United Nations Security Council Resolution 425
Encyclopedia
United Nations
Security Council Resolution 425, adopted on March 19, 1978, five days after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon
, called on Israel
to withdraw immediately its forces from Lebanon
and established the United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon (UNIFIL). It was adopted by 12 votes to none; Czechoslovakia
and the Soviet Union
abstained
, and China
did not participate.
. The invasion was triggered by the March 11, 1978, massacre of 37 Israeli civilians riding in a bus in the Tel Aviv
area by members of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) infiltrating from Lebanon -- See Coastal Road massacre
. This attack was the latest and most deadly in a string of attacks launched from Lebanese territory.
The stated objective of the Operation Litani
was to clear out the PLO bases located inside Lebanon, south of the Litani River
, in order to better secure northern Israel.
Following Lebanese government claims, the United Nations
, driven by the United States
, began seeking a peacekeeping force for the area that Israel had occupied in order to bring about a withdrawal of the Israeli forces, and to reintroduce the authority of the Lebanese government in southern Lebanon.
These efforts culminated in Resolution 425, during the 2074th meeting of the United Nations Security Council
on March 19, 1978. That led to the formation of UNIFIL, the objective of which was to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore international peace and security, and help the Lebanese Government restore its effective authority in the area.
troops arrived in Lebanon on March 23, 1978, just four days after the resolution was passed. Israel withdrew its forces by June. Later, Israel expanded its occupation in a larger-scale invasion in June 1982, in which Israeli troops occupied the capital city of Beirut -- See 1982 Lebanon War
. Other major attacks within Lebanon took place in July 1993 and April 1996—See Operation Accountability
and Operation Grapes of Wrath
.
In May 2000, more than 22 years after resolution 425 was passed, Israel withdrew its troops from southern Lebanon. Prior to the withdrawal, opposition voices inside Israel pressured the government to withdraw from Lebanon, as they saw no valid reason to stay there and sustain Lebanese attacks.
The UN Secretary-General concluded that, as of June 16, 2000, Israel had indeed withdrawn its forces from Lebanon, in accordance with resolution 425 (1978). The border recognized by the UN is known as the "Blue Line
".
Lebanon, however, claims that Israel is still keeping Lebanese land under its occupation, mainly in Shebaa Farms
. Israel says, and the UN agrees, that Shebaa Farms
is Syria
n and not Lebanese, and therefore it is not included under resolution 425.
Lebanon has not extended control over south Lebanon, though it was called on to do so by UN Resolution 1391 of 2002 and urged by UN Resolution 1496 of 2003. Israel has lodged multiple complaints regarding Lebanon's conduct.
on an almost daily basis, penetrating deep into Lebanese airspace.
Since mid-December 2005, the number of Israeli air violations has decreased. Israeli warships also continued to violate the Lebanese territorial waters. On October 22, 2005 a Lebanese fisherman was reported missing. His boat ran aground in Israel, and was returned by the Israeli army. There were a number of bullet marks on the boat. The IDF explained that they had opened fire as a precaution in case the boat was booby-trapped, but that it was already empty at the time. Many other incidents were reported along the Blue Line such as gunfire and cross border attacks. Both Lebanon and Israel have lodged multiple complaints regarding the other party's violations.
Hezbollah, a Shiite group which exercises de facto sovereignty over much of South Lebanon, rejected Resolution 425 and continues to launch attacks against Israeli troops from time to time, primarily inside the Shebaa Farms
area. Lebanon also calls on Israel to free the prisoners of war and to hand over the maps of the land mine
s in the area that was under its occupation.
– Adi Avitan, Staff Sgt. Benyamin Avraham, and Staff Sgt. Omar Sawaidwere – were abducted by Hezbollah across the Israeli-Lebanese border
. The soldiers were killed either during the attack or in its immediate aftermath.
