Lebanese Forces Move Into South

Wed., Aug. 9, 2000

Lebanese security forces moved into the former Israeli-occupied zone in southern Lebanon early today, restoring a semblance of state authority for the first time in 24 years to a region torn by conflict.

Before dawn, a force of soldiers and police officers headed down the coastal highway from the capital, Beirut, in central Lebanon to the south and the border areas Israel vacated in May.

The force marks the first time the Lebanese government has asserted control of the border areas of southern Lebanon since the 1970s. It had been a battleground for Palestinian guerrillas and Israeli forces and their allied militias since 1976. Israel invaded the south in 1978 and again in 1982. It carved out the border security zone in 1985 before abandoning it in May.

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Lebanese Forces Move Into South

Jesse Tinsley

Jim Meehan

Molly Quinn

Rob Curley

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