390 • 19 THE REASSERTION OF ISLAMIC POWERcontaining an Israeli resort hotel in the village of Taba, just on the Egyp¬
tian side of the international frontier. Ironically, Taba had given its name
to an earlier dispute between British-ruled Egypt and the Ottoman Em¬
pire, leading to the 1906 demarcation of that "international frontier" now
separating Egypt and Israel. The new Taba Affair was finally submitted to
arbitration and resolved in Egypt's favor in 1989.
Israel's Invasion of Lebanon
The strife in Lebanon—Christian against Muslim, rich fighting poor,
Lebanese separatist versus Arab nationalist—went on and on. By the 1980s
many of the fighters were teenagers who had never known peace. In May
1982 Israel bombed a Palestinian base near Beirut, killing twenty-five
people. The Palestinians shelled northern Israel, and unidentified agents
killed an Israeli diplomat in Paris and badly wounded Israel's ambassador
in London. This last act provided the pretext for a massive IDF invasion of
southern Lebanon on 6 June. Ignoring all outside diplomatic efforts to stop
the fighting, Israel thrust northward, bypassing the UN troops and pushing
back both PLO and Syrian forces. The Arabs suffered many casualties.
Thousands of civilians, Lebanese and Palestinian alike, lost their homes.
Taking advantage of surprise and complete control over the air, the Israelis
bombed Beirut heavily and destroyed many Syrian missiles in the Biqa' Val¬
ley. Extensive press and television coverage showed the efficiency of the IDF
invasion—and its cost in human suffering. Israel admitted using US-made
cluster bombs against "terrorists" (most of the victims were civilians). The
Arab states, including Egypt, condemned the invasion as well as the US ve¬
toes that had blocked two Security Council resolutions against Israel. Not¬
ing that the US kept on arming Israel, the Arabs accused the Americans of
backing the invasion. But no Arab state sent troops to help the Syrians and
Palestinians in Lebanon. Only Iran offered to come to their aid. By mid-
June the IDF had surrounded Beirut. For the first time, Israel was besieging
an Arab capital, but the Arabs could not defend it. The USSR thundered
and threatened—but did not act. It was at this time that Iranians set up
their revolutionary training centers in the Biqa' Valley.
Washington was free to act, but the Reagan administration was split on
what it wanted. Secretary of State Alexander Haig left office, probably be¬
cause he would have backed Israel in destroying the PLO in Lebanon.
Other US officials were angry at the Israeli invasion, anxious about possi¬
ble Arab reprisals against American interests, and eager to pacify Lebanon.
Some hoped for a general Middle East peace. The new secretary of state,
George Shultz, drafted the Reagan Peace Plan, announced on 1 September