The First Rolling Online Time-line for the History of LEBANON. All major political events, elections, Presidents, Agreements, Pacts, Resolutions, Wars and Peace events, Escalations, Happenings, Clashes and Flashes... Feel free to email for proposed edits and additions. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lebanese Republic -Anthem: Kulluna lil-watan lil 'ula lil-'alam -Area: 10,452 km²; Water (%) 1.6 -Population: February 2008 estimate 4,196,453; Density: 358/km² -Location: 33°54′N, 35°32′E Lebanese ethnicity is a mixture of Phoenician, Greek, Armenian, and Arab elements. Many Christian Lebanese do not identify as Arab, and prefer to be called Phoenician. The earliest evidence of civilization in Lebanon dates back more than 7,000 years—predating recorded history. Lebanon was the home of the Phoenicians, a maritime culture that flourished for nearly 2,500 years (3000–539 BC). Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War I, the five provinces that comprise modern Lebanon were mandated to France. Lebanon established a unique political system in 1942, known as confessionalism, a power-sharing mechanism based on religious communities. It was created when the French expanded the borders of Mount Lebanon, which was mostly populated by Maronite Catholics and Druze, to include more Muslim elements. The country gained independence in 1943, and French troops withdrew in 1946.
Created by ilcapo on 25/04/2008
Last updated: 09/04/13 at 15:07
Tags: Lebanon. Beirut Liban
Pope arrives in Beirut for three-day visit, focusing on religious tolerance and welfare of Christians in Middle East.
A plane carrying Pope Benedict XVI has arrived at Beirut's International airport, witnesses said, at the start of a three-day visit aimed at addressing the position of Christians in a region torn by civil war in neighboring Syria.
The Lebanese deployed thousands of troops on Friday to secure the pope's visit in which he is expected to stress unity
among the different Christian churches in the Middle East and peace between Christians and Muslims.
Religious pluralism and the welfare of Christians in the region were likely to top the agenda of his tour, but the pontiff was also expected to call for an end to the conflict in Syria and a halt to arming the two sides.
He will call on Lebanon's Christians to unite, divided as they are not only toward the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but also on a political vision for their own country.
http://blog.lebanesetag.com/2012/09/pope-benedict-in-lebanon-for-peace-visit.html
Mikati, 55, received the backing of 65 of parliament's 128 MPs who have been meeting since Monday with President Michel Sleiman after Hezbollah brought down the unity government of Western-backed Saad Hariri on January 12. Sleiman was expected to appoint Mikati to head the new government later on Tuesday after wrapping up his consultations with parliamentary groups. His probable appointment has sparked widespread anger within the Sunni community. It is seen as a bid by the Iranian- and Syrian-backed Hezbollah to sideline Hariri, the most popular Sunni leader in Lebanon, and essentially take control of the government.
Caretaker Premier Saad al Hariri addressed the Lebanese peope in a press conference he held on Thursday that the Lebanese people's dignity is above all considerations, it is more important than any governmental office or power. "It is not true that the internationals schemes are taking Lebanon to the abyss" he said. "Only when the Lebanese leaders decide to take their country to a deadlock, only then they will succeed," he added. Harrir said "we were not raised to go to the streets, we were taught to resort to institutions and the constitution." "I chose to follow the path of his King Abdullah Ben Abdel Aziz. Consequently, I have launched initiatives and made sacrifices. I saw the light at the end of the Saudi-Syrian initiative as a way out of political tensions," he said. Harrir thanked the Qatari Prime minister, Turkish Foreign Minister, Syrian prsident and Saudi king for their efforts. He reiterated his full commitment to the initiatives and efforts; however, "the train of the initiative was stopped. They will not take the initiative unless Saad al Hariri is not named for Premiership, they said." "Their aim is to halt the special tribunal to Lebanon and keep me away,"he added. "My national responsibility implies that i take action and not stand still before this deadlock. Let the constitutional measures take place," he said. "I will remain faithful to the national school of Rafic al Hariri. He drew a road map to Lebanon's economic future and helped it regain its position at the international arena. They assassinated Rafic al HArrir; however, they were not able to kill co-existence, said Hariri. "Conflict shall not be the price paid for justice. We have not reached this point, offered these sacrifices and supported economic and social growth to give up on them," he added. "We cannot offer our children a future of war and turmoil; we shall remain faithful to Lebanon's unity and its people's dignity. The Lebanese people's priorities will remain our main concern," he assured. "We will not give up on our national responsibilities. We shall achieve an independent state," Hariri concluded.
