This is just a cursory look at the armed groups in the period of the Lebanese Civil War (1975+) through the 1982 Lebanon War and who was fighting who.
Armed Group | Political backers | Ideology | Support from | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|
Lebanese Army | – | – | – | Predominantly Christian officers. |
Lebanese Arab Army | – | – | Muslims | In 1976 the army divided along religious lines. |
South Lebanese Army (SLA) | Israel | Pro-Israel | Assad Germanos emailed to say the SLA was composed by 72% non-Christian (Druze, Shia, and some Sunni) 28% of Christian (Maronite in majority)” | Militia formed in 1978 by ex-Lebanese army officer Maj. Saad Haddad from men of the Phalange, NLP and Guardians of the Cedars. Called SLA from 1978. |
Phalange | Phalange | Maronite Nationalism | Maronite Catholic | Formed late 60s. |
Force 75 | Phalange | Maronite Nationalism | Maronite Catholic | Militia of President Gemayel from mid 80s. Merged into Lebanese Forces in 1988. |
Tigers | National Liberal Party (NLP | Lebanese Nationalism | Christian both Maronite and other | Formed late 60s. |
Zghartan Liberation Army | Maronite | Maronite Catholic | 1,000 fighters in 1974. Included the Giants Brigade. | |
Marada (“Giants”) Brigade | Maronite | Maronite Catholic | Assad Germanos emailed to say “Marada = is a historic name of maronite who live in north of lebanon not geant (=mared)”, however, my reading associates the term “Giants” with this group. | |
Guardians of the Cedars | Extreme Lebanese Nationalism and anti-Palestinian | Maronite Catholic | Formed Apr 1975. Had open links with Israel from start. | |
Order of Maronite Monks | ? | Maronite Catholic | Militant Monks no less. | |
Al Tanzim (“The Organisation”) | Maronite League | Maronite Nationalism | Maronite Catholic | Formed after Apr 1975. |
Lebanese Forces | Lebanese Front | Maronite | Maronite Catholic | Formed 1976. Combined forces of Phalange, NLP, Guardians of the Cedars, Al Tanzim. |
Lebanese Forces Executive Command (LFEC) | Lebanese Front | Maronite | Maronite Catholic | Splintered from Lebanese Forces in late 1986. Under Hobeika. |
Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) | Greater Syrian Nationalist (Pro-Syrian) | Secular minded non-Maronite Christians | ||
Popular Nasserist Organisation | Progressive socialists (?) | Sunni | ||
Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) | Leftist Arab Nationalist | Predominantly Druze but some Sunni, Shia, and Christians | ||
Druze Militia | Druze | Druze | Had high motivation and martial skills. Includes PSP | |
People’s Guards | Communist Party of Lebanon (CPL) | Communist | 50% Shia and 33% Greek Orthodox, plus other Christian. | After 1970. |
Communist Action Organization (CAO) | Communist | As CPL | Radical splinter group from CPL | |
Murabitoun (“Faithful of the Sermon” / “Sentinels”) | Independent Nasserists | Nasserist Progressive socialists | Sunni | Based in Beirut? |
Firqat an Nasr (“Victory Divisions”) | Union of Toiling Peoples’ Forces | Nasserist Progressive socialists | ||
Quwwat an Nasir (“Nasser’s Forces”) | Nasserite Correctionist Movement | Nasserist Progressive socialists | ||
Popular Nasserist Organization | Nasserist Progressive socialists | Sunni | Tripoli & Sidon | |
Sunni Militia | Sunni | Mentioned in Tripoli in 1975-76 with no other name or political affiliation given. I suspect they are the militia for the Popular Nasserist Organisation. | ||
Amal (“Hope”) | Movement of the Disinherited | Lebanese Nationalist (Pro-Syrian) | Shia | Amal is an acronym for Afwaj al-Muqawama al Lubnaniya (“Lebanese Resistance Detachments”) |
Islamic Amal | Islamic Amal Movement | Militant Islamic (Pro-Iranian) | Shia | Splintered from Amal in 1982. |
Hizbollah (“Party of God”) | Militant Islamic (Pro-Iranian) | Shia | Associated with Islamic Amal. Included Islamic Jihad Organisation, Revolutionary Justice Organisation, Holy Strugglers for Justice, etc. Formed 1982+. | |
Arab Baath (“Resurrecton”) Party | Pan Arab Nationalist (Pro-Iraqi) | Muslim | ||
Organisation of the Baath (“Resurrecton”) Party | Pan Arab Nationalist (Pro-Syrian) | Muslim | ||
Lebanese National Movement (LNM) | Pan Arabic | Muslim | Included PSP, SSNP, People’s Guards, Murabitoun, Popular Nasserist Organization, and Arab Baath party. | |
El-Fatah | Moderate PLO (Anti-Syrian) | Palestinian | Yasser Arafat | |
Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) | Moderate Marxist PLO | Palestinian | ||
As-Saiqa Organisation | PLO (Pro Syrian) | Palestinian | Terrorist army of Syrian Baath party. | |
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) | Radical Pan Arabic Marxist PLO (Pro Syrian) | Palestinian | ||
Arab Liberation Front | Radical PLO (Pro-Iraqi) | Palestinian | ||
Populist Struggle Front | Radical Marxist PLO | Palestinian | Small | |
Palestinian National Salvation Front (PNSF) | Palestinian (Pro-Syrian) | Palestinian | ||
Arab Deterrent Force (ADF) | Arab League | – | – | Created in 1976. 25,000 Syrians, 2,000 Saudis, 1,000 Sudanese, 1,000 South Yemeni, 600 Libyans, and 500 from UAE. Only Syrians stayed more than a few months. |
IDF | Israel | Israel | Israeli Army | |
Palestinian Liberation Army (PLA) | Syria | Pro-Syrian | Syrian Palestinian | Syrian officered Palestinian units of the Syrian Army. |
Syrian Army | Syria | Syria | ||
UN Interim force in Lebanon (Unifil) | UN | – | France, Iran, Norway, & Sweden. | |
Iraqi Volunteers | Iraq | Iraq | 600 turned up in 1978 to help the PLO fight the IDF. | |
Armenian Militia | Tashnak Party | Right wing | Armenian | |
Multi-National Force (MNF) | UN | America, Britain, France, Italy | ||
Iranian Revolutionary Guards | Iran | Iran | 2,000 were based in Baalbek in northern Beqaa from 1982. |
The Library of Congress, Federal Research Division has a description of some of the Opposing Forces in the Lebanese Civil War
Who fought who and when
Just to get an feel for the period here’s a list of the combinations that fought with and against each other and when. In all cases the & symbol means and/or; for example Phalange and/or Tigers fought PLO and/or LNM militias in 1975.
