Lebanese+Civil+War+1975

1. Different types and nature of 20th century warfare 2. Origins and causes of wars >> >> -Ideological view >> -Tied into the economic causes, but since there was a large margin of wealth between the Muslims/Druze and the Christians, the Muslims/Druze tended to hold a more Communistic viewpoint. They wanted to redistribute the wealth of the Christians, and the group that united them under this idea was the Lebanese National Movement. 3. Nature of 20th century wars 4. Effects and results of wars
 * Civil
 * A civil war is a war fought between organized groups within a nation, or rarely fought between two nations that used to be united as one nation. Examples of this in the 20th century include the Spanish Civil war and the Lebanese Civil war
 * Guerrilla
 * Guerrilla Warfare consists of a small group of combatants fighting a much larger formal army through a series of mobile attacks, ambushes, and raids. Examples of this include the Vietcong in the Vietnam War.
 * Limited war, total war
 * Limited war is a war in which the opposing sides do not utilize all of their resources towards a war. This could be to preserve the resources or because they are unable to focus all aspects of their society on the war effort.
 * Total war is when the sides use all available resources to destroy their enemy, or remover their enemies ability to continue fighting.
 * Long-term, short-term, and immediate causes
 * Long-term:
 * In 1926 the Lebanese Constitution is created, establishing Lebanon as an Arab Nation. More importantly it establishes Religious identities as most important form of identification, creating divisions within Lebanon which will be seen later.
 * In 1932 a census is taken, revealing that there is a Christian majority. This is the last census taken before the civil war, so many outside nations (Israel and US) view Lebanon as a Christian nation, when in reality by 1975 the Christians are a minority . This out dated census causes many problems prior to and during the civil war.
 * The 1943 National Pact is created based on the 1932 census, thus giving the Christians a larger share of the power then what is proportional to their population. The pact establishes that the President will always be a Maronite Christian, the Prime Minister must always be a Sunni Muslim, the Speaker of the House must always be a Shi'ite Muslim. The pact also established that there would be a 6:5 ratio of Maronite Christians to Sunni Muslims in Lebanese Legislation. The pact leaves out the Druse completely, who are already divided between Lebanon and Syria, so they have no power in either nation (known as balkgnized). This unbalanced division of power only furthers tensions between the different factions already forming in Lebanon, especially between the Maronites and the Druse.
 * With so many religious factions within Lebanon, there was hardly any unity among the population. People tended to associate themselves with their own local religious groups and leaders, know as Zaims. This meant the Lebanese population was turning towards more tribal-like government styles, mainly for protection. This only further separated the different religious and ethnic groups in Lebanon, and added to the tension.
 * The Lebanese National Movement, lead by Druze leaders, also opposed the Maronite Christians power and also caused friction in Lebanon.
 * In 1948 Israel is formed. The Israeli victory in the 1948 War results in thousands of Palestinian refugees fleeing to southern Lebanon. This only adds more to the divided populace of Lebanon.
 * In 1967 the PLO relocates to Lebanon after King Hussein kicks them out of Jordan. While it cannot be directly shown that the PLO are responsible for causing the civil war, there is a tendency for civil unrest to follow the PLO wherever they go. This can be seen in Jordan where they attempted to kill King Hussein, brought the Syrians into the country, and almost caused the collapse of the Jordanian government.
 * Immediate cause:
 * April 1975- Phalange attacked busload of Palestinians, 27 killed
 * Economic, ideological, political, and religious causes
 * Economic causes:
 * Before the Lebanese Civil War, Lebanon was known as the "Switzerland of the Middle East", reffering to its economic prosperity/wealth, although a majority of the wealth was held by the Maronite Christians, leaving the Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims, along with the Druze, living in poverty. The Maronite Christians did nothing to help the impoverished Muslims, creating a feeling of resentment towards the Christians by the Muslims and Druze.
 * Southern Lebanon (mostly Palestinians) was economically depressed while Christians in other areas were wealthier. This was due to educational and employment advantages given to them because of the 1943 National Pact
 * * 1970 Arab Oil Embargo caused inflation/economic disparities between rich and poor to increase.
 * Political causes:
 * Unfair distribution of power, did not encourage unity
 * 1943 National Pact
 * Based on the 1932 census
 * President - Christian
 * Prime Minister- Sunni
 * Speaker of Parliament- Shiite
 * People were more loyal to Zaim, very little national pride
 * Technological developments, tactics and strategies, air, land and sea
 * Home front: economic and social impact (including changes in the role and status of women)
 * Resistance and revolutionary movements
 * Peace settlements and wars ending without treaties
 * Attempts at collective security pre-and post-Second World War
 * Political repercussions and territorial changes
 * Post-war economic problems

Overview: The area was settled mainly by Sunni Muslims, but there were other sects involved in the area even before outsiders threatened the balance. Maronite Christians settled the area shortly after the crusades, finding that the mountains were an isolated sanctuary to practice their religion. The Druse (sect of Islam) moved in for the same reason and became the second largest majority in the area with the Christians retaining their lead. For reasons that don't pertain to our class, there was a Lebanese Civil War in the 1860s between these two rivaling power groups that was fomented by the Sultan of the region who decided it was better to have them distracted fighting each other rather than the Ottoman government. Soon France took over the region after WWI as a mandate. With the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, France realized that it needed a way to organize the region so that the tribal disputes wouldn't interfere with the resources and money "borrowing" they were doing, and put the Maronite Christians in power, claiming they had 51% of the majority in the country, and split the Druse community between Syria and Lebanon to break up their power. This balance was fairly stable until...

Israel was formed. The Palestinians in the north fled to Lebanon (particularly the southern part), and some of those people became involved in the PLO. The Muslim/Druse population in Lebanon - who had a majority in the southern region - used this to gain more leverage in the Maronite government, while in reality it angered the Maronites. The ordinarily tedious but civil relationships between the different factions in Lebanon became strained. Fighting broke out and soon East and South Lebanon were in a civil war, splitting Beirut in two. Syria took the opportunity and invaded North Lebanon (the only place where the legitimate government, separate from both the Christian Phalangist Militia and the Druse and Sunni malitias, could stay) and held the territory as its own.

From Beirut to Jerusalem