Lebanon’s 15-Year War, 1975-1990

The factions fought fiercely through early 1976, and Lebanon became effectively partitioned, with the Christians in power in the north and the Muslims in the south. Fearing an expanded war, both Israel and Syria initially intervened on the side of the Christians, who had begun to lose ground. In 1982 Israel invaded southern Lebanon to destroy Palestinian guerrilla bases. PLO forces were driven out of Beirut, and by 1985 Israel had withdrawn from much of Lebanon, which by then was split internally over whether to accept Syria’s leadership.