Hundred Days' War
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The Hundred Days War (, ''Harb Al-Mia'at Yaoum,'' French: La Guerre des Cent Jours) was a subconflict within the 1977–82 phase of the Lebanese Civil War which occurred in the Lebanese capital
Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
. It was fought between the allied
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
Lebanese Front The Lebanese Front was a coalition of mainly right-wing Lebanese Nationalist parties formed in 1976 by majority Christian groups during the Lebanese Civil War. It was intended to act as a reaction force to the Lebanese National Movement (LNM) ...
militias, under the command of the
Kataeb Party The Kataeb Party (), officially the Kataeb Party – Lebanese Social Democratic Party ( '), also known as the Phalangist Party, is a right-wing Christian political party in Lebanon founded by Pierre Gemayel in 1936. The party and its parami ...
's President
Bachir Gemayel Bachir Pierre Gemayel (, ; 10 November 1947 – 14 September 1982) was a Lebanese militia commander who led the Lebanese Forces, the military wing of the Kataeb Party, in the Lebanese Civil War and was elected President of Lebanon in 1982. ...
, and the
Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
n troops of the
Arab Deterrent Force The Arab Deterrent Force (ADF; ) was an international peacekeeping force created by the Arab League in the 1976 Arab League summit (Riyadh), extraordinary Riyadh Summit on 17–18 October 1976, attended only by heads of state from Egypt, Kuwait, ...
(ADF).


Background

In January 1976, the
Phalange The phalanges (: phalanx ) are digital bones in the hands and feet of most vertebrates. In primates, the thumbs and big toes have two phalanges while the other digits have three phalanges. The phalanges are classed as long bones. Structure ...
joined the main Christian parties – National Liberal Party (NLP),
Lebanese Renewal Party The Lebanese Renewal Party – LRP (Arabic: حزب التجدد اللبناني transliteration ''Hezb al-Tajaddud al-Lubnani'') or Parti de la Renovation Libanaise (PRL) in French, was a political party in Lebanon formed in 1972 by a number of ...
(LRP), Marada Brigade,
Al-Tanzim Al-Tanzim, ''Al-Tanzym'' or ''At-Tanzim'' () was the name of an secret military society and militia set up by Christianity in Lebanon, Christian activists in Lebanon at the early 1970s, and which came to play an important role in the Lebanese C ...
, and others – in a loose coalition, the
Lebanese Front The Lebanese Front was a coalition of mainly right-wing Lebanese Nationalist parties formed in 1976 by majority Christian groups during the Lebanese Civil War. It was intended to act as a reaction force to the Lebanese National Movement (LNM) ...
, designed to act as a political counterweight to the predominantly
Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
Lebanese National Movement The Lebanese National Movement (LNM; , ''Al-Harakat al-Wataniyya al-Lubnaniyya'') was a front of Leftist, pan-Arabist and Syrian nationalist parties and organizations active during the early years of the Lebanese Civil War, which supported ...
(LNM) –
Palestine Liberation Organization The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ) is a Palestinian nationalism, Palestinian nationalist coalition that is internationally recognized as the official representative of the Palestinians, Palestinian people in both the occupied Pale ...
(PLO) alliance. In order to deal with the Syrian military intervention of June 1976 and better coordinate the military operations of their respective militias, Christian militia leaders agreed to form in August that year a joint military command (a.k.a. the "Command Council") whose new collective name was the "Lebanese Forces" (LF). From the very beginning, it became clear that the Lebanese Front's Command Council was dominated by the
Phalange The phalanges (: phalanx ) are digital bones in the hands and feet of most vertebrates. In primates, the thumbs and big toes have two phalanges while the other digits have three phalanges. The phalanges are classed as long bones. Structure ...
and its KRF militia under the charismatic leadership of
Bachir Gemayel Bachir Pierre Gemayel (, ; 10 November 1947 – 14 September 1982) was a Lebanese militia commander who led the Lebanese Forces, the military wing of the Kataeb Party, in the Lebanese Civil War and was elected President of Lebanon in 1982. ...
, who sought to unify the various Christian militias. From 1977 onwards, Bachir began implementing the controversial "unification of the rifle" policy, using the LF to build a new power base for himself, distinct from that of the Phalange or any of the other traditional rightist parties. However, Bachir's actions soon put him on a direct collision course with Syria. Relations between the LF command and
Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...
had already become frosty as a consequence of the ADF's growing unwillingness to either suppress the LNM-PLO alliance militias in west Beirut altogether or allow the Christian militias to do so.


