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107-599: As the Lebanese Civil War escalated in 1976, the Arab League created an intervention force composed almost entirely of Syrian forces with token contributions from other Arab states, including Sudan , Saudi Arabia and Libya . Although nominally present at the behest of the government of Lebanon , the force was under the direct command of Syria. The ADF initially consisted of more than 35,000 troops of which 30,000 were provided by Syria. In late 1978, after

214-637: A two-state settlement on the pre-1967 borders. But the Rejectionist Front denounced the calls for diplomacy, and a diplomatic solution was vetoed by the United States. In 1975, the increasing tensions between Palestinian militants and Christian militias exploded into the Lebanese Civil War , involving all factions. On 20 January 1976, the PLO took part in the Damour massacre in retaliation to

321-884: A 15 kilometer zone just off the Israeli Border and the Lebanese government would work in conjunction with the Arab Deterrent Force to ensure security of Lebanon. on July 30, 1977, Syrian soldiers were deployed in The Beqaa Valley and near Tripoli . June 1983 would seem the fracturing of the compromise between the Lebanese Government, the Arab Deterrent Forces and the Syrian Peacekeepers especially after

428-687: A decree suspending the PLC and some sections of the Palestinian Basic Law , and appointed Salam Fayyad as prime minister. The PLO remains the official representative of the State of Palestine at the UN . On 4 February 1969, Fatah founder, Arafat, was elected Chairman of the PLO in Cairo . Since, Fatah has been the dominant factor within the PLO, which still continues in 2015. Under pressure from

535-593: A disintegrative effect on the country, closely linked to the political polarization that preceded the 1958 Lebanese crisis . Christians mostly sided with the Western world while Muslims, pan-Arabists, and leftists mostly sided with Soviet -aligned Arab countries . Fighting between Lebanese Christian militias and Palestinian insurgents , mainly from the Palestine Liberation Organization , began in 1975 and generated an alliance between

642-566: A group of Palestinian lawyers, jurists and legal scholars, due to lack of elections. They questioned the PLO's legitimacy to alter the status and role of the Organization in respect of their status within the UN. They demanded immediate and direct elections to the Palestine National Council to ″activate representative PLO institutions in order to preserve, consolidate, and strengthen the effective legal representation of

749-529: A position in the four-man cabinet that was subsequently formed. Estimates of the Phalange's membership by Yezid Sayigh and other academic sources put them at a few thousand. Non-academic sources tend to inflate the Phalanges membership. What should be kept in mind was that this insurrection was met with widespread disapproval by many Lebanese who wanted no part in the regional politics and many young men aided

856-470: A secondary concern to Israeli military and other Lebanese factions. With ousting of the PLO, the Lebanese Civil War gradually turned into a prolonged conflict, shifting from mainly PLO-Christian conflict into involvement of all Lebanese factions – whether Sunni , Shia , Druze , and Christians . In 1982, the PLO relocated to Tunis , Tunisia after it was driven out of Lebanon by Israel during

963-580: A senior Israeli diplomat by Lebanon-based Palestinian militants in Lebanon, Israel invaded Lebanon in a much larger scale in coordination with the Lebanese Christian militias, reaching Beirut and eventually resulting in ousting of the PLO headquarters in June that year. Low-level Palestinian insurgency in Lebanon continued in parallel with the consolidation of Shia militant organizations, but became

1070-406: A sniper reportedly killed a popular figure in the city, the former Mayor of Sidon , Maarouf Saad . Many non-academic sources claim a government sniper killed Saad; however, there is no evidence to support such a claim, and it appears that whoever had killed him had intended that what began as a small and quiet demonstration to evolve into something more. The sniper targeted Saad right at the end of

1177-536: A war could be fomented toward Israel. They participated in the fighting by directing armed forces against the government security in the city of Tripoli according to Yezid Sayigh 's work. In 1958, President Chamoun was unable to convince the Maronite army commander, Fuad Chehab , to use the armed forces against Muslim demonstrators, fearing that getting involved in internal politics would split his small and weak multi-confessional force. The Phalange militia came to

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1284-702: A war with Chamoun, referred to as the War of the Pashas . In 1956, tensions with Egypt escalated when the non-aligned President, Camille Chamoun, did not break off diplomatic relations with the Western powers that attacked Egypt during the Suez Crisis , angering Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser . This was during the Cold War and Chamoun has often been called pro-Western, though he had signed several trade deals with

1391-473: Is criticized for not differentiating between combatants and civilians. Members of the PLO have claimed responsibility for a number of attacks against Israelis during the Second Intifada. The PLO has been sued in the United States by families of those killed or injured in attacks by Palestinians. One lawsuit was settled prior to going to trial. The other went to trial. The PLO was found liable for

1498-601: Is the belief that Zionists had unjustly expelled the Palestinians from Palestine and established a Jewish state in place under the pretext of having historic and Jewish ties with Palestine. The PLO demanded that Palestinian refugees be allowed to return to their homes. This is expressed in the National Covenant: Article 2 of the Charter states that ″Palestine, with the boundaries it had during