, Hezbollah fighters fired rockets at into Israel. Of the seven Israeli soldiers in the two jeeps, two were wounded, three were killed, and two were captured and taken to Lebanon. Five more were killed in a failed Israeli rescue attempt. Israel responded with massive airstrike
s and artillery
fire on targets in Lebanon that damaged Lebanese civilian
infrastructure
(including Beirut's Rafic Hariri International Airport
which Israel alleged that Hezbollah used to import weapons), an air and naval blockade
, and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon
. Hezbollah then launched more rockets into northern Israel and engaged the Israel Defense Forces
(IDF) in guerrilla warfare
from hardened positions.
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Security Council Resolution 425, adopted on March 19, 1978, five days after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon
Operation Litani
The 1978 South Lebanon conflict was an invasion in Lebanon up to the Litani River carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in 1978. It was a military success for the Israeli Defense Forces, as PLO forces were pushed north of the river...
, called on Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
to withdraw immediately its forces from Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and established the United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon (UNIFIL). It was adopted by 12 votes to none; Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
abstained
Abstention
Abstention is a term in election procedure for when a participant in a vote either does not go to vote or, in parliamentary procedure, is present during the vote, but does not cast a ballot. Abstention must be contrasted with "blank vote", in which a voter casts a ballot willfully made invalid by...
, and China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
did not participate.
Background
U.N. Security Council Resolution 425 was issued five days after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon on March 14, 1978, in what was referred to as Operation LitaniOperation Litani
The 1978 South Lebanon conflict was an invasion in Lebanon up to the Litani River carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in 1978. It was a military success for the Israeli Defense Forces, as PLO forces were pushed north of the river...
. The invasion was triggered by the March 11, 1978, massacre of 37 Israeli civilians riding in a bus in the Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
area by members of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) infiltrating from Lebanon -- See Coastal Road massacre
Coastal Road massacre
The Coastal Road massacre of 1978 was an attack involving the hijacking of a bus on Israel's Coastal Highway in which 38 Israeli civilians, including 13 children, were killed, and 71 were wounded. The attack was planned by Abu Jihad and carried out by the PLO faction Fatah...
. This attack was the latest and most deadly in a string of attacks launched from Lebanese territory.
The stated objective of the Operation Litani
Operation Litani
The 1978 South Lebanon conflict was an invasion in Lebanon up to the Litani River carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in 1978. It was a military success for the Israeli Defense Forces, as PLO forces were pushed north of the river...
was to clear out the PLO bases located inside Lebanon, south of the Litani River
Litani River
The Litani River is an important water resource in southern Lebanon. The river rises in the fertile Beqaa Valley valley, west of Baalbek, and empties into the Mediterranean Sea north of Tyre. Exceeding 140 km in length, the Litani River is the longest river in Lebanon and provides an average...
, in order to better secure northern Israel.
Following Lebanese government claims, the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, driven by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, began seeking a peacekeeping force for the area that Israel had occupied in order to bring about a withdrawal of the Israeli forces, and to reintroduce the authority of the Lebanese government in southern Lebanon.
These efforts culminated in Resolution 425, during the 2074th meeting of the United Nations Security Council
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
on March 19, 1978. That led to the formation of UNIFIL, the objective of which was to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore international peace and security, and help the Lebanese Government restore its effective authority in the area.
The resolution text
Aftermath
The first UNIFILUnited Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, or UNIFIL, was created by the United Nations, with the adoption of Security Council Resolution 425 and 426 on 19 March 1978, to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon which Israel had invaded five days prior, restore international peace and security,...
troops arrived in Lebanon on March 23, 1978, just four days after the resolution was passed. Israel withdrew its forces by June. Later, Israel expanded its occupation in a larger-scale invasion in June 1982, in which Israeli troops occupied the capital city of Beirut -- See 1982 Lebanon War
1982 Lebanon War
The 1982 Lebanon War , , called Operation Peace for Galilee by Israel, and later known in Israel as the Lebanon War and First Lebanon War, began on 6 June 1982, when the Israel Defense Forces invaded southern Lebanon...
