Hezbollah (Lebanon): Difference between revisions

===April 1996 Conflicts===

On April 11, 1996, Israeli regime initiated a military operation called the Grapes of Wrath, targeting Lebanon. This operation was marked by several significant incidents, including the four murders in Sohmor on the second day, an attack on the Mansouri ambulance on the third day, and the attacks in Nabatiyeh and Qana<ref>The Qana Massacre took place on April 18, 1996, near the village of Qana, in southern Lebanon, when the Israeli Defense Forces fired artillery shells at UN facilities. The artillery fire was launched to cover Israeli special forces after they came under mortar fire from near the compound, radioing in for assistance. Of the 800 Lebanese civilians who took refuge in the compound, 106 were killed and about 116 injured. Four Fijian soldiers from the UN Lebanese Interim Force were also seriously injured. The attack occurred amid heavy fighting between the Israeli regime's Defense Forces and Hezbollah during Operation The Grapes of Wrath. A UN investigation later said the Israeli shelling was deliberate, based on video evidence showing an Israeli reconnaissance drone flying over the site before the shelling. The Israeli government initially denied the drone's existence, but said it was on a different mission after being briefed on video evidence.</ref>.<ref>[https://academic-accelerator.com/encyclopedia/qana-massacre Qana Massacre; Encyclopedia, Science News & Research Reviews]</ref> on the seventh day. These attacks resulted in the loss of 25 lives, including 14 members of Hezbollah. The Grapes of Wrath operation lasted for 16 days. However, eventually, both parties reached an agreement known as the April Agreement. Under the April Agreement, Israeli regime committed to refraining from targeting civilians and agreed to exclusively engage resistance forces in its military operations.

===Liberation of Resistance Prisoners===

After the withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanon, some Hezbollah members, including Mustafa Dirani and 'Abd al-Karim Ubayd, remained imprisoned in Israel. In an effort to secure their release, Hezbollah conducted an operation in the Chebaa farms region of southern Lebanon. On October 7, 2000, they captured three Israeli soldiers and also arrested an Israeli colonel in Beirut. Consequently, a prisoner exchange took place between Israeli regime and Hezbollah. As part of the exchange, the Zionist regime released several Lebanese prisoners, along with 400 Palestinian prisoners, and returned the bodies of 59 martyrs. In addition, Israeli regime provided information on the identities of 24 missing individuals and handed over a map indicating the location of landmines along the Lebanese borders. The exchange operation was carried out on January 29-30, 2004.