyidat al-Najat in Zahle, surfaced during fieldwork in 2016. They trace tensions over the Palestinian question in Zahle and Ta'labaya.
\_this day in full \_on this day
1971
1971: day not established
The road to war · From the books
AUB students strike and occupy against fee increases.
In 1971 police and Phalange militiamen ended an American University of Beirut students' strike against higher fees, and students were expelled. Strikers had occupied buildings and marched in force.
The road to war · From the books
About 150 'believing teachers' start presenting Islam as an ideology in South Lebanon schools.
From 1971 about 150 'believing teachers' brought an ideological Islam into schools in South Lebanon, an early sign, in de Clerck and Malsagne's account, of Shi'i mobilisation.
The road to war · From the books
Peasants of Hanin clash with Speaker Kamel al-As'ad over land.
Twenty-three villagers of Hanin, in the south, were arrested in 1971 during a violent land-ownership dispute between its peasants and Speaker Kamel al-As'ad. A similar dispute arose that year at Qantara, owned by the 'Usayran family.
The road to war · From the books
The Japanese Red Army settles in Lebanon.
Founded by Fusako Shigenobu, close to George Habash's PFLP, the Japanese Red Army settled in Lebanon in 1971 and first struck abroad with the 1972 Lod airport massacre.
\_this day in full
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
Monday, 5 January 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Militiamen led by the dissident officer Saad Haddad bombarded the locality of Hasbaya, causing important damages.
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Michel Rocard, member of the French Socialist Party's national secretariat met with President Elias Sarkis, with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Chafic Wazzan, as well as with the PLO leader, Yasser Arafat.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Thursday, 8 January 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Arab Strike Force withdrew from Zahleh.
What the books addAfter the December 1980 clashes in Zahleh, Syrian troops gave up their checkpoints inside the town but kept it under blockade (Hanf). Ménargues, however, says ADF checkpoints were still on the town's main roads when Lebanese Forces fighters seized them in the first days of April 1981.
Other dates in the books: Monday, 22 December 1980, Thursday, 2 April 1981
\_this day in full \_on this day
Friday, 9 January 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A new phase of the war started in Lebanon: the war of televisions. The 'Lebanese Forces' wanted to broadcast under the name 'Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation' and the Mourabitun seemed to be willing to give them hard time. As a result, they both emitted on the same channel and thus jammed the image.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Sunday, 18 January 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Jean Francois Revel, the director of the French weekly magazine L'Express, left Beirut after a 48-hour visit. He declared before his departure: 'The actual drama in Lebanon is the result of the convergence of external factors rather than an internal crisis'.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Wednesday, 28 January 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
President Elias Sarkis delivered a speech at the Third Islamic States Summit in Taef, where he headed the Lebanese delegation. He declared: 'Lebanon cannot bear anymore the Palestinian armed presence on its land'.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Thursday, 29 January 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Israeli aviation bombarded Saida and Nabatyeh for two days. An artillery duel opposed the 'Common Forces' to the militiamen of Saad Haddad. These Israeli bombardments killed 14 and injured 30 others.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Saturday, 31 January 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A violent storm hit Lebanon.
50 cars were totally stuck between Sofar and Mdeirej and their occupants spent the night in their vehicles. The Army was able to rescue 200 persons in the mountain.
\_this day in full \_on this day
February 1981
Friday, 13 February 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The kidnapping on February 6 in Beirut of the chargé d'affaires of Jordan in Lebanon, remained at the center of preoccupation of the country's leaders. They adopted a series of security measures for the protection of embassies.
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A Syrian-Israeli air duel took place in the sky of the Bekaa region.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Tuesday, 24 February 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Shells from different calibers fell on the Eastern residential neighborhoods, spreading destruction, fires, and terror. The population wondered why these blind bombardments were perpetrated and until when would they continue.
\_this day in full \_on this day
March 1981
Sunday, 1 March 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The city of Saida went through a day of fear and anguish after four bombs fell in its busiest streets, and especially after Saad Haddad threatened to bomb the city. The next day, the fighting spread to Southern Lebanon.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Friday, 13 March 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A Lebanese Army unit positioned in the Kantara locality following an agreement with the UNIFL commandant. On March 15, 50 soldiers deployed in the village of Chaqra. However, Saad Haddad was opposed to the reinforcement of the Army in the South.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The US ambassador hands Bashir Gemayel a secret policy paper.