Turkish Prime Minister Rajab Tayyep Erdogan arrived Wednesday 11:35 a.m. at Rafic Hariri International Airport after one-hour delay, National news agency reported. Erdogan was received at airport by PM Saad Hariri along with Arab and foreign ambassadors.
Lebanon on Friday hosts a historic and fateful summit of regional leaders aimed at defusing tensions over reports of an impending indictment against Hizbullah members for the murder of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri. The meeting between President Michel Suleiman, Saudi King Abdullah and Syrian President Bashar Assad was hastily organized amid fears of Sunni-Shiite violence should the Special Tribunal for Lebanon implicate "rogue" Hizbullah members. Abdullah visited Beirut for the first time as Saudi king. He had attended the Arab summit in Beirut in 2002 when he was still crown prince. He became the first Saudi monarch to visit the country since 1957. As for Assad, he visited the Lebanese capital after an eight-year absence to consolidate the resumption of normal ties between the two countries following five years of tension that erupted after Hariri's assassination in February 2005. Abdullah and Assad arrived together from Damascus aboard the king's plane at around 2:00 pm. After a welcoming ceremony at the airport in which Suleiman, Speaker Nabih Berri, Premier Saad Hariri, cabinet members and other officials took part, the two Arab leaders headed to Baabda palace for summit talks. The meeting between the three heads of state will also be attended by Berri, Hariri and members of the Saudi and Syrian delegations and their Lebanese counterparts. An Nahar newspaper said around 250 people have received invitations to attend a luncheon with the exception of some members of the national dialogue, former presidents, party leaders who are not lawmakers and religious officials. Phalange leader Amin Gemayel and Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea are among those who haven't been invited while former President Emile Lahoud received an invitation.
Noble’s announcement of the Leviathan prospect and its plans to drill later this year have provoked a number of claims from Lebanon that the field extends into its offshore territory and has prompted the Lebanese government to fast track a new hydrocarbon law so that it might prepare to begin offshore exploration work of its own. In recent weeks belligerent statements have been exchanged between Israel and Lebanon.
On the news: The public prosecutor Saeed Mirza, a judge in a letter to the Bank of Lebanon, the release of the money the former head of Syrian military intelligence in Lebanon, General Rustom Ghazaleh, he was not involved in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and his companions, According to the Lebanese judiciary!!!!
Lebanon's President Michel Suleiman waves upon his arrival at Camille Chamoun Sports City stadium for the opening ceremony of the Francophone Games in Beirut September 27, 2009. The sports and art event, which is held once in every four years.
http://blog.lebanesetag.com/2009/09/hariri-to-try-again.html
Sheik Husam Qaraqirah, center, who heads the Association of Islamic Philanthropic Projects, an orthodox Sunni Muslim group in Lebanon also known as the Habashis, holds up the hands of Lebanese brothers Mahmoud, left, and Ahmed Abdel-Al, right, as they celebrate their freedom at the headquarters of the pro-Syrian Al-Ahbash group in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2009. Three men jailed for more than three years in the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri were set free on bail on Wednesday, days before an international tribunal was to begin trying the case.
Militants in Lebanon sent rockets crashing into northern Israel on Wednesday, while Israeli aircraft pounded a Gaza cemetery, Hamas weapons positions and tunnels used for smuggling, witnesses and the military said. The rockets from Lebanon landed in open areas near the town of Kiryat Shemona, causing no injuries or damage, Israeli police said. Residents of northern Israel were instructed to head to bomb shelters following the second attack from Lebanon in less than a week. The rockets have fueled Israel's fears that militants in Lebanon could try to open a second front in solidarity with Gaza's Islamic militant Hamas rulers.
A Lebanese police officer stands guard in front of the newly opened Syrian embassy in the Hamra district of Beirut, Lebanon, Friday, Dec. 26, 2008. Lebanon chose its first ambassador to Syria Saturday, the latest step toward normalizing relations since the neighboring countries agreed earlier this year to establish diplomatic ties
Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, shakes hands with Lebanon's army commander Jean Kahwaji at Al-Shaab Presidential Palace, in Damascus, Syria, on Saturday Nov. 29, 2008. Kahwaji is expected to discuss with top Syrian army officials the fate of Lebanon soldiers captured in 1990 when Syrian troops took over Lebanon's presidential palace and other military affairs. Kahwaji's visit is the first by a Lebanese army commander since Syria withdrew its troops from Lebanon in 2005.
