[50], In January 2000, Hezbollah assassinated the man responsible for day to day SLA operations, Colonel Akel Hashem. Others considered it to be a dangerous militia that executes Iran and Syria policies in Lebanon. The Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990) was a complex conflict in the form of various factions and shifting alliances between and among Lebanese Maronite Catholics, Lebanese Muslims, Palestinian Muslims, Lebanese Druze, and other non-sectarian groups. [238] As many as 16,500 acres (67 km²) of land, including forests and grazing fields, were destroyed by Hezbollah rockets. Speeds Up Bomb Delivery for the Israelis", "Lebanon part of 'war on terror', says Bush", Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, "Arab League criticizes Hezbollah for attacks", "Arab League declares support for Lebanon, calls on UN to step in", "Study could acquit Israel of war crimes", "Israel / Lebanon: End immediately attacks against civilians", "Israel–Lebanon Evidence indicates deliberate destruction of civilian infrastructure", "UN: Security Council must adopt urgent measures to protect civilians in Israel–Lebanon conflict", "Obligations under international humanitarian law of the parties to the conflict in Israel and Lebanon", "Fatal Strikes: Israel's Indiscriminate Attacks Against Civilians in Lebanon", "Human rights group accuses Israel of war crimes", "Bouckaert: Both Israel and Hezbollah Committing 'War Crimes, "Lebanon: Hezbollah Rocket Attacks on Haifa Designed to Kill Civilians", "Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW): First Look at Israel's Use of Cluster Munitions in Lebanon in July–August 2006", "UN Chief Accuses Hezbollah of 'Cowardly Blending' Among Refugees", "Israel's 'immoral' use of cluster bombs in Lebanon poses major threat – UN aid chief", "Offering Video, Israel Answers Critics on War", "Might in the air will not defeat guerillas in this bitter conflict", "Hezbollah's deadly hold on heartland: Loved by many, accused by others of sacrificing civilians", "Declassified IDF Photos and Footage Expose Hizbullah Tactics", "IDF: Hizbullah preventing civilians from leaving villages in southern Lebanon", "Israel/Lebanon: Further evidence of grave violations in Israel–Hizbullah conflict underlines urgent need for UN inquiry", "Israel/Lebanon: Israeli Indiscriminate Attacks Killed Most Civilians", "Illegal attack or legitimate target? [313] On 22 July, about 2,000 people, including many Arab citizens of Israel, demanded an end to the offensive during a protest march in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square. [83], Over the following 12 months, Hezbollah made three unsuccessful attempts to abduct Israeli soldiers. [24] The territory it now controlled went well beyond what had been allocated to it under the United Nations Partition Plan, incorporating much of what had been promised to the Palestinian Arabs under the Plan. LCP [81], According to Conal Urquhart in The Guardian, the Winograd Committee leaked a testimony from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert suggesting that Olmert "had been preparing for such a war at least four months before the official casus belli: the capture by Hezbollah of two Israeli soldiers from a border post on 12 July 2006. Another leaflet urged Hezbollah fighters to stop bleeding and fighting for Nasrallah, who sat safe in a bunker, to stop fighting against Lebanese national interests, and to return to their homes and families. Hezbollah is a terrorist organization. Israel's air force chief said his forces would try to evacuate civilians in any future war with Lebanon's Hezbollah, but casualties are to be expected. "Rocket Attacks in Kiryat Shmona, Israel; Israel Cabinet Decides Against Expanding Offensive; Ominous New Message From Ayman al- Zawahiri." [19] During the 1936–39 Arab revolt and thereafter the British increasingly came to rely on Jewish police forces to help maintain order. In Lebanon the conflict killed over 1,100 people, including combatants,[70][71][72][73][74][75] severely damaged infrastructure, and displaced about one million people. "[252] The Committee to Protect Journalists responded by saying: "While Al-Manar may serve a propaganda function for Hezbollah, it does not appear based on a monitoring of its broadcasts today to be serving any discernible military function". On 7 August 2013 four Israeli soldiers were wounded in a landmine explosion allegedly by Hezbollah. [197], IDF Maj.