US Ambassador John Gunther Dean gave Bashir Gemayel a secret cable prepared for him, 'Directives on Lebanon', dated 9 March, and offered to coordinate with him. Washington backed a gradual, total Syrian withdrawal and asked the 'Phalanges' (the Lebanese Forces) to show restraint and cooperate with the government and army.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Monday, 16 March 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Israel retorted at the Lebanese decision to send the Army to the frontier region by bombarding the UNIFL. The United Nations Secretary General, Kurt Waldheim was outraged and requested an urgent Security Council meeting.
What the books addFisk: after shells killed two Nigerian UNIFIL soldiers in March 1981, the force commander, General William Callaghan, blamed Israeli gunners rather than Haddad's militia.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The head of Israel's Mossad tours the Christian enclave.
Mossad chief General Yitzhak Hofi toured the Christian enclave for about twelve hours. A fortnight later, at the Kaslik marina, the Lebanese Forces received two Israeli-built Dvora fast boats from the Mossad.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Tuesday, 31 March 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Syrian fire on a Lebanese Forces road crew above Zahleh sets off the battle.
Within two days of 31 March fighting had spread around Zahleh. It began when Syrian troops hit a bulldozer at work on a Lebanese Forces position with a rocket; the militia fired back, and a Syrian assault on a key LF position failed.
\_this day in full \_on this day
range (March–April) 1981: day not established
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Vatican envoy Cardinal Casaroli visits Lebanon.
Cardinal Agostino Casaroli went to Lebanon in March–April 1981 to mediate for the Holy See, one of several Vatican efforts that had little effect.
\_this day in full
April 1981
Thursday, 2 April 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Lebanese will remember this date for long time. Violence brought back to Beirut the darkest experiences of 1975-1976. Blind bombardments targeted the Eastern and Western sectors of the capital. Thousands of students were trapped in their schools and the population panicked. There were heavy casualties: 50 persons died and more than 200 were wounded.
What the books addHistorians date the battle of Zahleh from this day, when Lebanese Forces fighters beat off a Syrian attack on the town and a siege of some 90 days began. Ménargues says Syrian heavy guns killed 50 and wounded over 200 that day in Zahleh and the Christian zone north of Beirut.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The battle of Zahleh begins.
From December 1980 the Syrian army held positions on the edge of Zahleh. Lebanese Forces fighters in the town repulsed its attack, and a siege of roughly 90 days followed, which Bashir Gemayel portrayed as a fight for 'the last Christian town' of the East.
Sources differ: Ménargues ends the siege on 30 June 1981 and Fisk by 1 July; de Clerck & Malsagne (p. 80) place the end of hostilities in May–June.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Saturday, 4 April 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
An intensive bombardment in Zahleh killed 20 and injured 100.
What the books addMénargues dates a day of intensive shelling of Zahleh, with about twenty dead, to 6 April.
Other date in the books: Monday, 6 April 1981
\_this day in full \_on this day
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
Monday, 6 April 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Haig condemns the Syrian shelling of Zahleh.
Zahleh was heavily shelled from dawn. That morning in Riyadh, Secretary of State Alexander Haig blamed Moscow for sponsoring the Syrian bombardment, which he severely condemned.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Wednesday, 8 April 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
A shell storm fell on East Beirut particularly in Badaro, Ain El Remmaneh and Chyah. Several bombs hit H™tel-Dieu leaving important damages.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Syrian troops take the Mouallaka quarter of Zahleh.
Syrian troops took al-Mouallaka, an outlying quarter of Zahleh, after hard street fighting. A few reinforcements under Elie Zayek and Samir Geagea reached the town on foot over snowbound Sannine.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Thursday, 9 April 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
For the first time in Zahleh since the beginning of the confrontations, the Red Cross was able to evacuate 19 persons seriously injured.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
US envoy Morris Draper in Beirut.
