At War for Decades, Lebanon and Israel Agree a Rare Compromise

A UN peacekeeper (UNIFIL) vehicle drives near signs bearing names of cities, in Naqoura, near the Lebanese-Israeli border, southern Lebanon, October 11, 2022. (Reuters)
A UN peacekeeper (UNIFIL) vehicle drives near signs bearing names of cities, in Naqoura, near the Lebanese-Israeli border, southern Lebanon, October 11, 2022. (Reuters)
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At War for Decades, Lebanon and Israel Agree a Rare Compromise

A UN peacekeeper (UNIFIL) vehicle drives near signs bearing names of cities, in Naqoura, near the Lebanese-Israeli border, southern Lebanon, October 11, 2022. (Reuters)
A UN peacekeeper (UNIFIL) vehicle drives near signs bearing names of cities, in Naqoura, near the Lebanese-Israeli border, southern Lebanon, October 11, 2022. (Reuters)

Oct. 18 - Lebanon and Israel have agreed to a US-mediated agreement ending a decades-old dispute over their maritime boundary on Tuesday, a landmark compromise between countries with a history of war.

Here is a timeline of conflict between the states:

1948

Lebanon fights alongside other Arab states against the nascent state of Israel. Some 100,000 Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes in Palestine during the war arrive in Lebanon as refugees.

1949

Lebanon and Israel conclude an armistice agreement under UN auspices.

1968

Israeli commandos destroyed a dozen passenger planes at Beirut airport, a response to an attack on an Israeli airliner by a Lebanon-based Palestinian group.

1978

Israel invades south Lebanon and sets up an occupation zone in an operation against Palestinian guerrillas.

1982

Israel invades all the way to Beirut. The Syrian army is ousted from Beirut and thousands of Palestinian fighters under Yasser Arafat are evacuated by sea after a bloody 10-week siege.

Head of Christian militia Lebanese Forces, Bashir al-Gemayel, is elected president but killed before taking office.

Bashir's brother, Amin al-Gemayel, becomes president.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards establish Hezbollah in Lebanon.

1985

Israel establishes an occupation zone in southern Lebanon, about 15 km (nine miles) deep, after it pulled back from a line further north, controlling the area with a proxy force, the South Lebanon Army.

1996

With Hezbollah regularly attacking Israeli forces in the south and firing rockets into northern Israel, Israel mounts the 17-day "Operation Grapes of Wrath" offensive that kills more than 200 people in Lebanon, including 102 who die when Israel shells a UN base near the south Lebanon village of Qana.

2000

Israel withdraws from southern Lebanon, ending 22 years of occupation.

2006

In July, Hezbollah crosses the border into Israel, kidnaps two Israeli soldiers and kills others, sparking a five-week war. While most of the conflict is fought on land, an Israeli navy vessel is damaged in a Hezbollah missile attack. At least 1,200 people in Lebanon, mostly civilians, and 158 Israelis, mostly soldiers, are killed.

2020

The United States revives indirect negotiations between Lebanon and Israel aimed at reaching an agreement on their disputed maritime boundary, with the aim of facilitating oil and gas exploration. Indirect US-mediated talks first began years earlier but never reached a conclusion.

2022

The Lebanese and Israeli governments agree to a US-brokered deal demarcating the maritime boundary, calling it historic. The deal opens the way to offshore oil and gas exploration, and defuses a potential source of conflict.



Desperate for Cash, Gazans Sell Clothes Plucked from Rubble

Desperate for Cash, Gazans Sell Clothes Plucked from Rubble
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Desperate for Cash, Gazans Sell Clothes Plucked from Rubble

Desperate for Cash, Gazans Sell Clothes Plucked from Rubble

Moein Abu Odeh clambered up a pile of rubble in southern Gaza, searching for clothes, shoes, anything he could sell to raise cash more than a year since Israel started its relentless bombardments.

The father-of-four delved under blocks and brushed away piles of concrete dust at the site of one airstrike in the wrecked city of Khan Younis. His plan was to sell what he found to buy flour.

"If food and drink were available, believe me, I would give (these clothes) to charity," he said. "But the struggles we are going through (mean we) have to sell our clothes to eat and drink."

Widespread shortages and months of grinding war have generated a trade in old clothing, much of it salvaged from the homes of people who have died in the conflict.

At one makeshift market, shoes, shirts, sweaters and sneakers were laid out on dusty blankets, Reuters reported.

A girl tried on a single worn-out boot, which could come in handy this winter if she can afford it in Gaza's ruined economy.

A trader got an edge on his competitors by shouting out that his wares were European.

One man laughed as he got a young boy to try on a green jacket.

"We get clothing from a man whose house was destroyed. He was digging in the concrete to get some (clothing) and we buy them like this and sell them at a good price," displaced Palestinian Louay Abdel-Rahman said.

He and his family arrived in the city from another part of Gaza with only the clothes they were wearing. So he also keeps some back for them. "The seasons have changed from summer to winter and we need clothing," he said.

In April, the UN estimated it would take 14 years to dispose of the wreckage in Gaza. The UN official overseeing the problem said the clean-up would cost at least $1.2 billion.

More than 128,000 buildings have been destroyed or severely or moderately damaged in Gaza as a result of the conflict, the UN says. Underneath all of that are seams of mangled clothes.

"All our children only have short-sleeve clothing and nobody is helping them," Saeed Doula, a father-of-seven, said. "The war is all-encompassing."