-Gen. United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine, fled, emigrated or were forced out of Israel, United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command, Shia and Druze militias took over much of Beirut, Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, United Nations Security Council Resolution 425, List of modern conflicts in the Middle East, List of rocket attacks from Lebanon on Israel, Imperfect Compromise: A New Consensus Among Israelis and Palestinians, "Do Good Fences Make Good Neighbors? But since Israel, he said, had systematically bombed civilian targets he felt that Hezbollah had no choice but to answer in kind and target Israeli cities. [18] 3–6. [52][53] The Israeli Air Force, in apparent response, on 7 February struck Lebanon's civilian infrastructure, including power stations at Baalbek, Deir Nbouh and Jambour. [191] Matt M. Matthews military historian at United States Army Combined Arms Center, also described these figures as "highly exaggerated" because he asserts that Hezbollah suffered only 187 casualties. The shelling was investigated as a violation of international law. A Merkava Mk III tank, an Armored personnel carrier, and a helicopter were immediately dispatched into Lebanon. [50] Hezbollah retaliated with rocket attacks on Israeli villages, though inflicting significantly fewer casualties. By the end of the incident, nine hijackers[40] and 38 Israeli civilians (including 13 children) were dead. Other demonstrations were held exclusively in favor of Lebanon or Israel. [281][286][287] HRW stated that "the IDF struck a large number of private homes of civilian Hezbollah members during the war, as well as various civilian Hezbollah-run institutions such as schools, welfare agencies, banks, shops and political offices. Initially Israel did not confirm that the victims were military but eventually relented. [409], A collective of Lebanese filmmakers produced during and in the immediate aftermath of the war some twenty short videos that were released as Videos Under Siege and presented in numerous festivals including the Dubai International Film Festival. Hezbollah was estimated to have 13,000 missiles at the beginning of the conflict. Thus began the 2006 Lebanon War. On 11 August, Israel dropped leaflets accusing Hezbollah of hiding its "great losses", and containing the names of 90–100 Hezbollah fighters killed. )[44][45][46][47][48]Wounded: On 21 August, a group of demobilized Israel reserve soldiers and parents of soldiers killed in the fighting started a movement calling for the resignation of Olmert and the establishment of a state commission of inquiry. "[366][367][368][369][370] Israel's aerial and commando operations were criticised by Kofi Annan as violations of the ceasefire, which he said they had conducted the majority of, and he also protested the continued embargo. [314] On 5 August, some Israelis demonstrated in Tel Aviv, including former Knesset members of the Meretz party, Mossi Raz, Naomi Hazan and Yael Dayan. He also said that Israel "mishandled its opportunity", and that some of the sites it attacked were of "questionable military value". Wed, Feb 03, 2021 LOGIN Subscribe : Israel and Lebanon After the Withdrawal", "Timeline: Decades of Conflict in Lebanon, Israel", "An Open Letter to all the Oppressed in Lebanon and the World", "Report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (S/2006/560)", "Report of the Secretary – General on the implementation of Security Council resolution 1701 (2006)", "United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181", "General Process Report and Supplementary Report Covering the period from 11 December 1949 to 23 October 1950", "Recommendations to the General Assembly, A/364", "Lebanon: Palestinian refugees in the post-war period", Inventory of Conflict & Environment Case Studies, "Lebanon: Refugees and internally displaced persons", "Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)", "Draft Agreement between Israel and Lebanon (Introduction by author)", "A House Divided: Hope grows dimmer for unifying Lebanon", "Cease-fire understanding in Lebanon, and remarks by Prime Minister Peres and Secretary of State Christopher", "Hezbollah kills 3 Israeli soldiers, veteran SLA leader in Lebanon", "Israelis Held by the Hizbullah – October 20 January, 200004", "Lebanese troops will not disarm Hizbollah", "Security Council Notes Significant Progress in Lebanon", "Timeline: Decades of conflict in Lebanon, Israel", "Lebanon exposes deadly Israeli spy ring", "Lebanon arrests key suspect in Islamic Jihad assassination", "Murr: Israeli aircraft detonated the car bomb in Sidon", "Hezbollah kills 8 soldiers, kidnaps two in offensive on northern border", "Hezbollah Raid