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VOLUME 8: 1982-1984
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9. I.D.F. Spokesman's announcement, 8 June 1982.
Late on the third day of the war, the I.D.F. spokesman announced that most objectives had been attained, earlier than planned He also announced for the first time that there had been clashes with the Syrians in the Jezin area. On that day the I.D.F. division that advanced into the Shouf mountains was held up by Syrian commandos near Ein Zechalta. The previous night the cabinet approved the opening of the Damour-Aley road to relieve the pressure on that division. The Syrian Deputy Chief of Staff who visited Lebanon on that day recommended that Syria defend the key Beirut-Damascus road, which was the Israeli objective. Text:
The I.D.F. spokesman reported (today) that at the end of 55 hours of fighting, all of our forces have reached their objectives more quickly than called for in the battle plan and timetable. Today the forces were involved in cleaning up and securing the area. Mop-up operations began this morning in Sidon. The battle was fierce and 50 to 60 terrorists were killed there. The action there is scheduled to be concluded this evening, though this cannot be stated with certainty because of the size of the city. There is still resistance by terrorist forces.
An additional Syrian plane has been downed and its pilot captured. The Syrians attempted to intercept Israeli aircraft.
Concerning the encounters with the Syrians:
On Sunday there was artillery fire from Lake Karoun. Today there were also instances of tank clashes in the vicinity of Jezin. It was reported that Syrian tanks were damaged, but no numbers are available as yet. It was reported that the salient between Jezin and Sidon is in the hands of our forces. We have emerged victorious in all clashes with the Syrians. All of these encounters involved small units - small units of tanks against small units of tanks and small-scale air battles.
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