History


The Hundred Days' War


1 July 1978

On this day, Syrian army started a military offensive destined to dislodge the anti-Syrian Lebanese Front leadership from Beirut and the Front's strongholds. This move not only began the Lebanese Hundred's Days War but a series of confrontation between Lebanese nationalists and Syrian regime and pro-Syrian factions, that continue to this day. In this opening act, Syria gathered 15,000 troops around Beirut supported by heavy weaponry, which bombed Lebanese residential areas in the city at a heavy rate reaching sometimes 100 shells per minute. On the other hand, the Lebanese Front united its leadership under Bachir Gemayel and started successive counter operations against Syrian brigades, which Syria responded with further savage bombings determined to seize control of Lebanon at all costs. The final stage of the war culminated with the humiliating surrender of brigades of Syrian special forces in Beirut after only days of encirclement. This event caused a massive collapse in Syrian moral and its leadership started to question the ability of the army to take Lebanon. Following this, the USSR rushed to defend Syria by calling a meeting to UN security council on 7th October 1978. The meeting lasted for only 4 minutes and issued resolution 436, forcing an end to the fightings, an end to Syrian so called "de-zionification" operation and recognising the legitimacy of the Lebanese Front as representative of Lebanese Free Zones on international stages.


Consequences

However, the LF attack on the pro-Syrian Marada Brigade militia of the Frangieh Clan that summer, which culminated in the infamous Ehden massacre, provoked another round of fighting in June–July. President
Elias Sarkis Elias ( ; ) is the hellenized version for the name of Elijah (; ; , or ), a prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel in the 9th century BC, mentioned in several holy books. Due to Elias' role in the scriptures and to many later associated tradit ...
threatened to resign in protest over the Syrian bombardment of East Beirut, but later withdrew his resignation when the shelling stopped. More fighting erupted in the fall, again followed by a ceasefire. In October 1978, the
Foreign Minister In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...
s of
Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
and those
Arab League The Arab League (, ' ), officially the League of Arab States (, '), is a regional organization in the Arab world. The Arab League was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945, initially with seven members: Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt, Kingdom of Iraq, ...
states contributing to the ADF –
Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
,
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
,
Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...
,
Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
,
Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...
and the
UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...
– met at the town of
Beiteddine Beit ed-Dine (), also known as Btaddine () is a small town and the administrative capital of the Chouf District in the Mount Lebanon Governorate in Lebanon. The town is located 45 kilometers southeast of Beirut, and near the town of Deir el-Q ...
, in the
Chouf District Chouf (also spelled Shouf, Shuf or Chuf; ) is a historic region of Lebanon, as well as an administrative district in the governorate ( muhafazat) of Mount Lebanon. Geography Located south-east of Beirut, the region comprises a narrow coastal stri ...
south-east of Beirut. The outcome of the meeting was essentially a reaffirmation of the role of the ADF and a strong condemnation of those dealing with
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
.Text of the Beit ed-Dine declaration in ''Middle East Report'' (MER), October 21, 1978, pp. 17–18. This meeting, and subsequent discussions between Syria and Saudi Arabia led to the lifting of the siege of Achrafieh by the Syrians and the withdrawal of all Syrian troops from East Beirut, being replaced by Saudi and Sudanese ADF troops, whom the
Lebanese Front The Lebanese Front was a coalition of mainly right-wing Lebanese Nationalist parties formed in 1976 by majority Christian groups during the Lebanese Civil War. It was intended to act as a reaction force to the Lebanese National Movement (LNM) ...
leaders viewed as more impartial and less hostile towards the Christians than the Syrian forces. The settlement was welcomed by the
Lebanese Front The Lebanese Front was a coalition of mainly right-wing Lebanese Nationalist parties formed in 1976 by majority Christian groups during the Lebanese Civil War. It was intended to act as a reaction force to the Lebanese National Movement (LNM) ...
parties and marked the end of the clashes.


