Answers: Lebanon and Conflict
The modern history of Lebanon as a state began in 1920 under French control, following the Ottoman Empire’s defeat in the First World War. The colonial power merged a group of Ottoman-era districts and called the new entity Greater Lebanon. Christians at the time made up approximately half the population but the demographic balance changed in the decades to come amid emigration and relatively higher birth rates among Muslim communities. Lebanon became an independent nation in 1943 and its political leadership devised a sectarian power-sharing system with a Maronite Christian President, Sunni Muslim Prime Minister and a Shia Muslim Speaker of Parliament.
The creation of Israel in 1948 and the forced displacement of Palestinians led to a large number of refugees arriving in Lebanon, adding another layer to the delicate sectarian balance. The tensions eventually erupted into the 15-year-long civil war from 1975 to 1990 and drew in external powers, including the United States, Syria, Iran and especially Israel. Israel first intervened militarily in 1978. Its next invasion in 1982 lasted 18 years, a period that saw the birth and rise of Hezbollah. The two sides fought an inconclusive war in 2006 and now Israel is back on the ground in southern Lebanon, along with the massive air attacks that decimated Hezbollah’s leadership.
November 27 update: A ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah has come into effect.
Answers
1) He was the head of Lebanon’s football federation and was part of the country’s delegation at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Impressed by Nazi youth groups in Adolf Hitler's Germany, he decided to start a movement with the objective of instilling civic responsibility and discipline among the youth (of a particular community) in Lebanon. The movement became a political party and a militia. Who was the founder and what is the political group? (Hint: One of his sons was assassinated in 1982)
Pierre Gemayel. He founded the Christian-dominated Kataeb Party, also known as Phalange (the name was inspired by the conservative Catholic Falange party in Spain, which was later co-opted and rebranded by General Francisco Franco as the sole recognised party under his dictatorship)
Kataeb spoke to Christian fears of losing their demographic clout following the entry of mostly Muslim Palestinian refugees. Violence involving Kataeb militiamen and Palestinians sparked the civil war in 1975. Pierre Gemayel’s son Bachir set up the Lebanese Forces militia by uniting various Christian militias including the Kataeb’s armed wing. The Kataeb and the Lebanese Forces were backed by Israel. Shortly after Israel invaded Lebanon in 1982 Bachir Gemayel was elected President by Lebanon’s Parliament. But he was assassinated before taking office. Kataeb blamed the Palestine Liberation Organization and orchestrated the massacres at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps. Bachir’s brother Amine Gemayel was President from 1982 to 1988. Amine’s son Pierre Gemayel was the industry minister when he was assassinated in 2006. The Kataeb and the Lebanese Forces are separate political entities now.
2) Which country’s troops landed on the beaches of Beirut in 1958, the first of several military interventions in the Middle East?
United States. The military intervention came a year after the declaration of the ‘Eisenhower Doctrine’, under which the U.S. would provide economic and military assistance to Middle East countries requesting aid against “overt armed aggression from any nation controlled by international communism.”
In February 1958, Egypt and Syria merged to form the United Arab Republic. On July 14, Iraq’s King Faisal II was overthrown in a military coup. Lebanon’s pro-Western Christian President Camille Chamoun, who had placed the country under the Eisenhower Doctrine, was facing intense opposition inspired by Arab nationalism. Spooked by Arab nationalism, the U.S. linked it to its fears of communism and sent troops to Lebanon on July 15, 1958, just a day after the coup in Iraq.
While only one American soldier was killed in 1958, the military intervention as part of a peacekeeping force in 1982 was far more deadly. 63 people were killed in a suicide bomb attack on the U.S. Embassy in Beirut in April 1983. That was followed by truck bombings in October that killed 241 U.S. soldiers and 58 French troops. President Ronald Reagan withdrew most U.S. forces from Beirut in February 1984. More here and here.
3) This country sent troops to Lebanon in 1976 amid the civil war. Its military presence continued until 2005 when it faced a backlash following an assassination. Which country’s troops and who was assassinated?
Syria. It withdrew its troops in 2005 following a backlash after the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. More on why Syria intervened in 1976 here and here. Lebanon’s neighbour under the dictatorship of Hafez Al Assad initially sent troops to support Christian forces against the Palestinians and went on to support various groups at different points during its long military presence.
4) What scandal with major implications in the U.S. was first revealed by the Lebanese weekly, Ash-Shiraa, on November 3, 1986?