1605-505: Is why in later years the PLO guerrilla factions had found it easy to enter Lebanon and set up bases, as well as take over army barracks on the border with Israel as early as 1968. Early skirmishes saw the army lose control over its barracks to the PLO and lose many soldiers. Even prior to this, president Chamoun was aware of the country's vulnerability to outside forces. His Lebanese pan-Arabist Sunni Muslim Prime Minister Rashid Karami supported Nasser in 1956 and 1958. Lebanese Muslims pushed

1712-1907: The 1982 Israeli Invasion of Lebanon . Lebanese Civil War [REDACTED] Lebanese National Movement [REDACTED] PLO (1975–83) [REDACTED] ASALA [REDACTED] Hezbollah (1985–1990) [REDACTED]   Iran (from 1980, mainly IRGC and Army paramilitary units) [REDACTED] Syria [REDACTED] Lebanese Armed Forces [REDACTED] UNIFIL (from 1978) Multinational Force in Lebanon (1982–1984) [REDACTED] Arab Deterrent Force (1976–1982) [REDACTED] Bachir Gemayel   † [REDACTED] Amine Gemayel [REDACTED] William Hawi   † [REDACTED] Elie Hobeika [REDACTED] Samir Geagea Etienne Saqr [REDACTED] Georges Adwan [REDACTED] Saad Haddad # [REDACTED] Antoine Lahad [REDACTED] Menachem Begin [REDACTED] Ariel Sharon [REDACTED] Rafael Eitan [REDACTED] Avigdor Ben-Gal [REDACTED] Kamal Jumblatt   † [REDACTED] Walid Jumblatt [REDACTED] Inaam Raad [REDACTED] Abdallah Saadeh [REDACTED] Assem Qanso [REDACTED] George Hawi [REDACTED] Elias Atallah [REDACTED] Muhsin Ibrahim [REDACTED] Ibrahim Kulaylat [REDACTED] Ali Eid [REDACTED] Yasser Arafat [REDACTED] George Habash [REDACTED] Hagop Hagopian [REDACTED] Monte Melkonian [REDACTED] Subhi al-Tufayli [REDACTED] Abbas al-Musawi [REDACTED] Michel Aoun Second phase: 1977–1982 Third phase: 1982–1984 Fourth phase: 1984–1990 Cantons and puppet states The Lebanese Civil War ( Arabic : الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah )

1819-578: The 1982 Lebanon War . Following massive raids by Israeli forces in Beirut, it is estimated that 8,000 PLO fighters evacuated the city and dispersed. On 1 October 1985, in Operation Wooden Leg , Israeli Air Force F-15s bombed the PLO's Tunis headquarters, killing more than 60 people. It is suggested that the Tunis period (1982–1991) was a negative point in the PLO's history, leading up to

1926-619: The Beqaa Valley in the east; and Druze and Christians populated the country's mountainous areas. At the time, the Lebanese government was under the influence of elites within the Maronite Christian community . The link between politics and religion was reinforced under the French Mandate from 1920 to 1943, and the country's parliamentary structure favoured a leading position for Lebanese Christians, who constituted

2033-573: The British mandate , is an indivisible territorial unit″, meaning that there is no place for a Jewish state. This article was adapted in 1996 to meet the Oslo Accords. Article 20 states: ″The Balfour Declaration , the Mandate for Palestine, and everything that has been based upon them, are deemed null and void. Claims of historical or religious ties of Jews with Palestine are incompatible with

2140-610: The Cairo Agreement led the PLO to establish itself in Lebanon. In the late 1960s, and especially after the expulsion of the Palestinian militants from Jordan in Black September events in 1970–1971 , Lebanon had become the base for PLO operations. Palestinian militant organizations relocated their headquarters to South Lebanon, and relying on the support in Palestinian refugee camps, waged a campaign of attacks on

2247-560: The Cold War . Chamoun asked for assistance proclaiming that Communists were going to overthrow his government. Chamoun was responding not only to the revolt of former political bosses, but also to the fact that both Egypt and Syria had taken the opportunity to deploy proxies into the Lebanese conflict. Thus the Arab Nationalist Movement (ANM), led by George Habash and later to become the Popular Front for

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2354-901: The Dawson's Field hijackings , which precipitated the Black September crisis. In 1972, the Black September Organization carried out the Munich massacre of Israeli Olympic athletes. In 1974, members of the DFLP seized a school in Israel and killed a total of 26 students and adults and wounded over 70 in the Ma'alot massacre . The 1975, Savoy Hotel hostage situation killing 8 hostages and 3 soldiers, carried out by Fatah. The 1978, Coastal Road massacre killing 37 Israelis and wounding 76, also carried out by Fatah. From 1967 to September 1970

2461-577: The Franjieh family in Zgharta , which became allied with Syria after breaking with the Lebanese Front in 1978. Palestine Liberation Organization The Palestine Liberation Organization ( PLO ; Arabic : منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية Munaẓẓamat at-Taḥrīr al-Filasṭīniyyah ) is a Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of

2568-637: The Karantina massacre . The PLO and Lebanese National Movement attacked the Christian town of Damour , killing 684 civilians and forcing the remainder of the town's population to flee. In 1976 Syria joined the war by invading Lebanon, beginning the 29‑year Syrian occupation of Lebanon , and in 1978 Israel invaded South Lebanon in response to the Coastal Road Massacre , executed by Palestinian militants based in Lebanon. The population in

