The Invasion Of Lebanon

The Invasion Of Lebanon

By Mitchell McLaughlin

The War Begins • June 6 1982 Israel forces invaded Southern Lebanon • This was called: “Operation Peace for Galilee” • The Israel Defense Forces were directed by Ariel Sharon, Israel’s Defense Minister

Israel’s Rational • The PLO did around 200 terrorist attacks to Israelis on the border and around the world • The Israeli ambassador to England was almost shot and killed by PLO Terrorist in England • Soon before the fighting President Reagan encouraged the Israeli President to avoid conflict

The Israeli Invasion

• The main focus was to drive back Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) troops • Israel wanted to keep the troops 25 miles away from the Lebanon-Israel border • Israelis were helped by Lebanese Christian extremists - Phalangists •

The Opposing Force • The PLO was the main fighting force against Israelis • Syrian troops were helping the PLO • Lebanese Muslim extremists were also involved against Israel

The Neutral Force • The Lebanese government stayed neutral during the entire conflict • Most of soldiers of the Lebanese army defected to fight on the Palestinian side of this conflict

Background Leading Up to the Conflict • Many Palestinians refugees were crossing into Southern Lebanon • Tensions were already tense and the Philangilist fighters (Christians) were having disputes with increased amount of refugees

PLO Statistics • • • •

1500 troops 80 tanks 100 to 200 artillery canons Most of the tanks and artillery weapons were immobile and used instead as ‘pill’ boxes

Syria Forces Statistics • 30,000 troops • 600 tanks • 19 Surface to Air missiles (SAMS)

Israeli Statistics • 78,000 troops • 1,240 tanks • 1,500 armored personnel carriers

Neutral Lebanon Army Statistics • 10,000 troops (after defections from Lebanon military) • Most of this army’s equipment was taken by the defectors

Casualties • Israel - 368 killed, 2,383 wounded • PLO - 1,500 killed (unknown wounded) 8,000 captured • Syria - 1,200 killed, 3,000 wounded plus 296 captured

Casualties Continued…

• Lebanon - 17,825 civilians killed and nearly 30,000 wounded • Foreigners - 1800 foreigners and mercenaries were captured

The Sabra and Shatila Massacres • Israeli troops guided the Phalangist into the refugee camp to kill PLO terrorists • The terrorist targets were not there

The Massacres continued… • What the Phalangist fighters did was kill 800 civilians • There were only 2 Phalangist casualties • After inquiry, Ariel Sharon, Israeli Defense Minister, was found responsible for not stopping attacks

Conclusion of War

• May 17, 1983 The USA assisted Israel in making an accord to leave Lebanon and to begin patrolling the Lebanese border • War was considered an Israeli victory over the Palestinians

US Interests in Region • The US and President Ronald Reagan wanted to keep peace in this region • US did not fully agree with Israel’s actions but still wanted to maintain Israel’s allegiance to US

VIDEO http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9OVvm8i AA4&feature=related

Bibliography Mitchell McLaughlin Heller, Peter B. "Middle East and North America." Http://history.salempress.com/. Salem Press. Web. 14 Sept. 2011. http://history.salempress.com/doi/full/10.3331/1980_482?prevSearch=%255BAllField%253A%2B1980%2Bl ebanese%2Bcivil%2Bwar%255D&searchHistoryKey=&queryHash=fdb1c948177e413625a57233b612cb24 >. I used this site to gather general information on my subject Joyce, Anne. "Editor's Note." Http://go.galegroup.com/ps/. General OneFile., Sept. 2002. Web. 14 Sept. 2011. . I used this article for a academic journal source and background knowledge and a primary source "Hezbollah." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopdia Britannica Online School Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2011. Web. 14 Sept. 2011. . I used this for background information "Arab-Israeli wars." Compton's by Britannica. Encyclopdia Britannica Online School Edition. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2011. Web. 15 Sept. 2011. . I used this for general knowledge on the subject BBC. "BBC ON THIS DAY | 30 | 1982: PLO Leader Forced from Beirut." BBC News - Home. Web. 15 Sept. 2011. . I used this source for info on the PLO and their role in the war

Bibliography - Continued Mitchell McLaughlin Quandt, William B. "Battling for Peace: A Memoir." Foreign Affairs 74.5 (1995): 176+. Gale Power Search. Web. 15 Sep. 2011. Document URL http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?&id=GALE%7CA17385811&v=2.1&u=5250pvhs&it=r&p=GPS&sw=w I used this as a primary source

Shaoul, Jean. "Sharon's War Crimes in Lebanon: the Record." World Socialist Web Site. Web. 15 Sept. 2011. . I used it for a quote about the international reaction 1985, January. "Lebanon 1982: The Imbalance Of Political Ends And Military Means." GlobalSecurity.org Reliable Security Information. Web. 15 Sept. 2011. . ii used this source to find info about how the fighting happened Bard, Mitchell. "The Lebanon War." Jewish Virtual Library - Homepage. Web. 15 Sept. 2011. . I used this for research on Israeli foreign policy BBC. "BBC NEWS | Middle East | Flashback: Sabra and Shatila Massacres." BBC News - Home. 24 Jan. 2002. Web. 15 Sept. 2011. . i used this source for information regarding prior events to the war