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.
<http://go.galegroup.com/ps/retrieve.do?sgHitCountType=None&sort=DASORT&inPS=true&prodId=GPS&userGroupName=5250pvhs&tabID=T002&searchId=R3&resultListType=
RESULT_LIST&contentSegment=&searchType=BasicSearchForm¤tPosition=14&contentSet=GALE%7CA
91660172&&docId=GALE|A91660172&docType=GALE&role=ITOF>.
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.
<http://www.school.eb.com/eb/article-9384132>. 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.
<http://www.school.eb.com/all/comptons/article-225909>. 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.
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/30/newsid_2536000/2536441.stm>.
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.
<http://www.wsws.org/articles/2002/feb2002/sab-f22.shtml>.
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.
<http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/1985/DTM.htm>.
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.
<http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Lebanon_War.html>.
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. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/1779713.stm>.
i used this source for information regarding prior events to the war