2675-712: The Multinational Force in Lebanon and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon , were stationed in Lebanon during this time. In 1989, the Taif Agreement marked the beginning of the end for the fighting as a committee appointed by the Arab League began to formulate solutions to the conflict. In March 1991, the Parliament of Lebanon passed an amnesty law that pardoned all political crimes that had been perpetrated prior to

2782-418: The Palestine Liberation Organization . The Syrian peacekeepers began distributing weapons and support to pro-Syrian factions within both parties in Beirut at the time which lead to accusations that Syria was acting more as an occupying force and less as a peace-keeping force . On July 21, 1977, The Lebanese and Palestinian factions agreed on a compromise that would see the withdrawal of all PLO soldiers inside

2889-618: The Palestinian Liberation Army (PLA)). The ADF mandate was to deter the conflicting sides from resorting to conflict again, including the tasks of maintaining cease-fire, collecting heavy weapons and supporting the Lebanese government in maintaining its authority. Robert Fisk wrote: [...] Since the summer of 1976, the Syrians had controlled the Bekaa Valley . The headquarters of their 'Arab Deterrent Force'

2996-651: The Palestinian people in both the Palestinian territories and the diaspora . It is currently represented by the Palestinian Authority based in the West Bank city of Al-Bireh . Founded in 1964, it initially sought to establish an Arab state over the entire territory of the former Mandatory Palestine , advocating the elimination of Israel . Mediated talks between the Israeli government and

3103-487: The Soviet Union (see Gendzier). Nasser had attacked Chamoun because of his suspected support for the U.S. led Baghdad Pact . Nasser felt that the pro-western Baghdad Pact posed a threat to Arab nationalism . President Chamoun looked to regional pacts to ensure protection from foreign armies: Lebanon historically had a small cosmetic army that was never effective in defending Lebanon's territorial integrity, and this

3210-510: The Venice Declaration of 1980 had called for the Palestinian right of self-determination to be recognized by Israel. Opposition to Arafat was fierce not only among radical Arab groups, but also among many on the Israeli right. This included Menachem Begin , who had stated on more than one occasion that even if the PLO accepted UN Security Council Resolution 242 and recognized Israel's right to exist, he would never negotiate with

3317-801: The Vichy French forces, left Lebanon in 1946. The Maronites assumed power over Lebanon and economy. A parliament was created in which both Muslims and Christians each had a set quota of seats. Accordingly, the President was to be a Maronite, the Prime Minister a Sunni Muslim and the Speaker of Parliament a Shia Muslim. In 1947, the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine led to civil war in Palestine ,

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3424-453: The "liberation of Palestine". The Palestinian National Charter describes the ideology of the PLO. A constitution, named "Fundamental Law", was adopted, which dictates the inner structure of the organization and the representation of the Palestinian people. A draft Constitution was written in 1963, to rule the PLO until free general elections among all the Palestinians in all the countries in which they resided could be held. The Constitution

3531-577: The 1960s, the center for armed Palestinian activities had been in Jordan. They were forced to relocate after being evicted by King Hussein during the 1970 Black September in Jordan . Fatah and other Palestinian groups attempted to mount a coup in Jordan by incentivizing a split in the Jordanian army , something that the ANM had attempted to do a decade earlier by Nasser's bidding. Jordan responded, and expelled

3638-475: The 35th and 41st Brigades (Special Forces), 47th and 62nd Brigade (Mechanised Infantry), 51st Brigade (Ind. Armoured), and 67th Brigade, of which the last was along the border with Syria, southwest of Medina Sinaia. A year after Israel invaded and occupied Southern Lebanon during the 1982 Lebanon War , the Lebanese government failed to extend the ADF's mandate, thereby effectively ending its existence, although not

3745-532: The 4.6 million Palestinians in the occupied Palestinian territories (OPT) are Palestinian Christian . Under President Arafat, the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority adopted the 2003 Amended Basic Law, which stipulates Islam as the sole official religion in Palestine and the principles of Islamic sharia as a principal source of legislation. The draft Constitution contains the same provisions. The draft Constitution

3852-669: The Arab League had extended the mandate of the Arab Deterrent Force, the Sudanese , the Saudis and the United Arab Emirates announced intentions to withdraw troops from Lebanon, extending their stay into the early months of 1979 at the Lebanese governments request. The Libyan troops were essentially abandoned and had to find their own way home (if at all), and the ADF thereby became a purely Syrian force (which did include

3959-636: The Cedars , Lebanese Youth Movement , Tyous Team of Commandos ) and formed an umbrella militia known as the Lebanese Forces (LF) which acted in unity, and were politically known as the Lebanese Front coalition. Before 1975, Maronite militias were reportedly supplied by weapons from Bulgaria , and by the onset of the war were receiving support from Iraq , Jordan , Pahlavi Iran , West Germany , Israel, and Saudi Arabia , who temporarily cut off their funding after Black Saturday . This funding enabled