The Iran-Contra scandal that rocked the Ronald Reagan administration. The U.S. secretly sold arms to Iran via Israel, attempting to secure the release of American hostages held by Iran’s ally Hezbollah in Lebanon. Proceeds from the arms sales were clandestinely diverted to Contra rebels in Nicaragua, bypassing a U.S. Congress ban on aid to the group. An Israeli perspective here on clandestine Israeli military sales to Iran during the 1980s, at a time Iran was fighting the Saddam Hussein-led Iraq in a eight-year-long war. Israel at the time viewed Iraq as a bigger security threat and bombed its Osirak nuclear research reactor in 1981.
5) Terry Anderson, who was chief Middle East correspondent for The Associated Press during the 1980s died this April. How was he known in the context of Lebanon’s civil war?
Terry Anderson was the last of the Western hostages held by armed groups in Lebanon linked to Hezbollah during the 1980s to be released. Other hostages include Terry Waite, an envoy of the Archbishop of Canterbury and agriculture professor Thomas Sutherland.
6) Which organisation moved its headquarters to Beirut in 1971 after a crackdown in Jordan? Its leadership and thousands of fighters were forced to leave in 1982 following the Israeli invasion, under a deal supervised by a multinational force made up of troops from the U.S., UK, France and Italy.
Palestine Liberation Organization. The PLO moved its headquarters to Tunisia in 1982. At least 60 people were killed in 1985 in an attack on the seaside complex near Tunis, though Yasser Arafat escaped. Arafat moved back to the Gaza Strip in 1994 following the Oslo Accords.
7) Who was forced to resign as Defence Minister in 1983 after an Israeli tribunal concluded that he bore ‘personal responsibility’ for not preventing the massacre of hundreds in the Palestinian refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila in Beirut?
Ariel Sharon. More here, here, here, here and here.
8) In 2000 Lebanon granted political asylum to Japanese citizen Kozo Okamoto. Which group was he part of? (the group was notorious for actions in the 1970s and 1980s)
Japanese Red Army. The far-left group was formed in 1971 and established ties with Palestinian fighters. It carried out a series of attacks in Japan and around the world, including one on Tel Aviv’s airport in 1972. The group’s co-founder Fusako Shigenobu was released in 2022 after completing a 20-year sentence in Japan. She apologised for hurting innocent people. Kozo Okamoto is still in Lebanon.
9) Which 39-square-km patch of land is claimed by Lebanon but was controlled by Syria until 1967 when Israel seized it during the war that year? The area has been a flashpoint for Israel-Hezbollah clashes since Israeli forces withdrew from southern Lebanon in 2000.
Shebaa Farms. Lebanon also claims the nearby Kfar Chouba Hills. Both Shebaa Farms and Kfar Chouba Hills were part of Syria’s Golan Heights, which was occupied by Israel during the 1967 war. Another village, Ghajar, was divided in 2000 between Lebanon and Israel under the United Nations’ Blue Line following the Israeli withdrawal from Southern Lebanon. But Israel took all of Ghajar during the 2006 conflict with Hezbollah. Israel has said it recognised the UN-drawn line dividing the village but insisted it will stay until there was an agreement preventing Hezbollah from entering the village.
10) What is the importance of the Litani River in Lebanon in the context of Israel’s demands and the United Nations Security Council’s Resolution 1701 in 2006?
Hezbollah was to move its forces north of the Litani river according to Resolution 1701. Both Israel and Hezbollah have violated the provisions of Resolution 1701 several times.
11) What were the consequences years later of a Moldova-flagged ship making its way from Georgia to Mozambique that was forced to dock in Beirut in 2013?
Beirut port blast. More here and here.
12) Which country has the largest number of people of Lebanese heritage? Its foreign ministry estimates there are between 7 million and 10 million people of Lebanese descent, which is more than the entire population of Lebanon. A recent president of this country was of Lebanese descent.
Brazil. More here and here. Michel Temer, Brazil’s President from 2016 to 2019 is of Lebanese heritage. Brazil’s current Finance Minister Fernando Haddad, who lost the 2018 presidential election to Jair Bolsonaro is also of Lebanese descent.
Ecuador, Colombia and Paraguay have also been led by Presidents of Lebanese heritage.
Lebanese immigrants have become economically influential figures in large parts of Africa, especially West Africa. The longtime Speaker of Lebanon’s Parliament, Nabih Berri, was born in Sierra Leone.
