The struggle between the Hizbullah -- or Party of God -- resistance movement and Israel started since the movement's launching in the early 80s in Lebanon. However, it was only in the early 90s that the struggle took on more serious dimensions: 28 July 1989 : Sheikh Abdel-Karim Obeid, Hizbullah leader in Jibshit was abducted by Israeli forces. 16 February 1992: Sheikh Abbas Al-Musawi, secretary-general of Hizbullah, was killed when Israeli helicopter gunships attacked his motorcade on a road southeast of Sidon. 25-31 July 1993: In an attempt to force back the Hizbullah resistance forces who launched rockets on an Israeli village and who later, together with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, killed five Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers inside the occupied territories, Israel implemented "Operation Accountability" or the "Seven Day War", targeting Shiite towns and villages of south Lebanon in the heaviest attack since 1982. Some 120 Lebanese civilians were killed and close to 500 injured by a ferocious Israeli assault on population centres, an offensive that also temporarily displaced some 300,000 Lebanese villagers and Palestinian refugees. The stated goals of the Israeli operation were not only to punish Hizbullah, but also to inflict serious damage on villages in southern Lebanon and create a refugee flow in the direction of Beirut so as to put pressure on the Lebanese government to rein in Hizbullah. A ceasefire was reached after a week, negotiated by the United States, in the form of an oral agreement. Under that agreement, Israel agreed to end its attack against Lebanese civilians and Hizbullah agreed to limit its military occupation in Lebanon. 1994: The IDF kidnapped Mustafa Dib Al-Dirani, former Amal spokesman, who joined Hizbullah. 11 April 1996: The IDF launched an intense 16-day attack (Operation Grapes of Wrath) on Lebanon in response to rocket attacks on Israel's northern region. During the operation, the IDF attacked Hizbullah strongholds, training grounds and personnel. Between 160 and 170 Lebanese civilians were killed and over 350 wounded. Fourteen Hizbullah fighters were killed. Estimates of the number of displaced civilians ranged from 300,000 to 500,000 civilians, including well over 150,000 children. Israel fired an estimated 24,000 artillery rounds at villages in southern Lebanon, and carried out well over 600 air strikes. It also targeted civilian infrastructure, including two power transformer substations in Beirut and 21 water facilities. In the most lethal event of the operation, on 18 April, at least 17 Israeli high-explosive artillery shells hit a UNIFEL compound near the village of Qana, in which over 800 Lebanese civilians had taken shelter. Some 102 civilians were killed as well as four UNIFEL soldiers. On 27 April, a ceasefire understanding was reached between Israel and Hizbullah that outlined the rules of conduct of the forces in the area. These understandings, similar to that of 1993, stated that Israel would not attack Lebanese villages while Hizbullah would refrain from launching attacks out of these villages or attack civilian targets. 24 May 2000: After the collapse of the South Lebanese Army (SLA) and the rapid advance of Hizbullah, the Israeli army retreats from southern Lebanon after 22 years of occupation, although Israeli troops remain in the disputed Shebaa Farms region. 7 October 2000: Hizbullah attacked Shebaa Farms, abducting three Israeli soldiers. 15 October 2000: Hizbullah kidnapped an Israeli army reserve colonel. 3 August 2003: A car bomb in Beirut killed a member of Hizbullah. Hizbullah blamed Israel for the blast. 29 January 2004: Hizbullah and Israel implement a landmark prisoner exchange. Tel Aviv released 450 Lebanese, including Abdel-Karim Obeid and Mustafa Dib Al-Dirani, in addition to Palestinian and other Arab prisoners as well as the remains of 60 Lebanese, in return for a captured Israeli army colonel and the remains of three Israeli soldiers. 19 July 2004: A senior Hizbullah leader, Ghalib Awali, is killed by a car bomb in Beirut. 21 November 2005: Hizbullah launches its biggest assault on Israeli troops in the disputed Shebaa Farms area since October 2000. 12 July 2006: Two Israeli sergeants were kidnapped by Hizbullah and eight soldiers were killed. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert described the capture of the soldiers as "an act of war" and orders his forces to recover the kidnapped troops in Israel's first ground offensive since the withdrawal in 2000. Israel bombed the Lebanese infrastructure. Hizbullah responded with rockets. Several hit the town of Tiberias in the deepest such attack in Israel. On 14 July, an Israeli ship was destroyed after it was hit by a Hizbullah missile. Compiled by Rehab Saad