4066-502: The Galilee and on Israeli and Jewish targets worldwide. Increasing penetration of Palestinians into Lebanese politics and Israeli retaliations gradually deteriorated the situation. By the mid-1970s, Arafat and his Fatah movement found themselves in a tenuous position. Arafat increasingly called for diplomacy, perhaps best symbolized by his Ten Point Program and his support for a UN Security Council resolution proposed in 1976 calling for

4173-642: The Israeli invasion of 1982 and was replaced by the Lebanese National Resistance Front , known as Jammoul in Arabic. Throughout the war most or all militias operated with little regard for human rights, and the sectarian character of some battles, made non-combatant civilians a frequent target. As the war dragged on, the militias deteriorated ever further into mafia -style organizations, with many commanders turning to crime as their main occupation rather than fighting. Finances for

4280-506: The Israeli military and civilians, within Israel and abroad. The United States designated it as a terrorist group in 1987, though a presidential waiver has permitted American–PLO contact since 1988. At its first summit meeting in Cairo in 1964, the Arab League initiated the creation of an organization representing the Palestinian people. The Palestinian National Council convened in Jerusalem on 28 May 1964. After concluding

4387-521: The Israelis could meet the Palestinian guerrillas was on the field of battle." Until 1993, the only promoted option was armed struggle. From the signing of the Oslo Accords, negotiation and diplomacy became the only official policy. In April 1996, a large number of articles, which were inconsistent with the Oslo Accords , were wholly or partially nullified. At the core of the PLO's ideology

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4494-410: The Lebanese National Movement wished to bring about a more secular and democratic order, but as this group increasingly included Islamist groups, encouraged to join by the PLO, the more progressive demands of the initial agenda was dropped by January 1976. Islamists did not support a secular order in Lebanon and wished to bring about rule by Muslim clerics. These events, especially the role of Fatah and

4601-410: The Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and a faction of the PLO, were deployed to Lebanon by Nasser. The ANM were a clandestine militia implicated in attempted coups against both the Jordanian monarchy and the Iraqi president throughout the 1950s at Nasser's bidding. The founding members of Fatah , including Yasser Arafat and Khalil Wazir , also flew to Lebanon to use the insurrection as a means by which

4708-416: The Oslo Accords. Although many in the PLO opposed the Oslo Agreements, the executive committee and the Central Council approved the Accords. It marked the beginning of the PLO's decline, as the PA came to replace the PLO as the prime Palestinian political institution. Political factions within the PLO that had opposed the Oslo process were marginalized. The PLO managed to overcome the separation by uniting

4815-415: The Oslo negotiations and formation of the Palestinian Authority (PA). The PLO in exile was distant from a concentrated number of Palestinians and became far less effective. There was a significant reduction in centres of research, political debates or journalistic endeavours that had encouraged an energised public presence of the PLO in Beirut. More and more Palestinians were abandoned, and many felt that this

4922-407: The Ottoman Empire (1908–1922) the French invaders took control of the area under what they called the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon under the League of Nations . The French created the state of Greater Lebanon as a safe haven for the Maronites, but included a large Muslim population within the borders. In 1926, Lebanon was declared a republic, and a constitution was adopted. However,

5029-427: The PLC , held in the Territories in 2006, with Hamas as the big winner while not even a member of the PLO, "underlined the clear lack of a popular mandate by the PLO leadership", according to PASSIA . Individual elected members of the PLC representing Hamas, however, are automatically members of the PNC. The representative status of the PLO has often been challenged in the past. It was for example doubted in 2011 by

5136-455: The PLC. The CC functions as an intermediary body between the PNC and the EC. The CC makes policy decisions when PNC is not in session, acting as a link between the PNC and the PLO-EC. The CC is elected by the PNC and chaired by the PNC speaker. The PNC serves as the parliament for all Palestinians inside and outside of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including Jerusalem. The PLO is governed internally by its "Fundamental Law", which describes

5243-527: The PLO to Lebanon in July 1971. The PLO suffered a major reversal with the Jordanian assault on its armed groups, in the events known as Black September in 1970. The Palestinian groups were expelled from Jordan, and during the 1970s, the PLO was effectively an umbrella group of eight organizations headquartered in Damascus and Beirut , all devoted to armed struggle against Zionism or Israeli occupation, using methods which included direct clashing and guerrilla warfare against Israel. After Black September,

5350-494: The PLO / Fatah to transform the Western Part of Beirut into its stronghold. Fatah constituted 80% of the membership of the PLO and Fatah guerrillas now controlled most of its institutions. The PLO had taken over the heart of Sidon and Tyre in the early 1970s. It controlled great swathes of south Lebanon, in which the indigenous Shiite population had to suffer the humiliation of passing through PLO checkpoints and now they had worked their way by force into Beirut. The PLO did this with

5457-550: The PLO changed significantly. In 1968, the Charter was replaced by a comprehensively revised version. For the first time, the PLO called for the establishment of a Palestinian state (to replace Israel) in which Christians, Muslims and Jews would have equal rights, thereby tacitly accepting Jewish presence in Palestine. The goal was akin to forcing regime change in Israel, as opposed to a drastic redrawing of borders. The Palestinian National Council also insisted upon greater independence from Arab governments. In 1974, PLO accepted