13) Which former chemistry teacher is the author of the book Hizbullah: The Story From Within?
Naim Qassem, Hezbollah’s new leader.
14) The U.S. and Israel have long accused Hezbollah of operating in a region known as the Tri-Border Area, where three countries meet. All three countries have large populations of Lebanese origin. A Lebanese businessman accused by the U.S. of being a Hezbollah financier was arrested in 2018. Name the three countries that meet at the Tri-Border Area.
Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina.
15) How is the Saudi mountain resort city of Taif linked to Lebanon in the context of the country’s 15-year-long civil war?
The Taif agreement that ended Lebanon’s civil war was reached there.
16) What was carried out for the last time in Lebanon in 1932 when it was under French colonial rule? Political allocations based on the 1932 figures still hold sway, though marred by allegations that one community was favoured by inflating its numbers. Lebanon is the rare country that has not held this exercise for more than 90 years.
Census. The 1932 census showed Christians had a majority but the data has been marred by allegations emigrants were also counted to pad up Christian numbers. More here and here. The Taif agreement that ended the 1975-90 civil war reconfigured the parliamentary seat ratio between Christian and Muslim sects from 55:45 to 50:50. The powers of the Shia Muslim speaker and the Sunni Muslim prime minister were boosted, at the expense of the Maronite Christian president.
17) An ancient Roman temple complex in this city in eastern Lebanon was declared a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1984. The predominantly Shia city is regarded as the birthplace of Hezbollah. In September 2023 the group opened a military museum on the site where it carried out its first military exercises in 1982. Name the city.
Baalbek. It was the first Lebanese city in which all residents were ordered to leave by Israel and has been heavily bombed. The coastal Tyre, another city bombed by Israel, also has the UNESCO World Heritage Site designation.
November 19 update: 34 cultural properties in Lebanon including the world heritage sites in Baalbek and Tyre have been placed by UNESCO under enhanced protection. The UN agency said non-compliance would involve ‘serious violations’ of the 1954 Hague Convention on protecting cultural heritage during armed conflict and ‘would constitute potential grounds for prosecution’.
18) Which Lebanese Prime Minister announced his resignation in a televised speech from Saudi Arabia in November 2017? Saudi Arabia was accused of holding him hostage, which Riyadh denied. He returned to Lebanon in about three weeks after mediation by Egypt and France.
Saad Hariri. His father and assassinated former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri founded Saudi Oger, a prominent construction company in the Kingdom. The company collapsed in July 2017, just over three months before Saad Hariri announced his resignation.
While Hariri survived the Saudi controversy, he resigned in 2019 after anger over a financial crisis sparked mass protests. Hariri was invited again to form a government the next year only to resign in July 2021. He announced his withdrawal from active politics in January 2022.
19) A prominent road in Lebanon’s second largest city is called Syria Street. The street divides the neighbourhoods of Jabal Mohsen and Bab al-Tabbaneh. Jabal Mohsen is dominated by Alwaites, the sect of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad, while Bab al-Tabbaneh is predominantly Sunni. The street was notorious for shootouts between the two sides during Lebanon’s civil war as well as the Syrian civil war during the past decade. Name the city.
20) He was appointed commander-in-chief of the Lebanese army in 1984. He was named acting head of government in 1988 but ended up facing off against a rival administration. He opposed Syrian influence and took refuge in the French embassy as the civil war was winding down. He was allowed to leave the country after spending ten months in the French embassy. He returned in 2005 and later became the President with Hezbollah’s support. Who?
Michel Aoun. He returned to Lebanon in 2005 after Syrian troops withdrew in the aftermath of Rafik Hariri’s assassination. He was President from 2016 until October 2022. Lebanon’s Parliament is yet to agree on his successor. After inconclusive parliamentary elections in May 2022, a caretaker government with limited powers has administered the country. After Aoun completed his term, Lebanon has been without a President for over two years, while having a caretaker Prime Minister during the period.
January 2025 update: Army chief Joseph Aoun has been elected President, in the 13th attempt by Lebanon’s Parliament spread over two years (Joseph Aoun is not related to Michel Aoun). Joseph Aoun’s election comes after Israel’s military offensive weakened Hezbollah and Bashar Al Assad lost power in Syria. Saudi Arabia is poised to increase its influence while Iran’s clout has weakened.