HIGHLIGHTS OF MAIN EVENTS- 1982-1984

1982
5 June	The government decides to launch Operation "Peace for Galilee".
6 June	I.D.F. units cross the Lebanese border and advance along the coastal road to Tyre, reach Nabatiya in central Lebanon and move into Fatahland in the east.
7 June	The I.D.F. continues its advance, captures the Beaufort Castle and clashes with the Syrian army. The navy lands tanks and infantry north of Sidon.
8 June	Sidon falls to the I.D.F. whose advance units reach Damur, while other units advance towards the Beirut-Damascus road. The Knesset rejects (by 94 votes) a non-confidence motion. 6 Syrian MIGs are downed.
9 June	U.S. vetoes a Security Council draft resolution condemning the Israeli operation. 19 Syrian ground to air missile batteries are destroyed by the Israel Air Force in the Bekaa Valley. 22 Syrian planes are downed. I.D.F. reaches Lake Karoun in the Bekaa Valley and the vicinity of Beirut's international airport.
10 June	President Reagan demands an immediate cease fire. The government, in an emergency session, accepts his call. I.D.F. reaches the Beirut Damascus road.
11 June	The government approves the cease-fire to take effect at 1200. Vast quantities of P.L.O. equipment, including tanks and artillery are seized during the war. The cease-fire was violated few hours after it went into effect when the P.L.O. fired on the I.D.F. in the Beirut area.
13 June	Israel proposes an arrangement for southern Lebanon to include the stationing of a multi-national force.
15 June	The government decides that the I.D.F. will not enter the predominantly Moslem West Beirut.
16 June	Prime Minister Begin leaves for talks in the United States.
21 June	Prime Minister Begin holds talks with President Reagan in the White House.
24 June	Fighting continues along the Beirut-Damascus road in the Aley Bahamdoun area.
26 June	In an emergency session, the UN General Assembly adopts a resolution calling for an end to hostilities and immediate unconditional withdrawal of Israel from Lebanon (127 to 2).
29 June	The Knesset approves the government's position on Lebanon. Israel will honour the cease fire and will agree to the entry of Lebanese forces to West Beirut to disarm terrorists. The P.L.O. will leave Beirut and Lebanon by land or sea. Following their withdrawal Israel and Lebanon will negotiate to assure the restoration of Lebanon's territorial integrity and the withdrawal of all foreign forces.
4 July	The I.D.F. begins to besiege West Beirut, cutting off power and water. Israel allows Ambassador Habib additional time to continue his efforts to bring about the P.L.O. withdrawal.
6 July	Heavy fighting continues in the Beirut area. The U.S. continues its diplomatic efforts to secure the P.L.O. departure from Beirut.
8 July	The Deputy Chief of Staff reveals that the I.D.F. is making preparations for a winter stay in Lebanon.
11 July	The P.L.O. demands the maintenance of military and political presence in Lebanon and the stationing of an international force in Beirut to follow the I.D.F. withdrawal from Beirut.
19 July	President Reagan orders the hold up of cluster bombs for Israel.
25 July	The Israel Air Force destroys three ground-to-air Syrian SAM batteries in the Bekaa Valley. Israel jets continue to bombard terrorist targets in West Beirut.
28 July	The Ambassador of Zaire presents his credentials to President Navon. Ambassador Habib informs Israel that Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia have agreed in principle to absorb the terrorists from Lebanon. The I.D.F. intensifies its pressure on West Beirut.
30 July	The Security Council adopts a resolution calling on Israel to lift the siege from Beirut. The U.S. is absent from the vote. Israel expresses the hope for a peaceful solution for the P.L.O. evacuation from Beirut.
1 August	I.D.F. occupies Beirut's international airport.
2 August	In a meeting with Foreign Minister Shamir, President Reagan demands that Israel cease all hostilities in Beirut. Israel agrees to allow Ambassador Habib additional time for his diplomatic efforts.
4 August	I.D.F. intensifies the siege of West Beirut, occupying additional positions overlooking that area. 18 Israeli soldiers die in these battles. President Reagan demands of Mr. Begin an immediate halt to the shelling of Beirut threatening to review U.S.-Israel relations.
8 August	Israel agrees to the entry of a multi-national force to West Beirut the removal of the P.L.O. from that area. The I.D.F. takes up positions in Junyeh.
10 August	The U.S. transmits to Israel a draft agreement for the P.L.O. removal, to be completed 15 days after its ratification. Israel demands certain changes in the draft.
12 August	Israeli jets carry out massive air raids on Beirut. President Reagan phones Prime Minister Begin demanding an end to the bombing. Mr. Begin agrees to halt the raids.