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5564-423: The PLO engaged in militant activities during the Second Intifada (2000–2005). On 29 October 2018, the PLO Central Council suspended the Palestinian recognition of Israel . As the officially recognized government of the de jure State of Palestine , it has enjoyed United Nations observer status since 1974. Prior to the Oslo Accords , the PLO's militant wings engaged in acts of violence against both

5671-449: The PLO in 1993 (the Oslo I Accord) resulted in the PLO recognizing Israel's legitimacy and accepting United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 , which mandated Israel's withdrawal from the occupied territories, while Israel recognized the PLO as a legitimate authority representing the Palestinian people. Despite the Israel–PLO Letters of Mutual Recognition (1993), in which PLO leader Yasser Arafat renounced violence against Israel,

5778-417: The PLO were in the 1970s. The 1970 Avivim school bus massacre by the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), killed nine children, three adults and crippled 19. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine , the second-largest PLO faction after al-Fatah , carried out a number of attacks and plane hijackings mostly directed at Israel, most infamously

5885-438: The PLO, with passive support from Jordan, fought a war of attrition with Israel. During this time, the PLO launched artillery attacks on the moshavim and kibbutzim of Bet Shean Valley Regional Council , while fedayeen launched numerous attacks on Israeli forces. Israel raided the PLO camps in Jordan, including Karameh , withdrawing only under Jordanian military pressure. This conflict culminated in Jordan's expulsion of

5992-426: The PNC, nor for the EC, the PCC or the President of the State of Palestine . The executive committee has formally 18 members, including its chairman, but in past years many vacant seats in the Executive remained empty. Moreover, Hamas , the largest representative of the inhabitants of the Palestinian Territories alongside Fatah , is not represented in the PLO at all. The results of the last parliamentary elections for

6099-446: The Palestinian forces into Lebanon. When they arrived, they created "a State within the State". This action was not welcomed by the Lebanese government, and this shook Lebanon's fragile sectarian balance. Solidarity with the Palestinians was expressed by the Lebanese Sunni Muslims, with the aim to change the political system from one of consensus amongst different sects, towards one where their power share would increase. Certain groups in

6206-407: The Palestinian people as a whole″, before changing the status within the UN. The 1993–1995 Oslo Accords deliberately detached the Palestinian population in the Occupied Palestinian Territories from the PLO and the Palestinians in exile by creating a Palestinian Authority (PA) for the Territories. A separate parliament and government were established. Mahmoud Abbas was one of the architects of

6313-528: The Palestinians and Lebanese Muslims, pan-Arabists, and leftists. The conflict deepened as foreign powers, namely Syria , Israel , and Iran , became involved and supported or fought alongside different factions. Over the course of the conflict, these alliances shifted rapidly and unpredictably. While much of the fighting took place between opposing religious and ideological factions, there was significant conflict within some faith communities, especially amongst both Christians and Shias. Peacekeeping forces, such as

6420-459: The Phalange in their suppression of the insurrection, especially as many of the demonstrators were little more than proxy forces hired by groups such as the ANM and Fatah founders as well as being hired by the defeated parliamentary bosses. In the 1960s Lebanon was relatively calm, but this soon changed. Fatah and other Palestinian Liberation Organization factions had long been active among the 400,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanese camps. Throughout

6527-403: The Syrian or Israeli military presence in Lebanon. Eventually the Syrian presence became known as the Syrian occupation of Lebanon . At 4:30 AM Monday November 15, 1976 The Arab Deterrent Forces consisting of 5,000 Sudanese, Saudi and Emirati Soldiers and 25,000 Syrian Soldiers deployed in and around Beirut in an attempt to cease hostilities between the Kataeb/Phalangist Lebanese government and

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6634-486: The Tripoli Islamist movement known as Tawhid, in changing the agenda being pursued by many groups, including Communists. This ragtag coalition has often been referred to as left-wing, but many participants were actually very conservative and had religious elements that did not share any broader ideological agenda. Rather, they were brought together by the short-term goal of overthrowing the established political order, each motivated by their own grievances. These forces enabled

6741-415: The West Bank and Gaza Strip saw Arafat as their best hope for a resolution to the conflict. This was especially so in the aftermath of the Camp David Accords of 1978 between Israel and Egypt, which the Palestinians saw as a blow to their aspirations to self-determination. Abu Nidal , a sworn enemy of the PLO since 1974, assassinated the PLO's diplomatic envoy to the European Economic Community , which in

6848-468: The area can live in security"), while Israel recognized the PLO as a legitimate authority representing the Palestinian people. Despite the Israel–PLO Letters of Mutual Recognition (1993), in which PLO leader Yasser Arafat renounced "terrorism and other acts of violence" against Israel, the PLO continued to engage in militant activities, particularly during the Second Intifada (see next subsection). The Second or Al-Aqsa Intifada started concurrently with

6955-499: The assistance of so-called volunteers from Libya and Algeria shipped in through the ports it controlled, as well as a number of Sunni Lebanese groups who had been trained and armed by PLO/ Fatah and encouraged to declare themselves as separate militias. However, as Rex Brynen makes clear in his publication on the PLO, these militias were nothing more than "shop-fronts" or in Arabic "Dakakin" for Fatah, armed gangs with no ideological foundation and no organic reason for their existence, except