Opens 2nd Front for Israel", Cloud of Syria's war hangs over Lebanese cleric's death, "Report of the Commission of Inquiry on Lebanon pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution S-2/1, p. 26", "Let's face it: Israel's refugees (in Hebrew)", "IDF, Lebanese army exchange fire on northern border", "U.N.'s Ban Veers From Standard Line on Israel", "Israeli soldiers in Israel during clash: U.N.", "Lebanon: We Fired First at IDF Unit Near Israel Border", "Lebanon-Israel border incidents could quickly turn to war: U.N.", "IDF Exchanges Fire With Lebanon Across Border", "Soldier killed by Lebanese sniper laid to rest", "Israeli soldiers wounded in Lebanon incursion", "Border explosion sparks multiple theories", "מטען הופעל בגבול לבנון, צה"ל תקף מוצב חיזבאללה", "Blast wounds three Israeli soldiers near Syria border", "Israel didn't target Iranian general in Syria strike, says security source", "Two Israeli soldiers killed in Hezbollah missile attack", Hezbollah fires anti-tank missiles at military jeep, IDF base; none hurt, Hezbollah fires rockets into Israel from Lebanon, SECURITY FOOTAGE CAPTURES HEZBOLLAH MISSILE NARROWLY MISSING IDF VEHICLE, IDF staged evacuation of ‘wounded’ troops from APC hit by Hezbollah, "Lebanon's Hezbollah denies infiltration attempt or clashes near Lebanese frontier", "Netanyahu warns Hezbollah against playing with fire after frontier incident", "Lebanon's Hezbollah accuses Israel of fabricating border clash", "Militants fire 2 rockets from Lebanon at Israel's north, first since last year's war", "המודיעין הצבאי הסורי, חיזבאללה, וארגון 'אנסר אללה', ביצעו את ירי הקטיושות על קריית שמונה. 106 Lebanese died in the shelling of Qana, when a UN compound was hit in an Israeli shelling. By the fourth day of the war the IDF ran out of targets, as all the 83 targets on the list had already been hit. On 11 August 2006, the United Nations Security Council unanimously approved United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 (UNSCR 1701) in an effort to end the hostilities. [307], Following the UN-brokered ceasefire, there were mixed responses on who had gained or lost the most in the war. [250] Tourism, which accounts for 15% of Lebanon's GDP, has been severely disrupted by the conflict. After fleeing with the hostages from police back to the beach, a shootout killed one policeman and two of the militants. [195], Charles Krauthammer, a syndicated columnist and political commentator, citing an interview by which Nasrallah admitted that he would not have captured the soldiers had he known that it would lead to war, wrote, "Nasrallah's admission, vastly underplayed in the West, makes clear what Lebanese already knew. [393] Israel considered Mugniyah a "significant force behind actions against Israel". [129][130][131][132], On 16 July, eight employees of the Israel Railways were killed by direct rocket hits on the Haifa train depot. All of us were kind of surprised. [64] Rafeh reportedly confessed to the Majzoub killings and to working for Mossad,[65] and admitted that his cell had assassinated two Hezbollah leaders in 1999 and 2003 and the son of Ahmed Jibril, leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, in 2002. [325] IDF Major General Yiftah Ron Tal, on 4 October 2006 became the second and highest ranking serving officer to express his opinion that the IDF failed "to win the day in the battle against Hezbollah" as well as calling for Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz' resignation. Within hours of Israeli's bombing of Lebanon on 13 July 2006, hundreds of protesters gathered in Tel Aviv to oppose the war. In July 1981, fearing an Israeli-Syrian clash in Lebanon, the United States had brokered an ambiguous cease-fire, during which the PLO continued to amass heavy arms. If there is an invasion of Lebanon, we are waiting for them." [224][24][25] 5 tanks were damaged beyond repair ('lasting vehicle kills'), 22 tanks received armor penetrations, and 52 tanks suffered some form of damage. [10] PLO was one of the key factors to the eruption of the Lebanese Civil War and its bitter battles with Lebanese factions caused foreign intervention. "[336], In the aftermath of the conflict US President George Bush said that Hezbollah was responsible for starting the war, and that the group suffered a defeat at the hands of Israel. 1 helicopter shot down, 3 lost in accidents[22][23][24][25] "[107] A retired Israeli Army Colonel explained that the rationale behind the attack was to create a rift between the Lebanese population and Hezbollah supporters by exacting a heavy price from the elite in Beirut.