Operation Accountability
| Operation Accountability, Seven-Day War | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Israel, South Lebanon Army | Hezbollah | ||||||
On July 25, 1993, Israeli Forces launched a week-long attack against Lebanon named Operation Accountability in Israel and the Seven-Day War in Lebanon. Israel claimed three purposes to the operation, to strike directly at Hezbollah, to make it difficult for Hezbollah to use southern Lebanon as a base for striking Israel, and to displace refugees in the hopes of pressuring the Lebanese government to intervene against Hezbollah. [1] The affected civilian population included both Lebaneses and refugee Palestinians.
Historical Background
During the Lebanese Civil War, Hezbollah was among several militant groups formed in response to the the Israeli invasion of southern Lebanon. Though chiefly funded by Iran, and later Syria, Hezbollah was believed to be receiving refuge from Lebanon.
When the Taif Agreement was created, it amended the Lebanese constitution to end the civil war, and disband all Lebanese militias. Argument then arose over whether Hezbollah's existence in Lebanon displayed a failure of the government, a blind eye, or clandestine support. Hezbollah themselves claimed that the Taif's statement that it would continue to oppose Israeli occupation meant that as a "resistance group", they were actually protected by the agreement. Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah security general, also declared that while the Taif Agreement was a cessation of the Lebanese Civil War, Hezbollah had never involved itself in that war, and only existed to fight the foreign troops stationed in the country. [citation needed]
Casus belli
In late June 1993, Hezbollah launched rockets against an Israeli village, and the following month attacks by both Hezbollah and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine killed five Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers inside the occupied territory. These actions are generally considered to have been the catalyst for Operation Accountability.[2] Hezbollah, however, declared shelling an Israeli village as a retaliatory act for shelling Lebanese villages by IDF and South Lebanon Army (SLA) militia; and attacking Israeli soldiers in the occupied zone as a legitimate act of resisting occupation.[citation needed]
Participants
The IDF force included artillery, warships, and bombers. Hezbollah is known to have used mortars and rockets. The SLA, which was cooperating with the IDF, broadcast radio warnings for civilians to leave specific villages and the region on its radio station.
Violations of the Laws of War
According to Human Rights Watch and other human rights organizations, both sides in the conflict violated the laws of war by attacking civilian targets.
During the week-long operation, Israel bombarded thousands of houses and buildings resulting in 300,000 civilians being displaced from southern Lebanon towards Beirut and other areas.[3] Israeli forces also destroyed Lebanese infrastructure and civilian targets, such as major electricity stations and bridges, and failed to take adequate measures to minimise civilian casualties, and may have used weapons inappropriate for the environment.
Hezbollah retaliated with rocket attacks on Israeli civilian targets, though inflicted significantly fewer casualties. They were also accused of hiding small arms in civilian houses.
Ultimately, Hezbollah declared that attacking Israeli settlements was only to pressure Israel to stop attacking Lebanese civilians - while Israel claimed a similar motive behind their attacks.
Outcome
A ceasefire was reached after a week, negotiated by the United States, in a form of an oral agreement.[4] Under that agreement, Israel agreed to end its attack against Lebanese civilians and Hezbollah agreed to limit its military operations against the Israeli occupation in Lebanon.[5]
However, that agreement was not completely respected and in April 1996, Israel launched Operation Grapes of Wrath.
In addition to the deaths of 118 Lebanese civilians, a disputed number of Hezbollah combatants were also killed. Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri said that eight had been killed, while Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin claimed more than fifty. There were two Israeli civilians killed by Hezbollah rocket attacks.[6]
In May 2000, Israel left most of the Lebanese occupied territories in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 425, twenty-two years after the adoption of that resolution. It kept, however, the Shebaa Farms, territory for which sovereignty is disputed, and other territory including some in the vicinity of Mount Hermon and the eastern Hasbani River.[7], all of which is south of the Blue Line. After Israeli Army withdrawal, the SLA collapsed and some of those who did not flee towards Israel were brought to trial.