15 August	The Cabinet requests additional clarifications before approving the arrangements for the P.L.O. removal from Beirut.
19 August	The Government approves the agreement. The P.L.O. withdrawal to begin on 21 August and be completed by 1 September. At an emergency session of the UN General Assembly, a resolution is adopted (by 107 in favour, 5 against and 27 abstentions) calling in fact for the creation of a Palestinian state. Israel announces its objection to any change in Resolution 242.
23 August	Bashir Gemayel is elected President of Lebanon. His inaugural date is set for 23 September.
27 August	Defense Minister Sharon holds talks with Defense Secretary Weinberger in Washington.
1 September	Prime Minister Begin holds talks with Bashir Gemayel in Nahariya. Gemayel rejects his call for the signing of an Israel-Lebanon peace treaty. The P.L.O. withdrawal from Beirut is completed. President Reagan announces a new peace plan for the Middle East.
2 September	The Cabinet rejects the Reagan Plan, claiming it contradicts and negates the Camp David agreements. Mr. Begin meets with Defense Secretary Weinberger in Jerusalem.
4 September	8 Israeli soldiers are kidnapped in Lebanon.
5 September	Prime Minister Begin informs President Reagan that Israel will not negotiate on the basis of the Reagan Plan and complains about the absence of prior consultations with Israel.
8 September	The Knesset approves the Government's political statement summing up the war in Lebanon and confirms (by 50 to 36 votes) the Government's decision to reject the Reagan Plan.
13 September	Israeli jets attack Syrian and P.L.O. targets in the Beka'a Valley.
14 September	President elect Bashir Gemayel is murdered in the Phallange headquarters in Beirut. The I.D.F. is ordered to take control of key positions in West Beirut.
15 September	I.D.F. units seize West Beirut and surround the Palestinian refugee camps Sabra, Shatilla and Fakahani without entering them. The operation was designed to capture the remaining 2000 terrorists who remained in Beirut. The U.S. demands Israeli withdrawal from Beirut.
16-18 September	Phallange forces carry out massacres in the Sabra and Shatilla camps killing hundreds of civilians. Israel is accused of being indirectly responsible for the crime.
19 September	In a special cabinet meeting sentiments of horror are expressed over the crime. Israel rejects accusations against it calling them blood libel.
20 September	President Navon calls for an inquiry into the massacre. Egypt recalls its Ambassador from Tel Aviv for consultations.
21 September	The Cabinet decides it will discuss the proper manner to examine the facts pertaining to the massacre. It approved the return of the multi-national force to Beirut. They returned on 27 September. The I. D. F. begins to thin out its forces in Beirut. Amin Gemayel is elected president of Lebanon.
22 September	The Knesset rejects a motion to the agenda to debate the need for a judicial commission of inquiry (48 in favour and 42 against the government).
24 September	The Cabinet requests Supreme Court President Yitzhak Kahan to head the investigation into the massacre. He declines stating the issue was sub-judice.
28 September	Following mounting clamor in Israel and abroad, the government resolves to establish a commission of inquiry under the 1968 Commission of Inquiry Law. Justice Kahan names himself its chairman.
29 September	Israel completes its withdrawal from West Beirut.
4 October	Israeli jets destroy Syrian SAM 9 missiles in Lebanon.
10 October	The Cabinet announces its position regarding withdrawal of all foreign troops from Lebanon; peace treaty with Lebanon; exchange of prisoners and appropriate security arrangements for Israel.
14 October	Foreign Minister Shamir discusses the Israeli plan with Secretary of State Shultz in Washington.
26 October	An Iranian attempt to disqualify Israel from attending the General Assembly fails.
31 October	Foreign Minister Shamir informs his Egyptian counterpart of Israel's willingness to negotiate normalization, autonomy and Taba.
10 November	Prime Minister Begin leaves for a ten day visit to the United States. His trip is cut short when his wife Aliza dies in Jerusalem on 14 November.
11 November	The Israeli military government building in Tyre collapses due to gas leakage, 75 Israeli soldiers and 14 local Arabs die, 27 Israelis and 28 Arabs are wounded.
28 November	Foreign Minister Shamir visits Zaire and signs a series of bilateral agreements.
10 December	The UN General Assembly adopts a resolution calling on the Security Council to take action to implement the plan for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. It demands Israeli withdrawal from territories seized in1967, including East Jerusalem. Israel rejects the resolution.
12 December	Foreign Minister Shamir leaves for an official visit to the Argentine and Uruguay.
19 December	The Cabinet approved a written agreement with Lebanon achieved as a result of secret negotiations by Defense Minister Sharon. The Lebanese government later denied the existence of an agreement, calling it an agenda for talks.