Who | Against | When | Comments |
---|---|---|---|
Lebanese Army, Phalange & Tigers | PLO | 1970-72 | |
Phalange & Tigers | PLO | 1973-75 | |
Phalange & Tigers: | PLO & LNM | 1975 | |
Phalange | PLO & Amal | 1975 | |
Zghartan Liberation Army & Lebanese Army | PLO & Sunni Militia | 1975 | |
Lebanese Arab Army & LNM | Lebanese Forces & PLA | 1976 | |
Lebanese Arab Army, LNM, & PLO | Lebanese Forces, PLA, & Syrian Army | 1976 | |
IDF & South Lebanese Army | PLO | 1977 | |
IDF & Tigers | PLO | 1977 | |
Lebanese Forces | ADF | 1977 | |
Lebanese Army | ADF | 1978 | |
Lebanese Army | SLA | 1978 | |
PLO (Saiqa Organisation and allies) | SLA | 1978 | |
IDF | PLO & Iraqi Volunteers | 1978 | Operation Litani |
Phalange | Giants | 1978 | End the of previous Alliance between these factions. Conflict mainly mutual assassinations, involving up to 100 attackers in a particular incident. |
Phalange | Tigers | 1979 | |
Phalange | Armenian Militia | 1979 | |
Phalange | Giants | 1980 | |
PLO | Amal | 1980 | |
Phalange | Tigers | 1980 | “Day of Long Knives” – Tigers effectively wiped out. |
Phalange | Lebanese Army | 1980 | |
Lebanese Forces | ADF | 1980 | |
Lebanese Forces | ADF, PLO, & LNM | 1981 | |
IDF | Lebanese Army, PLO, & LNM | 1981 | |
IDF | ADF, PLA, PLO & LNM | 1982 | Peace for Galilee |
Lebanese Forces | PLO | 1982 | |
Lebanese Forces | Druze Militia | 1982 | |
Islamic Amal & Iranian Revolutionary Guards | Lebanese Army | 1982 | |
Islamic Amal & Iranian Revolutionary Guards | IDF | 1982 | |
Lebanese Army | Amal | 1983 | |
Lebanese Forces, Lebanese Army, & MNF | Druze Militia, Amal, PLO, & Syrians | 1983 | War of the Shouf |
PLO | PLO | 1983 | Pro-Arafat versus Pro-Syrian. |
Hizbollah | IDF | 1983-84 | |
Lebanese Forces, Lebanese Army, & MNF | Druze Militia, Amal, Hizbollah, PLO, & Syrians | 1984 | |
Druze Militia | Amal | 1984 | |
Druze Militia | Sunni Militia | 1984 | |
Amal | Sunni Militia | 1984 | |
Amal | IDF | 1984 | |
Amal & 6th Brigade Lebanese Army | PLO & Druze Militia | 1985 | War of the Camps. Druze provide artillery support. 6th Brigade predominantly Shia. |
Lebanese Forces | Lebanese Forces Executive Command | 1986 | A Chrisitan civil war between Geagea versus Hobeika. |
Amal & 6th Brigade Lebanese Army | PLO, Druze Militia, People’s Guards, SSNP | 1986-87 | 6th Brigade predominantly Shia. |
Amal & 6th Brigade Lebanese Army | Hizbollah | 1986-87 | |
Syrian Army | Hizbollah | 1987 | |
Amal | PLO & Sunni Militia | 1987-88 | |
Lebanese Forces | Force 75 & Lebanese Army | 1987 | |
IDF & SLA | Hizbollah | 1986+ | |
Amal | Hizbollah | 1988 | |
PNSF | PLO | 1988 | |
Lebanese Army | Lebanese Forces | 1989 | |
Lebanese Army & Lebanese Forces | Druze Militia, Lebanese Arab Army, Amal, Hizbollah, Pro-Syrian PLO & Syrians | 1989 | Aoun’s War of Liberation |
Lebanese Army | Lebanese Forces | 1990 | War of Brothers. Civil war in Christian enclave between General Aoun and Geagea. |
Lebanese Army & Syrian Army | Lebanese Army | 1990 | Army units of the West Bank government versus General Aoun’s forces. |
Lebanese Army | PLO | 1991 |