7062-399: The beginning, the PLO was designed as a government in exile, with a parliament, the Palestine National Council (PNC), chosen by the Palestinian people, as the highest authority in the PLO, and an executive government (EC), elected by the PNC. In practice, however, the organization was rather a hierarchic one with a military-like character, needed for its function as a liberation organization,

7169-408: The breakdown of July 2000 Camp David talks between Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak . The Intifada never ended officially, but violence hit relatively low levels during 2005. The death toll, including both military personnel and civilians, of the entire conflict in 2000–2004 is estimated to be 3,223 Palestinians and 950 Israelis, although this number

7276-403: The canton, in Maronite towns and villages no garbage littered the streets, gas was one-fifth the price charged in West Beirut and the price of bread was controlled to levels comparable to pre-war pricing. Maronite Christian militias acquired arms from Romania and Bulgaria as well as from West Germany, Belgium and Israel, and drew supporters from the larger Maronite population in the north of

7383-418: The constitution was suspended in 1932. Various factions sought unity with Syria, or independence from the French. In 1936, the Maronite Phalange party was founded by Pierre Gemayel . World War II and the 1940s brought great change to Lebanon and the Middle East. Lebanon was promised independence, which was achieved on 22 November 1943. Free French troops, who had invaded Lebanon in 1941 to rid Beirut of

7490-402: The country, they were generally right-wing in their political outlook, and all the major Christian militias were Maronite -dominated, and other Christian sects played a secondary role. Initially, the most powerful of the Maronite militias was the National Liberal Party, locally known as "Ahrar", who were politically led by the former president Camille Chamoun . The NLP had its own militia which

7597-424: The creation of a "national authority" in the West Bank and Gaza as a first step towards liberating Palestine. This tacit recognition of Israel caused the Rejectionist Front to break away. In 1976, PLO accepted an "independent state" in the West Bank and Gaza, which was widely interpreted as accepting Israel's permanent existence. Shortly after that, the PLO established contacts with the Israeli left. PLO's proposal

7704-491: The death and injuries of US citizens in a number of terrorist attacks in Israel from 2001 to 2004 and ordered to pay a judgment of $ 655.5 million. The verdict was overturned on appeal for a lack of US federal jurisdiction over actions committed overseas. The ideology of the PLO was formulated in the founding year, 1964, in the Palestinian National Covenant . After the 1967 war , the ideology of

7811-459: The demonstration as it was dissipating. Farid Khazen, sourcing the local histories of Sidon academics and eyewitnesses, gives a run-down of the puzzling events of the day that based on their research. Khazen reveals, based on the Sidon academic's work, that Saad was not in dispute with the fishing consortium made up of Yugoslav nationals. The Yugoslavian representatives in Lebanon had negotiated with

7918-445: The differences between the fishermen and the consortium, and his acceptance of a place on the board made him a target of attack by the conspirator, who sought a full conflagration around the small protest. The events in Sidon were not contained for long. The government began to lose control of the situation in 1975. In the run-up to the war and its early stages, militias tried to be politically orientated non-sectarian forces, but due to

8025-563: The end of Mandatory Palestine , and the Israeli Declaration of Independence on 14 May 1948. The ongoing civil war was transformed into a state conflict between Israel and the Arab states in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War . This led to Palestinian refugees crossing the border into Lebanon. In July 1958, Lebanon was threatened by a civil war between Maronite Christians and Muslims. President Camille Chamoun had attempted to break

8132-533: The eyes of Israeli hard-liners, "the Palestinians posed a greater challenge to Israel as a peacemaking organization than as a military one". After the appointment of Ariel Sharon to the post of Minister of Defense in 1981, the Israeli government policy of allowing political growth to occur in the occupied West Bank and Gaza strip changed. The Israeli government tried, unsuccessfully, to dictate terms of political growth by replacing local pro-PLO leaders with an Israeli civil administration. In 1982, after an attack on

8239-598: The fact their individual members were put on the PLO/ Fatah payroll. In February 1975, the strike by fishermen at Sidon could be considered the first important episode that set off the outbreak of hostilities. That event involved a specific issue: the attempt of former President Camille Chamoun, also the head of the Maronite-oriented National Liberal Party, to monopolize fishing along the coast of Lebanon. The injustices perceived by

8346-450: The facts of history and the true conception of what constitutes statehood. Judaism, being a religion, is not an independent nationality. Nor do Jews constitute a single nation with an identity of its own; they are citizens of the states to which they belong″. This article was nullified in 1996. Article 3 reads: ″The Palestinian Arab people possess the legal right to their homeland and have the right to determine their destiny after achieving

8453-404: The fisherman's union to make the fishermen shareholders in the company. The company offered to modernize the fishermen's equipment, buy their catch, and give their union an annual subsidy. Saad, as a union representative, and not the mayor of Sidon at the time as many erroneous sources claim, was offered a place on the company's board. There has been some speculation that Saad's attempts to narrow