State Department envoy Morris Draper saw President Sarkis and Prime Minister Wazzan, then Bashir Gemayel, whom he told that the militias must leave Zahleh; he asked whether Bashir would accept the Lebanese Army there.
\_this day in full \_on this day
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
Monday, 20 April 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The situation was worsening in Lebanon. Violence unleashed in the South where artillery duels and air raids on Nabatyeh and Saida killed 16 and injured 33. Sporadic bombardments shred the silence in Zahleh. East Beirut was violently shelled and bombings spread to Nahr El Kalb causing five deaths and 32 wounded.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Wednesday, 22 April 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The nightmare continued. The Lebanese authorities were completely powerless to stop the violence and the conflicting parties were unable to reach an agreement. The Beirut International Airport was closed to traffic and both dead and wounded victims continued to shed their blood on this agonizing Lebanese land.
What the books addAccording to Ménargues, Bashir Gemayel answered the collapse of a cease-fire on 22 April, which left 140 dead or wounded in Beirut within hours, by having the international airport shelled. On 11 May US ambassador John Gunther Dean urged the Lebanese Forces, via Alfred Madi, to let it reopen; that evening they dropped their objection.
Other date in the books: Monday, 11 May 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Abbot Boulos Naaman meets Khaddam in Damascus.
Syrian Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam spent three hours with Abbot Boulos Naaman, superior of the Maronite monks and a steadfast backer of Bashir Gemayel. Their list of issues to settle included a cease-fire, talks with the Kataeb, ending ties with Israel and food for Zahleh, but never the Arab Deterrent Force's mandate. The Beirut cease-fire collapsed during their meeting.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Friday, 24 April 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Syrian helicopter-borne troops seize the summit of Mount Sannine.
Helicopter-borne Syrian special forces overran the Lebanese Forces' posts on Sannine's crest, among them the 'French Room', a mountain post the French built in 1939. Holding Sannine let the Syrians dominate the Christian region down to the coast. Israel's air strike of 28 April followed.
Sources differ: The date is disputed: 24 April (Ménargues), 26 April (Hanf), 21 April for a first landing and 27 April for the fort (Phalangists quoted by Fisk). Ménargues gives the most detail (hour, units, commander), but he relies heavily on Lebanese Forces sources.
Other dates in the books: Tuesday, 21 April 1981, Sunday, 26 April 1981
\_this day in full \_on this day
Monday, 27 April 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Residential areas in Beirut were the target of sporadic bombardments that killed six persons and injured 90 others.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
First direct talks between Damascus and Bashir Gemayel.
Mohammad al-Khouli, a trusted envoy of President Asad and head of Syrian air force intelligence, met Bashir Gemayel at Baabda through Sarkis. Neither would yield; they met again on 30 April and 4 May.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Tuesday, 28 April 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
While the Syrian Foreign Affairs Minister, Abdel Halim Khaddam met with President Chamoun, Pierre Gemayel and members of the Islamic Union at the Baabda palace, Israeli airplanes bombed new positions occupied by the Syrian Army on Mount Sannine's peak. The Israeli forces shot down two Syrian helicopters.
What the books addMénargues has two Syrian helicopters downed: a Mi-8 supply craft, hit by F-15s around noon just after leaving Rayak, and a French-built Alouette late in the day; in between, jets struck ADF positions around Sannine. Israel acted at Christian leaders' request once Syria held Sannine's summit; next day Syria answered with surface-to-air missiles in the Bekaa.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Wednesday, 29 April 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Syria deploys SAM missiles in the Bekaa: the 'missile crisis'.
A day after Israel downed two Syrian helicopters, Syria set up SAM-6 and SAM-2 batteries openly in the Bekaa, near Rayak and Chtaura. Israel demanded their removal; de Clerck and Malsagne see the deployment as the first direct Syrian-Israeli confrontation.
Sources differ: Traboulsi names the missiles as Sam 3, the other sources as SAM-6 and SAM-2. Traboulsi's own chronology (p. 252) places the battle of Zahleh and the missile crisis in March 1980, contradicting his main text.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Thursday, 30 April 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Bashir Gemayel and Camille Chamoun meet Begin secretly in Jerusalem.