See also

* Army of Free Lebanon * Battle of the Hotels *
Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) 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 Forces The Lebanese Forces ( ') is a Lebanon, Lebanese Christianity in Lebanon, Christian-based political party and Lebanese Forces (militia), former militia during the Lebanese Civil War. It currently holds 19 of the 128 seats in Lebanon's Parliamen ...
*
Lebanese Front The Lebanese Front was a coalition of mainly right-wing Lebanese Nationalist parties formed in 1976 by majority Christian groups during the Lebanese Civil War. It was intended to act as a reaction force to the Lebanese National Movement (LNM) ...
*
List of weapons of the Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War was a multi-sided military conflict that pitted a variety of local irregular militias, both Muslim and Christian, against each other between 1975 and 1990. A wide variety of weapons were used by the different armies and ...


References


Bibliography

*
Edgar O'Ballance Major Edgar "Paddy" O'Ballance (17 July 1918, Dublin, Ireland â€“ 8 July 2009, Wakebridge, Derbyshire, England) was an Irish-born British military journalist, researcher, defence commentator and academic lecturer specialising in internatio ...
, ''Civil War in Lebanon, 1975–92'', Palgrave Macmillan, London 1998. *
Itamar Rabinovich Itamar Rabinovich (; born 8 October 1942) is the president of the Israel Institute (Washington and Jerusalem). He was Israel's Ambassador to the United States in the 1990s and former chief negotiator with Syria between 1993 and 1996, and the form ...
, ''The war for Lebanon, 1970–1985'', Cornell University Press, Ithaca and London 1989 (revised edition). * Joseph Hokayem, ''L'armée libanaise pendant la guerre: un instrument du pouvoir du président de la République (1975–1985)'', Lulu.com, Beyrouth 2012. , (in French) â€
L'armée libanaise pendant la guerre: un instrument du pouvoir du président de la République (1975–1985)
* Jonathan Randall, ''Going All the Way: Christian Warlords, Israeli Adventurers and the War in Lebanon'', Just World Books 2012. * Moustafa El-Assad, ''Civil Wars Volume 1: The Gun Trucks'', Blue Steel books, Sidon 2008. * Rex Brynen, ''Sanctuary and Survival: the PLO in Lebanon'', Boulder: Westview Press, Oxford 1990. â€

* Paul Jureidini, R. D. McLaurin, and James Price, ''Military operations in selected Lebanese built-up areas, 1975–1978'', Aberdeen, MD: U.S. Army Human Engineering Laboratory, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Technical Memorandum 11-79, June 1979. * Samer Kassis, ''30 Years of Military Vehicles in Lebanon'', Beirut: Elite Group, 2003. * Samer Kassis, ''Véhicules Militaires au Liban/Military Vehicles in Lebanon 1975–1981'', Trebia Publishing, Chyah 2012. {{refend


External links


The 100 Days War, the Battle of Ashrafieh – Lebanese Forces official site

Chamussy (René) – Chronique d'une guerre: Le Liban 1975-1977 – éd. Desclée – 1978
(in French)
Histoire militaire de l'armée libanaise de 1975 à 1990
(in French) Conflicts in 1978 Military operations of the Lebanese Civil War 1978 in Lebanon Beirut in the Lebanese Civil War 1970s in Beirut July 1978 in Asia August 1978 in Asia September 1978 in Asia October 1978 in Asia