Operation Accountability

Operation Accountability, Seven-Day War
Part of the South Lebanon conflict (1985–2000)
Date July 25, 1993 – July 31, 1993 Location Lebanon, northern Israel Result Cease fire on civilian targets; much Lebanese infrastructure destroyed.
Belligerents
Israel SLA	Hezbollah
Commanders and leaders
Yitzhak Rabin Ehud Barak Antoine Lahad	Hassan Nasrallah
Casualties and losses
1 KIA 3 WIA	8–50 KIA
2 Israeli civilians killed 24 Israeli civilians wounded 120 Lebanese civilians killed 500 Lebanese civilians wounded 300,000 Lebanese civilians displaced

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 specified 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. The affected civilian population included both Lebanese and Palestinian refugees.

During the Lebanese Civil War, Hezbollah was among several militant groups formed in response to 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 launched a public relations campaign, political statements and a political program. As a result, the Lebanese government classified Hezbollah's military wing, the "Islamic Resistance" as a resistance movement and not as a militia. Thus, the organization was exempted from disbanding and disarming.

The Taif accord asked for an Israeli withdrawal based on UN Resolution 425 but explicitly allowed resistance against the Israeli occupation "by all means", including militarily. Hezbollah stated that it would continue to oppose Israeli occupation as a "resistance group", since they were actually protected by the agreement. Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah secretary 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.

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 – General Command killed five Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers inside the occupied territory. These actions are generally considered to have been the catalyst for Operation Accountability.

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Wikipedia