Lebanon’s Struggle for Peace and Independence

Outline  About Lebanon About Lebanon  History of Lebanon History of Lebanon  Lebanese Civil War Lebanese Civil War  Political Structure Political Structure  The Cedar Revolution The Cedar Revolution

About Lebanon

 Official Language – Arabic  Spoken Languages – Arabic, French, English, Armenian  Capital – Beirut  Population – 3.8 Million  Area – 4,036 sq. mi.  National Emblem – Lebanon Cedar الجمهوريّة اللبنانيّة

History of Lebanon

 Lebanon is one of the fifteen present-day countries that comprise what is considered to be the Cradle of Humanity. It is the historic home of the Phoenicians, Semitic traders whose maritime culture flourished there for more than 2,000 years. The region was a territory of the Roman Empire and during the Middle Ages was involved in the Crusades. It was then taken by the Ottoman Empire.  Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War I, the League of Nations mandated the five provinces that make up present-day Lebanon to France.  Modern Lebanon's constitution, drawn up in 1926, specified a balance of political power among the major religious groups.  The country gained independence in 1943, and French troops withdrew in Lebanon's history has been marked by alternating periods of political stability and turmoil interspersed with prosperity built on Beirut's position as a regional center for finance and trade.

Lebanese Civil War

 Beirut, the capital of Lebanon, was called the Paris of the Middle East before the outbreak of the Lebanese Civil War.

Lebanese Civil War  After the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict, Lebanon became home to more than 110,000 Palestinian refugees who had fled from Israel. By 1975, they numbered more than 300,000, led by Yassir Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). In the early 1970s, difficulties arose over the presence of Palestinian refugees, and full-scale civil war broke out in April 1975, leaving the nation with no effective central government. Jerusalem

Lebanese Civil War  On one side were a number of mostly Maronite militias. The other side comprised a coalition of Palestinians, Sunni, and Druze forces. By early 1976, the war was going poorly for the Maronites, and Syria sent 40,000 troops into the country to prevent them from being overrun. By 1978, many of the Maronites had become convinced that the Syrians were really occupying Lebanon for reasons of their own, and by September of that year, they were openly feuding. The Syrian forces remained in Lebanon, effectively dominating its government, into the first years of the twenty- first century.

Lebanese Civil War  A multinational force landed in Beirut on August 20, 1982 to oversee the PLO withdrawal from Lebanon and U.S. mediation resulted in the evacuation of Syrian troops and PLO fighters from Beirut.  This period saw the rise of radicalism among the country's different factions, and a number of landmark terrorist attacks against American forces, including the destruction of the United States Embassy by a truck bomb and an even deadlier attack on the U.S. Marines barracks. Concurrently, in 1982 Hezbollah was created.

Lebanese Civil War  1988 and 1989 were years of unprecedented chaos. As a result, Lebanon was left with no President, and two rival governments that feuded for power, along with more than forty private militias.  The Arab League-sponsored Taif Agreement of 1989 marked the beginning of the end of the war. In all, it is estimated that more than 100,000 were killed, and another 100,000 handicapped by injuries, during Lebanon's 15 year war.

Hezbollah

What is Hezbollah?  Militant Shia terrorist network based in Southern Lebanon and funded by Iran  Cited aim is to destroy Israel while turning Lebanon into a Muslim state  Call themselves the “Party of God,” and provide social services to the local population to garner support  Active political organization in Lebanon

Creation of Hezbollah  Israel invaded Lebanon in 1982 to drive out the PLO which had been continually waging attacks on Israel  Hezbollah is created with the assistance of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps to expel Israel from Lebanon

Area of Hezbollah Control Hezbollah Flag

Hezbollah’s Leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah Hezbollah’s leader since 1992 Makes continual genocidal speeches inciting violence against Jews

Genocidal Mission “ The Jews are a cancer which is liable to spread at any moment.” “There is no solution to the conflict except with the disappearance of Israel.” “If they all gather in Israel, it will save us the trouble of going after them worldwide.” Quotes from Hassan Nasrallah:

Partial List of Hezbollah Attacks  Carried out 36 suicide attacks in Lebanon between 1982 and 1986, directed at American, Israeli, and French forces, killing 659 people.  Bombed the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon in 1983, killing 63 people  Bombed the U.S. Marine Beirut barracks in 1983, killing 241 Americans  Hijacked a Kuwait flight in 1984, killing 4 passengers  Hijacked TWA flight 847 in 1985, killing a Navy serviceman  Bombed a U.S. Embassy vehicle in 2008  Continual rocket attacks upon Israeli civilian population centers and kidnappings 1995– 2000 and 2006

Missile Threat to Israel

Hezbollah Tactics Hezbollah fires rockets at Israeli cities and civilian population centers Hezbollah hides their rocket launchers amongst densely populated Lebanese civilian areas to provoke civilian casualties from Israeli air strikes Hezbollah seeks civilian casualties to aid in their propaganda campaign against Israel

The Iranian Connection

A Proxy of Iran  Hezbollah receives funding and logistical support from Syria and primarily from Iran  Iran supplies Hezbollah with weapons and military training from Iran’s own Islamic Revolutionary Guard  Hezbollah takes orders from the Iranian religious leadership regarding military targets, tactics, and political actions  Hezbollah has a defense treaty with Iran and Syria, where if one entity fights in a conflict or is attacked, the other entities will come to each other’s aid to fight in the conflict

Funding and Influence  Western analysts estimate Hezbollah’s budget to be $200-$500 million annually  Hezbollah is funded by Iran, Syria, charitable organizations, individual donations, businesses, illegal arms trading, cigarette smuggling, counterfeiting, credit card fraud, theft, illegal telephone exchanges, and drug trafficking  Hezbollah has active cells in many Western countries all over the world, and in Israel, raising money and plotting new attacks on Americans, Jews, and Westerners

Hezbollah – Greater Threat than Al Qaeda?  Former Homeland security Chief Michael Chertoff: “ Someone described Hezbollah like the A- team of terrorists in terms of capabilities, in terms of range of weapons they have, in terms of internal discipline. To be honest, they make Al Qaeda look like a minor league team.”