8560-495: The fishermen evoked sympathy from many Lebanese, and reinforced the resentment and antipathy that were widely felt against the state and the economic monopolies. The demonstrations against the fishing company were quickly transformed into a political action supported by the political left and their allies in the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). The state tried to suppress the demonstrators, and

8667-652: The formal end of the hostilities in 1990. In 1860, a civil war between Druze and Maronites erupted in the Ottoman Mutasarrifate of Mount Lebanon . The war resulted in the massacre of about 10,000 Christians and at least 6,000 Druzes. World War I was hard for the Lebanese. Most of the Arabs fought in the Ottoman army against the British and French invaders. With the defeat and dissolution of

8774-468: The government to join the newly created United Arab Republic , a country formed out of the unification of Syria and Egypt, while the majority of Lebanese and especially the Maronites wanted to keep Lebanon as an independent nation with its own independent parliament. President Camille Chamoun feared the toppling of his government and asked for U.S. intervention. At the time the United States was engaged in

8881-448: The international community led by Israel and US, and from inside his own party Fatah, Arafat partially transferred some of his strongly centralized power in 2003, causing strong tensions within the Palestinian leadership. Arafat appointed Mahmoud Abbas as prime minister, but this resulted in disputes about the transfer of tasks and responsibilities. Abbas was strongly supported by the US and

8988-453: The international community, because he was supposed to be more willing to give far-reaching concessions to Israel. While Arafat had retained most of his power and a power struggle within Fatah continued, the leadership was criticised for corruption and nepotism. After Arafat's death , Abbas increasingly gained exclusive powers within both PLO and PA as well as in Fatah, until he had acquired

9095-562: The law's time of enactment. In May 1991, all of the armed factions that had been operating in Lebanon were dissolved, excluding Hezbollah , an Iran-backed Shia Islamist militia . Though the Lebanese Armed Forces slowly began to rebuild as Lebanon's only major non-sectarian armed institution after the conflict, the federal government remained unable to challenge Hezbollah's armed strength . Religious tensions, especially between Shias and Sunnis , persisted across Lebanon since

9202-570: The liberation of their country in accordance with their wishes and entirely of their own accord and will″. The PLO and its dominating faction, Fatah, are often contrasted with more religious-orientated factions like Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). All, however, represent a predominantly Muslim population. Practically the whole population of the Territories is Muslim, mostly Sunni . Around 50,000 (c. 1%) of

9309-408: The majority of the population. However, Lebanon's Muslims comprised a large minority and the influx of thousands of Palestinians —first in 1948 and again in 1967 —contributed to Lebanon's demographic shift towards an eventual Muslim majority. Lebanon's Christian-dominated government had been facing increasing opposition from Muslims, pan-Arabists , and left-wing groups . The Cold War also exerted

9416-688: The meeting, the PLO was founded on 2 June 1964. Its stated "complementary goals" were Arab unity and the liberation of Palestine . The PLO began their militancy campaign from its inception with an attack on Israel's National Water Carrier in January 1965. The group used guerrilla tactics to attack Israel from their bases in Jordan (which then included the West Bank ), Lebanon , Egypt ( Gaza Strip ), and Syria . The most notable of what were considered terrorist acts committed by member organizations of

9523-522: The members of the PNC are appointed by the executive committee. The document further states that "the PNC represents all sectors of the Palestinian community worldwide, including numerous organizations of the resistance movement, political parties, popular organizations and independent personalities and figures from all sectors of life, including intellectuals, religious leaders and businessmen". The PLO has published various newspapers and magazines first of which

9630-546: The newly formed Lebanese Forces militia to establish itself in Maronite-dominated strongholds, and rapidly transformed from an unorganized and poorly equipped militia into a fearsome armed group that now had its own armor, artillery, commando units (SADM), a small Navy, and a highly advanced Intelligence branch. Meanwhile, in the north, the Zgharta Liberation Army served as the private militia of

9737-717: The organization. This contradicted the official United States position that it would negotiate with the PLO if the PLO accepted Resolution 242 and recognized Israel, which the PLO had thus far been unwilling to do. Other Arab voices had recently called for a diplomatic resolution to the hostilities in accord with the international consensus, including Egyptian leader Anwar Sadat on his visit to Washington, DC in August 1981, and Crown Prince Fahd of Saudi Arabia in his 7 August peace proposal; together with Arafat's diplomatic maneuver, these developments made Israel's argument that it had "no partner for peace" seem increasingly problematic. Thus, in

9844-759: The power in PLO and PA in one individual, Yasser Arafat . In 2002, Arafat held the functions of Chairman of the PLO/Executive Committee; Chairman of Fatah , the dominating faction within the PLO; as well as President of the Palestinian National Authority . He also controlled the Palestinian National Security Forces . Only during the Hamas -led PA Government in 2006–2007 did the PLO resurface. After Hamas took over Gaza in 2007, Abbas issued

9951-543: The powers and the relations between the organs of the PLO. Ahmad Shukeiri was the first Chairman of the PLO Executive Committee from 1964 to 1967. In 1967, he was replaced by Yahia Hammuda. Yasser Arafat occupied the position from 1969 until his death in 2004. He was succeeded by Mahmoud Abbas (also known as Abu Mazen). According to an internal PLO document, the PNC continues to act if elections are not possible. In absence of elections, most of