. Other major attacks within Lebanon took place in July 1993 and April 1996—See Operation Accountability
Operation Accountability
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...
and Operation Grapes of Wrath
Operation Grapes of Wrath
Operation Grapes of Wrath is the Israeli Defense Forces code-name for a sixteen-day campaign against Lebanon in 1996 in an attempt to end shelling of Northern Israel by Hezbollah. Israel conducted more than 1,100 air raids and extensive shelling...
.
In May 2000, more than 22 years after resolution 425 was passed, Israel withdrew its troops from southern Lebanon. Prior to the withdrawal, opposition voices inside Israel pressured the government to withdraw from Lebanon, as they saw no valid reason to stay there and sustain Lebanese attacks.
Blue Line (Lebanon)
The Blue Line is a border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel published by the United Nations on 7 June 2000 for the purposes of determining whether Israel had fully withdrawn from Lebanon...
".
Lebanon, however, claims that Israel is still keeping Lebanese land under its occupation, mainly in Shebaa Farms
Shebaa farms
The Shebaa Farms are a small uninhabited territory claimed by Lebanon, but occupied by Israel which claims they are in Syria's Golan Heights. Syrian policy is to vaguely accept the Lebanese claim, while refusing any binding demarcation until Israeli forces withdraw from the area.The United Nations...
. Israel says, and the UN agrees, that Shebaa Farms
Shebaa farms
The Shebaa Farms are a small uninhabited territory claimed by Lebanon, but occupied by Israel which claims they are in Syria's Golan Heights. Syrian policy is to vaguely accept the Lebanese claim, while refusing any binding demarcation until Israeli forces withdraw from the area.The United Nations...
is Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
n and not Lebanese, and therefore it is not included under resolution 425.
Lebanon has not extended control over south Lebanon, though it was called on to do so by UN Resolution 1391 of 2002 and urged by UN Resolution 1496 of 2003. Israel has lodged multiple complaints regarding Lebanon's conduct.
Violations of the resolution
Immediately after the withdrawal, Israeli aircraft crossed the Blue LineBlue Line (Lebanon)
The Blue Line is a border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel published by the United Nations on 7 June 2000 for the purposes of determining whether Israel had fully withdrawn from Lebanon...
on an almost daily basis, penetrating deep into Lebanese airspace.
Since mid-December 2005, the number of Israeli air violations has decreased. Israeli warships also continued to violate the Lebanese territorial waters. On October 22, 2005 a Lebanese fisherman was reported missing. His boat ran aground in Israel, and was returned by the Israeli army. There were a number of bullet marks on the boat. The IDF explained that they had opened fire as a precaution in case the boat was booby-trapped, but that it was already empty at the time. Many other incidents were reported along the Blue Line such as gunfire and cross border attacks. Both Lebanon and Israel have lodged multiple complaints regarding the other party's violations.
Hezbollah, a Shiite group which exercises de facto sovereignty over much of South Lebanon, rejected Resolution 425 and continues to launch attacks against Israeli troops from time to time, primarily inside the Shebaa Farms
Shebaa farms
The Shebaa Farms are a small uninhabited territory claimed by Lebanon, but occupied by Israel which claims they are in Syria's Golan Heights. Syrian policy is to vaguely accept the Lebanese claim, while refusing any binding demarcation until Israeli forces withdraw from the area.The United Nations...
area. Lebanon also calls on Israel to free the prisoners of war and to hand over the maps of the land mine
Land mine
A land mine is usually a weight-triggered explosive device which is intended to damage a target—either human or inanimate—by means of a blast and/or fragment impact....
s in the area that was under its occupation.