Late on 30 April an Israeli helicopter flew Bashir Gemayel and Camille Chamoun to Jerusalem. Around midnight Begin, with Shamir and his military and intelligence chiefs, told them Israel would act if Syria did not remove its SAMs from the Bekaa.
\_this day in full \_on this day
month (approximate: spring 1981): day not established
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Lebanese Army soldiers storm a Syrian barracks in Beirut.
Lebanese soldiers, Christians and Muslims alike, stormed a Syrian barracks near the demarcation line once Syrian fire on Christian Beirut had hit army positions. Sarkis and his ministers concluded that Damascus could no longer be trusted.
\_this day in full
May 1981
Friday, 1 May 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Israel calls off a strike on the Syrian missiles.
Israel's planned air raid on the Syrian SAM batteries in the Bekaa was called off. Thick cloud had postponed the strike Begin ordered when, that evening, Washington urged him not to jeopardise Philip Habib's mission, and he reluctantly cancelled it.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Monday, 4 May 1981
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
Reagan sends Philip Habib to the Middle East.
Reagan sent Philip Habib, a retired US diplomat of Lebanese descent, as special envoy to ease the Syrian–Israeli missile crisis; he spent months travelling between Jerusalem, Damascus, Riyadh and Beirut.
Sources differ: Ménargues implies Habib was expected in Damascus on 2 May, before de Clerck & Malsagne's date of 4 May for his dispatch.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Tuesday, 5 May 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Lebanese Syrian plan outlined three main stages: The national understanding, the settlement of the conflict between Beirut and Damascus, and the organization of the relation with Palestinians.
What the books addAccording to Ménargues, Syria's foreign minister Abdel Halim Khaddam brought a five-page paper to Baabda on 5 May. In effect a Lebanese–Syrian accord on institutions, politics, the economy and culture, down to school curricula, it was rejected by the Kataeb leader Pierre Gemayel.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Thursday, 7 May 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
About 7,000 reinforcement Syrian troops were dispatched to the Bekaa region, to prepare against an eventual Israeli offensive.
What the books addIn Ménargues, the 'red line' between Sohmor and Yohmor in the southern Bekaa was occupied on 7 May by 7,000 Syrian troops: two brigades backed by tanks and heavy guns.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Friday, 8 May 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The American envoy Philip Habib began his talks at the Baabda Palace.
What the books addMénargues writes that Habib came from Damascus by road on the evening of 7 May, Beirut airport being closed. De Clerck and Malsagne date Reagan's dispatch of Habib to 4 May.
Other date in the books: Monday, 4 May 1981
\_this day in full \_on this day
Saturday, 9 May 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Both sectors in Beirut witnessed a day of terror. Blind bombardments caused 21 dead and 98 wounded. The shelling reached Jounieh, Bkerkeh, and Beit Mery.
What the books addFor 8 May, a day of shelling throughout Habib's meetings, Ménargues gives the US embassy toll: 21 dead and 98 wounded.
Other date in the books: Friday, 8 May 1981
\_this day in full \_on this day
Monday, 11 May 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Once again, the civil population of East and West Beirut was under siege. The criminal violence claimed the lives of 18 persons and injured another173. A war psychosis haunted the Bekaa region where the residents were fleeing from the areas next to the SAM anti-aircrafts missiles deployed by the Syrian forces, fearing a Syrian-Israeli confrontation.
The Lebanese war · Added from the books
The Lebanese Forces agree to the reopening of Beirut airport.
On 11 May US ambassador John Gunther Dean asked the Lebanese Forces, who had been shelling Beirut airport, to allow it to reopen as a gesture that would help Habib's mission. By evening an LF statement had withdrawn their objection.
\_this day in full \_on this day
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
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Lebanese stock exchange market panicked as the dollar's exchange rate increased up to 4.45 LP.
\_this day in full \_on this day
Saturday, 16 May 1981
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
The Soviets and the Americans reinforced their military presence in the Mediterranean.
The Lebanese war · 111101 entry in the original chronology
Washington advocated a fast resolution of the missile crisis to avoid a worsening of the situation. Beirut was hit by one bomb every three seconds. Twenty-seven persons were evacuated from Zahleh during a lull period.
\_this day in full \_on this day
dates 1–60 of 126 next