28 December	Israel-Lebanon negotiations open in Khalde, with U.S. participation. Lebanon demands full Israeli withdrawal and the return to the 1949 Armistice Lines. Israel viewed this agreement as null because of Lebanon's declaration of war in 1967. The talks were also held in Kiryat Shmona and Netanya.
1983
2-15 January	President Navon pays an official visit to the United States, holds talks in Washington with President Reagan and his senior officials.
13 January	Israeli and Lebanese negotiators agree on an agenda for their talks, to include security arrangements, end of state of war, normalization of ties, withdrawal of all foreign troops from Lebanon.
16 January	Defense Minister Sharon starts a four-day official visit to Zaire.
17 January	Washington confirms the arrival in Syria of Soviet made SAM 5 missiles.
23 January	Israel rejects U.S. protests over clashes between the I.D.F. and U.S. Marines patrolling in Beirut.
6 February	Foreign Minister Shamir visits West Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg.
8 February	The Kahan commission issues its final report. It finds Israel indirectly responsible for not anticipating the consequences of the Phallange entry into the camps and recommends the removal of Defense Minister Sharon and a number of senior officers from their posts.
10 February	At the conclusion of three emergency sessions, the Cabinet votes (16 to 1) to adopt the Kahan commission recommendations in full.
13 February	Defense Minister Sharon resigns from his office but remains in the Cabinet as Minister without Portfolio. He is replaced by Ambassador Arens.
27 February	Norway's Foreign Minister visits Israel.
3 March	An Israeli-Egyptian meeting, the first since June 1982, fails to resolve the Taba issue.
8 March	Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter visits Israel.
13 March	Foreign Minister Shamir visits Washington and holds talks with President Reagan and Secretary of State Shultz in an effort to coordinate Israeli and American positions on Lebanon.
16 March	Israeli and Egyptian delegations meet in Cairo to discuss trade.
22 March	Chaim Herzog is elected by the Knesset as Israel's sixth president.
10 April	The Cabinet rejects U.S. claims that settlement in the territories impedes the peace process.
13 April	Ambassador Habib holds talks in Jerusalem on the proposed agreement with Lebanon. Talks in Khalde continue. 22 April President Reagan announces the mission to the Middle East of Secretary of State Shultz to pursue the Israel-Lebanese agreement.
27-28 April	Secretary of State Shultz holds talks in Jerusalem on the agreement with Lebanon.
5 May	Chaim Herzog is inaugurated as Israel's sixth president.
6 May	The Cabinet approves the draft of the Israel-Lebanon agreement.
16 May	The Knesset approves the agreement with Lebanon. 17 May The Israel-Lebanon agreement is signed in Khalde and Kiryat Shmona.
25 May	Following Syrian attack on Israeli planes on a reconnaissance mission over Lebanon, tension rises along the Israel-Syria lines.
26 May	Foreign Minister Shamir embarks on a visit to Belgium, Luxembourg and Italy.
3 June	Defense Minister Arens meets with the French Foreign and Defense Ministers in Paris.
10 June	Three Israeli soldiers are killed near Tyre bringing the number of casualties since June 1982 to 500.
12 June	The Cabinet starts a discussion on the I.D.F. redeployment in Lebanon in view of growing attacks on Israeli soldiers.
14 June	The Lebanese Parliament ratifies the Israel-Lebanon agreement but Lebanon holds up the exchange of the ratification with Israel.
15 June	The Knesset rejects an opposition motion to investigate the functioning of the Government during the war in Lebanon.
4 July	Dutch Foreign Minister Van Den Broek arrives for a three day official visit.
6 July	Secretary of State Shultz pays a brief visit to Israel. French Foreign Minister Claude Cheysson also holds talks in Jerusalem.
15 July	Foreign Minister Shamir meets in Switzerland with Ivory Coast President Houphouet-Boigny. 19 July Prime Minister Begin postpones a projected visit to Washington due to personal reasons.
20 July	The Cabinet approves the I.D.F. redeployment in Lebanon.
24 July	The White House invites Foreign Minister Shamir and Defense Minister Arens for talks in Washington.
26-28 July	Mr. Shamir and Mr. Arens hold talks in Washington with President Reagan and his senior officials on the Israeli redeployment plan.
3 August	U.S. Special Envoy Robert McFarlane holds talks in Israel. The U.S. vetoes an anti-Israel draft resolution in the Security Council.