2000 Hezbollah cross-border raid
On October 7, 2000, three Israeli soldiersIsrael Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
– Adi Avitan, Staff Sgt. Benyamin Avraham, and Staff Sgt. Omar Sawaidwere – were abducted by Hezbollah across the Israeli-Lebanese border
Blue Line (Lebanon)
The Blue Line is a border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel published by the United Nations on 7 June 2000 for the purposes of determining whether Israel had fully withdrawn from Lebanon...
. The soldiers were killed either during the attack or in its immediate aftermath.
2006 Lebanon War
In the context of this long history of incursions over the Lebanese/Israeli border by both Hezbollah and IDF forcesbeganZar'it-Shtula incident
The 2006 Hezbollah cross-border raid was a cross-border attack committed by Lebanon-based Hezbollah militants on an Israeli military patrol on 12 July 2006 on Israeli territory....
, Hezbollah fighters fired rockets at into Israel. Of the seven Israeli soldiers in the two jeeps, two were wounded, three were killed, and two were captured and taken to Lebanon. Five more were killed in a failed Israeli rescue attempt. Israel responded with massive airstrike
Airstrike
An air strike is an attack on a specific objective by military aircraft during an offensive mission. Air strikes are commonly delivered from aircraft such as fighters, bombers, ground attack aircraft, attack helicopters, and others...
s and artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
fire on targets in Lebanon that damaged Lebanese civilian
Civilian
A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
infrastructure
Infrastructure
Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...
(including Beirut's Rafic Hariri International Airport
Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport
Beirut Rafic Hariri International Airport is located 9 km from the city centre in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon and is the only operational commercial airport in the country. It is the hub for Lebanon's national carrier, Middle East Airlines...
which Israel alleged that Hezbollah used to import weapons), an air and naval blockade
Blockade
A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
, and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon
Southern Lebanon
Southern Lebanon is the geographical area of Lebanon comprising the South Governorate and the Nabatiye Governorate. These two entities were divided from the same province in the early 1990s...
. Hezbollah then launched more rockets into northern Israel and engaged the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
(IDF) in guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
from hardened positions.
See also
- Blue LineBlue Line (Lebanon)The Blue Line is a border demarcation between Lebanon and Israel published by the United Nations on 7 June 2000 for the purposes of determining whether Israel had fully withdrawn from Lebanon...
- History of LebanonHistory of LebanonThis article deals with the history of Lebanon, and the nations previously occupying its territory.-Phoenicia:The coastal plain of Lebanon is the historic home of a string of coastal trading cities of Semitic culture, which the Greeks termed Phoenicia, whose maritime culture flourished there for...
- Israel-Lebanon conflictIsrael-Lebanon conflictThe Israeli–Lebanese conflict describes a series of related military clashes involving Israel, Lebanon, and Syria, as well as various non-state militias acting from within Lebanon....
- List of United Nations Security Council Resolutions 401 to 500 (1976 – 1982)
- Operation LitaniOperation LitaniThe 1978 South Lebanon conflict was an invasion in Lebanon up to the Litani River carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in 1978. It was a military success for the Israeli Defense Forces, as PLO forces were pushed north of the river...
(1978) - Operation Grapes of WrathOperation Grapes of WrathOperation Grapes of Wrath is the Israeli Defense Forces code-name for a sixteen-day campaign against Lebanon in 1996 in an attempt to end shelling of Northern Israel by Hezbollah. Israel conducted more than 1,100 air raids and extensive shelling...
(1996) - South Lebanon ArmySouth Lebanon ArmyThe South Lebanon Army , also "South Lebanese Army," was a Lebanese militia during the Lebanese Civil War. After 1979, the militia operated in southern Lebanon under the authority of Saad Haddad's Government of Free Lebanon...
- United Nations Security Council Resolution 426United Nations Security Council Resolution 426United Nations Security Council Resolution 426, adopted on March 19, 1978, written the same day as resolution 425, approved of the Secretary-General's report on its implementation and in-turn established the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon for 6 months, to continue operation thereafter if...
External links
- Text of Resolution at UN.org (PDF)
- Lebanon-Background – UNIFIL