Vatican City - Pope Benedict XVI met Friday with Lebanese President Michel Suleiman and expressed hope for the safeguard of Lebanon's "peculiar the Vatican said. Talks between Benedict and Suleiman, the Maronite Christian president of the majority Muslim nation, lasted for 25 minutes.
Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah meets with Sunni majority leader Saad al-Hariri in Beirut's suburbs.
five people, including five soldiers, were killed, and 35 were injured, by a car bomb which destroyed a bus in Tripoli. -Entrance of Tripoli (Buhsas) -Renault 18, plate #501516 -Remotely detonated
U.S. President George W. Bush welcomed Lebanese President Michel Suleiman for talks Thursday to underline US support for democratic rule in Beirut free from any undue Syrian influence. Lebanese Americans "want Lebanon to be free and sovereign and independent, and so do I, and so do you," Bush told his guest during a brief joint public appearance. "We are here, also, to reaffirm our right to have a prosperous, Lebanon, a democratic Lebanon, a country that is diverse in its nature and through its people," Suleiman said through an interpreter. Neither leader specifically mentioned Syria, which withdrew its forces from its smaller neighbor after a high-profile political slaying in 2005, but continues to wield influence through its allies in Beirut. Bush praised Lebanon's ongoing national reconciliation talks that bring together rival leaders of pro-Syrian and anti-Syrian factions in a dialogue that will set the tone for parliamentary elections due next year. "We're most impressed by the national dialogue that you're holding in an attempt to seek reconciliation. The United States is proud to stand by your side. Our mission is your mission: A country that is strong, and capable, and a country where people can live in peace," said Bush. "I am here to thank for all the efforts that you have undertaken to support Lebanon, particularly the Lebanese military institutions," said Suleiman. "We are also here to affirm the need to liberate all of the Lebanese territories, and also to make it very clear that the future of Palestinian refugees is in their homeland, not in Lebanon," the Lebanese leader said.
The Lebanese army said on Monday that Syria had boosted troop numbers along the border but that Damascus had stressed the move was linked to a crackdown against smugglers. "Nearly 10,000 Syrian special forces have been deployed in the Abbudiya region along the border between Lebanon and Syria," an army spokesman told AFP. "We asked Damascus for clarification and we were told that the measures were strictly internal and on Syrian territory and that they were in no way directed against Lebanon," he added. The spokesman said the Syrian authorities had assured the Lebanese army that the build-up was aimed at cracking down on smuggling activities and other crime along the border.
Lebanon's deeply divided rival factions on Tuesday began national reconciliation talks on the controversial issue of Hezbollah's weapons amid skepticism the dialogue can help bridge differences.
A car bomb explosion on Wednesday killed a ranking official of Druze leader Talal Arslan's Lebanese Democratic Party in the eastern resort of Baisour and wounded six people, police reported. Saleh al-Aridi, in his late 40s, a member of the party's central council, was killed instantly when the bomb ripped through his Mercedes car in Baisour's square, a police official said. The state-run National News Agency said the bomb was planted under the driver's seat of Aridi's car and detonated by remote control. Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat arrived at the victim's residence in Basour shortly after the blast in a show of Druze solidarity and to pay his condolences. Supporters of the Democratic Party opened fire from automatic rifles in the air, in the traditional way of expressing wrath, but no clashes were reported. Security sources in the Aley Province, of which Baisour is part, said the situation is "under control."
High-level Sunni and Alawite leaders will meet later Monday to sign a reconciliation plan for Tripoli to curb sectarian fighting in a move that could pave the way for further reunions between the country's feuding factions. The reconciliation meeting at the house of the Mufti of Tripoli and North Lebanon Sheikh Malek Shaar is expected to take place at 9:30 pm under the auspices of Prime Minister Fouad Saniora.
A bomb exploded near a bus carrying civilians and off-duty members of the military in the northern city of Tripoli early Wednesday, killing nine, including seven soldiers, and wounding at least 10 others, security officials said.
http://blog.lebanesetag.com/2008/08/tripoli-blast-video.html
Near Dayr Ammar as reported by LBC.