10058-515: The president's aid instead to bring a final end to the road blockades which were crippling the major cities. Encouraged by its efforts during this conflict, later that year, principally through violence and the success of general strikes in Beirut, the Phalange achieved what journalists dubbed the "counterrevolution". By their actions the Phalangists brought down the government of Prime Minister Karami and secured for their leader, Pierre Gemayel ,

10165-409: The same power as was previously held by Arafat. Abbas is criticized for his autocratic rule and refusal to share powers and plans with other Palestinians. In the absence of a functioning parliament and Executive, he even began to issue his own laws. Senior representative of Abbas' Fatah faction and former Fatah minister of prisoner affairs, Sufian Abu Zaida , complained that Abbas appointed himself as

10272-592: The sectarian nature of Lebanese society, they inevitably gained their support from the same community as their leaders came from. In the long run almost all militias openly identified with a given community. The two main alliances were the Lebanese Front, consisting of nationalist Maronites who were against Palestinian militancy in Lebanon, and the Lebanese National Movement, which consisted of pro-Palestinian Leftists. The LNM dissolved after

10379-411: The stranglehold on Lebanese politics exercised by traditional political families in Lebanon. These families maintained their electoral appeal by cultivating strong client–patron relations with their local communities. Although he succeeded in sponsoring alternative political candidates to enter the elections in 1957, causing the traditional families to lose their positions, these families then embarked upon

10486-541: The war effort were obtained in one or all of three ways: As central government authority disintegrated and rival governments claimed national authority, the various parties/militias started to create comprehensive state administrations in their territory. These were known as cantons , Swiss-like autonomous provinces. The best known was " Marounistan ", which was the Phalangist/Lebanese Forces territory. The Progressive Socialist Party's territory

10593-463: Was Falastinuna and pamphlets. During the late 1970s its publications increased consisting of twenty-nine dailies, eighteen weeklies, thirteen biweeklies, sixty-two monthlies, sixteen quarterlies, and twenty-one annuals. Some of them are Falastin Al Thawra and Shu'un Filastiniyya . Its official news agency is Wafa . As of 2015, there have not been elections for many years, neither for

10700-538: Was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon . The religious diversity of the Lebanese population played a notable role in the lead-up to and during the conflict: Lebanese Christians and Lebanese Sunni Muslims comprised the majority in the coastal cities; Lebanese Shia Muslims were primarily based throughout southern Lebanon and in

10807-795: Was at the Bekaa market town of Chtaura and their troops were billetted all the way up the valley, around the Greek Orthodox town of Zahle - where Cody and I had seen the Syrians and Phalangists cooperating in 1976 - at the airbase at Rayak , in Baalbek , and Hermel . In 1981, the Syrian forces fought the Battle of Zahleh . R.D. Mclaurin wrote '..At the height of the battle, several Syrian Army units, totalling about 20,000 troops, were within an area 10–20 km around Zahleh.' These units included

10914-467: Was formulated by a Constitutional Committee, established by Arafat in 1999 and endorsed by the PLO. The PLO incorporates a range of generally secular ideologies of different Palestinian movements "committed to the struggle for Palestinian independence and liberation," hence the name of the organization. It's formally an umbrella organization that includes "numerous organizations of the resistance movement, political parties, and popular organizations." From

11021-664: Was founded in 1968 and led by Camille's son Dany Chamoun , the Tigers Militia . Another party was the Kataeb Party , or Phalangists, which was founded by Pierre Gemayel in 1936. Kataeb similarly had its own militia which was officially formed in 1961, the Kataeb Regulatory Forces led by William Hawi until 1976 when Bachir Gemayel succeeded him. Kataeb Regulatory Forces merged with Tigers Militia and several minor groups ( Al-Tanzim , Guardians of

11128-471: Was revised in 1968. The Palestinian National Council has 740 members and the Executive Committee or ExCo has 18 members. The Palestinian Central Council or CC or PCC, established by the PNC in 1973, is the second leading body of the PLO. The CC consists of 124 members from the PLO Executive Committee, PNC, PLC and other Palestinian organizations. The EC includes 15 representatives of

11235-446: Was similar to the one given by Egyptian Prime Minister Ismail Fahmy , in 1976, where he promised Israel peace on the basis of withdrawing to the 1967 borders, creation of State of Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza, and a nuclear weapons free Middle East. The PNC also authorized Palestinian representatives to meet Israeli officials at an Arab-Israeli peace conference. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Rabin responded, "the only place

11342-647: Was the " Civil Administration of the Mountain ", commonly known as the Jebel-el-Druze , a name which had formerly been used for a Druze state in Syria. The Marada area around Zghorta was known as the "Northern Canton". Wilton Wynn, a TIME correspondent, visited the East Beirut Christian canton in 1976, the same year as its foundation. He reported that compared to the villages outside of

11449-510: Was the beginning of the end. Mediated talks between the Israeli government and the PLO in 1993 (the Oslo I Accord ) resulted in the PLO recognizing Israel's right to exist in peace and accepting United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 ("inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the need to work for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East in which every State in

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