12 August	Liberia announces resumption of diplomatic relations with Israel at an ambassadorial level.
15 August	Foreign Minister Shamir arrives in Bucharest for a three day official visit.
16 August	Defense Minister Arens holds talks in Beirut with Christian leaders.
22 August	Liberia's President Samuel Doe visits Israel and signs a series of cooperation agreements.
23 August	Richard Murphy, the newly appointed Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern affairs, visits Israel.
28 August	Prime Minister Begin informs the Cabinet of his intention to resign from his office.
30 August	At U.S. request Israel delays the I.D.F. redeployment for few days.
4 September	The I.D.F. completes its redeployment in Lebanon and takes up new positions south of the Awali river.
10 October	Mr. Shamir presents his government to the Knesset and wins a vote of confidence. He retains the Foreign Ministry.
23 October	241 U.S. Marines and 60 French soldiers are killed in terrorist attacks in Beirut.
25 October	Canada's Foreign Minister McEaken visits Israel.
4 November	In a terrorist attack on I.D.F. camp in Tyre, 28 Israeli personnel and 32 local inhabitants are killed.
14-24 November	President Herzog pays an official visit to the United States: he meets President Reagan, senior administration officials, addresses the General Assembly and meets with heads of the Jewish community.
24 November	In an exchange of prisoners, Israel receives six I.D.F. soldiers in return for 4600 terrorists held in Lebanon and Israel.
25 November	Chile's Foreign Minister Miguel Schweitzer-Walters arrives for an official visit.
28 November	Prime Minister Shamir and Defense Minister Arens hold talks in the White House and reach an agreem6nt on joint Israel-U.S. strategic, political, military and economic cooperation.
7 December	The Knesset approves (49 for, 43 against) the Prime Minister's statement on his visit to the United States.
10 December	Israeli Navy shells terrorist bases north of Tripoli.
15 December	I.D.F. units supervise the evacuation of Christian refugees from the Shouf mountains in Lebanon.
18 December	The navy again shells P.L.O. installations in the Tripoli area.
20 December	4000 P.L.O. terrorists are evacuated from Tripoli under UN auspices.
21 December	Italy's Foreign Minister Giulio Andreotti holds talks in Israel.
23 December	Israel expresses to the U.S. its dismay over the meeting in Cairo between Yasser Arafat and President Mubarak.
29 December	The Director General of the Egyptian Foreign Ministry holds talks in Jerusalem.
1984
4 January	Israeli planes attack terrorist bases in Ba'al Bek.
8 January	The Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff General John Vessey visits Israel as guest of the defense establishment.
17-25 January	President Herzog pays an official visit to Zaire and Liberia.
24 January	Chancellor Helmut Kohl starts a six day official visit to Israel.
27 January	Australia's Foreign Minister William Hayden visits Israel.
19 February	Prime Minister Shamir pays ail official visit to Holland and Belgium, attends a meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the European Economic Community.
21 February	An I.D.F. armoured task force completes a prolonged patrol north of the Awali river.
5 March	The Government of Lebanon abrogates unilaterally the 17 May 1983 Israel-Lebanon agreement.
22 March	The Knesset votes its dissolution and decides to hold the next national elections on 23 July 1984.
27 March	President Herzog pays a private visit to Britain as guest of its Jewish community; is recieved by the Queen and has talks with Prime Minister Thatcher.
1 April	I.D.F. artillery shells two terrorist bases in the Bekaa Valley.
2 April	52 civilians are wounded in a terrorist attack in the heart of Jerusalem. One terrorist is killed and two others captured.
12 April	El Salvador returns its embassy to Jerusalem.
1 May	Three members of the Israel liaison unit to Lebanon are kidnapped by Syrian soldiers south of Tripoli.
22 May	An Israeli liaison office is opened in Colombo (Sri Lanka).
30 May	Defense Minister Arens pays an official visit to Washington.
12 June	UN Secretary General De Cuellar visits Israel and meets with Prime Minister Shamir.
20 June	Israel and the U.S. hold joint military exercises.
28 June	Israel and Syria exchange prisoners. Israel returned 291 soldiers and 72 coffins. Syria returned 3 soldiers, three civilians captured on I1May, and five coffins.
11 July	French Foreign Minister Cheyssor meets with the Prime Minister in Jerusalem.
25 July	The Israeli liaison office in Debayeh, Lebanon, closes down.
23 July	Israel elects the 11th Knesset.
8 August	Israeli and American teams begin talks in Jerusalem on the creation of a U.S.-Israel free trade zone.
13 September	The government of national unity wins a vote of confidence in the Knesset. It is headed by Shimon Peres with Yitzhak Shamir as Vice Premier and Minister for Foreign Affairs.