1 person killed and 6 wounded during renewed fighting in Tripoli.
Minister____________Ministry Fouad Siniora_______Prime Minister Issam Abou Jamra___Deputy Prime Minister Mohammad Chatah__Finance Ibrahim Najjar_______Justice Mario Aoun__________Social Affairs Ghazi Zoayter________Industry Elie Marouni_________Tourism Tammam Salam_____Culture Antoine Karam_______Environment Elias al-Murr_________Defense Raymond Audi________Displaced Ibrahim Shamseddine__Administrative Reforms Mohammad Safadi_____Economy and trade Ziad Baroud__________Interior Talal Arslan__________Youth and Sports Bahia Hariri__________Education Ghazi Aridi___________Transport and Public Works Fawzi Salloukh________Foreign Affairs Alain Tabourian_______Energy and Water Mohammad Fneish____Labor Mohammad Jawad Khalifa___Health Gebran Bassil________Telecommunications Tarek Mitri____________Information Elias Skaff___________Agriculture Wael Abou Faour______State Ali Qanso____________State Khaled Qabbani_______State Jean Ogassapian______State Nassib Lahoud________State Youssef Taqla_________State
5 people killed and 64 wounded during renewed fighting in Tripoli.
Arab League lead by Qatar as mediator, meet in Beirut. They all came in the same plane to Beirut Airport. The same day it was declared steps for discussion to elect a president and proceed with talks later on in Doha, Qatar. Road blocks started to be removed from all Beirut streets.
Starting at 06:00 a.m. May 13, local time, the Lebanese Army started to deploy to prevent any further fighting. After moving its headquarters, Future TV was back on the air by 4:30 p.m. Lebanese Tourism Minister Joe Sarkis announced that the port of the bay of Jounieh will start accommodating ships and ferries for Lebanese arriving from and leaving to Cyprus. There was less fighting then during the previous days and the rival militias took the chance to bury their dead. On May 14, Lebanon's pro-government and opposition factions, had reached a deal to revoke the two decisions that sparked the fighting. On the same day, the opposition ended its civil disobedience campaign. Also, this day was when the airport had opened for one day to allow a plane to arrive for a meeting and then departure again.
Hezbollah takes over all Hariri's posts; Future TV is shutdown and vacated.... Hariri and his party loose position in Beirut. Taree2 Jdideh, Mazraa, Ras Beirut, Hamra all taken over and delivered to the Lebanese Army. Later on clashes and blood shed moves to the Mountain where Jumblat looses too his positions and hands over to Hezbollah who in its turn hands over to the Lebanese army.
Minutes after Nasrallah's comments referring to pro-government actions as "a declaration of open war", heavy street battles began. Fighting began along Corniche Mazraa, an avenue separating Shiite and Sunni areas, spreading to the western, southern and eastern parts of Beirut where Sunni and Shiite neighborhoods overlapped. Combat was heard near the office of Lebanon's Sunni religious leader - an ally of the pro-American government - and near the official residence of the opposition-aligned parliament speaker. Machine guns and rocket propelled grenades were used by both sides. Opposition militants overran three pro-government offices. More barricades were set up, closing major highways. A CNN correspondent, pinned down with a Lebanese army unit during an intense gun battle, reported that government forces had not reacted to the violence. The army decided not to intervene in the clashes for fear of a breakup of the army along sectarian lines, which happened during the civil war. Fighting from the previous day lasted throughout the night and only stopped for a short time a little bit after dawn on May 9, 2008. However, the fighting quickly resumed after the brief lull. Late in the afternoon, pro-government forces in Beirut had surrendered their arms to the Hezbollah-led opposition. The opposition moved in and took over their abandoned positions in west Beirut, virtually taking over more than half of the capital. About 100 opposition militants in camouflage uniforms marched down Hamra Street. The main pro-government TV station, Future Television & Future News, was occupied by opposition fighters and forced onto close. Later that evening sporadic clashes erupted in Sidon, where two civilians were killed; and in Bar Elias in the Bekaa Valley where a woman was killed. Also, eight people were killed near the town of Aley in clashes between government supporters and opponents. Seven Hezbollah fighters were among the dead.
The 2008 civil war in Lebanon began on May 7, after Lebanon's 17-month long political crisis spiraled out of control. The fighting was sparked by a government move to shut down Hezbollah's telecommunication network and remove Beirut Airport's security chief over alleged ties to Hezbollah. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said the government's decision to declare the group's military telecommunications network illegal was a "declaration of war" on the organization, and demanded that the government revoke it. Hezbollah-led opposition fighters seized control of several West Beirut neighborhoods from Future Movement militiamen loyal to the American-backed government, in street battles that left 11 dead and 30 wounded. The opposition-seized areas were then handed over to the Lebanese Army. The army also pledged to resolve the dispute and has reversed the decisions of the government by letting Hezbollah preserve its telecoms network and re-instating the airport's security chief. Rival Lebanese leaders reached a deal on May 21 2008, to end the 18-month political feud that exploded into fighting and nearly drove the country to a new civil war. It was the worst violence in Beirut since Lebanon's 1975-90 civil war.
Labour demonstrations turn political chaos and riots around Beirut (Mazraa, Barbour, ...); Beirut Airport shutdown!
Two Falangists were murdered and three wounded in Zahle by supporter of pro-Syrian member of parliament
2008, January 27 - Nine people die during riots, later dubbed ‘Black Sunday’ between the army and Shiite demonstrators in suburb of Beirut.
Wissam Eid, a high officer in the Intelligence Service and tasked with the investigation of the murder of Rafiq Hariri died due to car bomb. Three other people 3 and over 20 got injured.
2007, June 13 - Anti-Syrian Member of Parliament Walid Eido and his son killed in Beirut together with two bodyguards and six civilians.
Opposition protestors paralyzed Lebanon by burning tires and cars on major thoroughfares in and around the capital, enforcing a general strike called for by the opposition. Police and troops, deployed in the thousands across the country, worked to open roads, sometimes negotiating with protesters, but refrained from using force. Nonetheless, riots and clashes left three dead, and 133 injured. Two of the casualties were bodyguards of former MP and member of the March 14 majority Fares Soaid.
Nearly one million Lebanese opposition supporters took part in continued anti-government protests in Beirut. Tens of thousands of pro-government supporters staged a counter-rally in the city of Tripoli in northern Lebanon. In an interview with Dubai-based Al-Arabiya television, Mustafa Ismail, a Hezbollah envoy, said that Nasrallah accepted in principle an Arab League plan to stabilize the Lebanese political crisis. According to the plan, the number of ministers in the Lebanese government would grow to 30; two thirds representing the parliamentary majority, one-third representing the opposition. The plan would also give the new government power to establish a new international court for the investigation of the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said "We don't want Lebanon to be an arena of the wars of others." Lebanese Ministers, under siege by protesters, have been sleeping in Ministry offices and doing laundry in the bathrooms. Also, Syria was reported to be supplying Hezbollah with arms. Meanwhile, an opinion poll published in Al-Akhbar on December 12 showed 73% support for the establishment of a national unity government, with opinion evenly divided on the opposition claim that the government had lost its legitimacy.
She returns to BIEL to be a part of a three-day performance.
Lebanon's Industry Minister Pierre Amine Gemayel was assassinated in his car by gunmen in Jdeideh, a Christian neighborhood on the outskirts of Beirut, bringing the Cabinet one seat closer to the nine empty seats that would force it to collapse. He was a young, outspoken opponent of Syria's occupation of Lebanon and its influence in the country. Analysts said Gemayel's death was likely to worsen tensions in the already divided country. Hours after the assassination, the Security Council approved the draft accord for the creation of the Hariri tribunal, sending it to the Lebanese government for final approval.
Eight hundred thousand Hezbollah supporters gathered in Beirut for a "victory rally
Israelis were split on the outcome with the majority believing that no one won. By 25 August, 63% of Israelis polled wanted Olmert to resign due to his handling of the war.
The Israeli Air Force reported that they had killed the head of Hezbollah’s Special Forces, whom they as Sajed Dewayer, while Hezbollah denied this claim. 80 minutes before the cessation of hostilities, the IDF targeted a Palestinian faction in the Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp in Sidon, killing a UNRWA staff member. Two refugees had been killed in an attack on this camp six days before the incident.
IAF attacked a convoy of approximately 750 vehicles containing Lebanese police, army, civilians, and one Associated Press journalist, killing at least seven people and wounding at least 36.
9 Israeli soldiers were killed when the building they were taking cover in was struck by a Hezbollah anti-tank missile and collapsed.
Update Sources