How the TFG Will Go the Way of The Southern Lebanese Army

[AbdiWahab252]

But I doubt there will be as much mercy shown to the TFG supporters and Addis Ababa will not fund them like the Israelis supported their Dhabadilif SLA.

History

In 1976 as a result of the civil war, the Lebanese army began to break up. Major Saad Haddad, commanding an army battalion in the south, broke away from the Lebanese Army and founded a group known as the Free Lebanon Army. The Free Lebanon Army was initially based in the towns of Marjayoun and Qlayaa in South Lebanon. Its initial membership was mainly made up of Christian Lebanese who fought with various groups including the Palestine Liberation Organization, Amal and, after the 1982 Israeli invasion, the newly emerging Hezbollah. While the group was no longer under the direct control of the Lebanese army, from 1976 to 1979, its members were still paid as Lebanese soldiers by the government.

The Israeli incursion into Lebanon in 1978 allowed the Free Lebanon Army to gain control over a much wider area in southern Lebanon. On April 18, 1979, Haddad proclaimed the area controlled by his force "Independent Free Lebanon". The following day, he was branded a traitor to the Lebanese government and officially dismissed from the Lebanese Army. The Free Lebanon Army was renamed the South Lebanon Army (SLA) in May 1980. Following Haddad's death due to cancer in 1984, he was replaced as leader by Antoine Lahad (a retired lieutenant general). The SLA was composed of Christians, Shiites and Druzes from the areas that it controlled but the officers were mostly Christian. After 1980, the fighting strength of the SLA became progressively more Shiite in composition.

The SLA was closely allied with Israel. It supported the Israelis by combatting the PLO in the strip of Southern Lebanon until the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982. After that, SLA support for the Israelis was mainly by fighting against other Lebanese guerilla forces led by Hezbollah until 2000 in the Security Zone, the area of the South kept under occupation after the partial Israeli withdrawal in 1985. In return, Israel supplied the organisation with arms, uniforms, and other logistical equipment.

The SLA hosted the Christian radio station "Voice of Hope", set up and funded by George Otis, Founder of High Adventure Ministries, Inc. Starting in 1982, the SLA played host to Middle East Television which was also set up, funded and operated by High Adventure Ministries. George Otis gave Middle East Television (METV) to Christian fundamentalist Pat Robertson, founder of CBN. On May 2, 2000 Middle East Television relocated to Cyprus.

In 1985 the SLA opened a the Khiam detention center in Khiam. It was widely reported that torture was a common tactic and occurred on a large scale in Khiam. Israel rejects any involvement, even though the SLA and Israel were very intertwined at this point in history, and claims that Khiam was the sole responsibility of the SLA: this has been contested by human rights organizations such as Amnesty International [2]. The SLA also applied a mandatory military service program where males over 18 living in the Security Zone were forced to serve a whole year as a military recruit.[3] The SLA received funding, weapons and logistics from Israel during its entire existence.

During the 1990s, Hezbollah carried out increasingly effective attacks on it, aided in later years by Lebanese army intelligence which had thoroughly penetrated the renegade SLA. These changed circumstances led to a progressive loss of morale and members. By 2000, the SLA was reduced to 1,500 fighters as compared to 3,000 ten years earlier. In its peak during the early 1980s, the SLA was composed of over 5,000 fighters.

Since there were only 1,000 to 1,200 Israeli troops in South Lebanon at one time [4], the SLA carried out a lot of the fighting itself. The SLA also handled all civilian governmental operations in Israel's zone of control.

[edit] Collapse of the SLA

[dubious – discuss] In May 2000, Israeli forces handed over some forward positions in the occupied zone to the SLA. As the withdrawal became obvious, civilians from the occupied zone overran SLA positions to return to their villages, while Hezbollah members quickly took control of the areas the SLA had previously controlled. The SLA in the center of the security zone, collapsed in the face of the crowds and of Hezbollah's rapid advance.[1] The next day, SLA positions at the eastern end of the security zone collapsed. Afterward, Israeli forces began a general withdrawal from all areas of the zone. Members of the SLA were told that the border would be closed after the Israelis departed.
A captured SLA Army tank, now on display in South Lebanon featuring a wooden portrait of the late Ayatollah Khomeini
A captured SLA Army tank, now on display in South Lebanon featuring a wooden portrait of the late Ayatollah Khomeini

Many members, some with their families, fled to Israel, while others gave themselves up to the Lebanese authorities, or were taken prisoner by Hezbollah who handed them over to the police. SLA members captured by Lebanon and Hezbollah were tried by Lebanese military courts. The majority of members of the SLA were Shia and fearing being suspected of offences fled to Israel. A number of members were also granted asylum in European countries, mostly in Germany.[citation needed] Hezbollah was also criticised for preventing the arrest of some members of the SLA; it justified this on the grounds that it was in a position to know which of them had been informing.[2] Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak was criticised in Israel on the grounds that his decision to withdraw without consulting his SLA allies led to the rapidity and confusion of its collapse.[citation needed]

By June 2000, three thousand former members of the SLA were in Lebanese government custody. By the end of year, around 2700 of them had been tried in military courts. It has been estimated that one third of the SLA members received one-year sentences and that one third were sentenced to less than a month. Two members of the SLA accused of torture at Al-Khiam prison received life sentences. Twenty one members of the SLA were recommended for death sentences but in each case the military reduced the sentence. Certain individuals were also barred from returning to South Lebanon by a number of years. [3]

Although many SLA members and families eventually chose to return from Israel to Lebanon after Hezbollah promised they would not be harmed, others accepted Israel's offer of full citizenship and a financial package similar to that granted to new immigrants, and settled permanently in Israel. On April 6, 2006, the Israeli Knesset Finance Committee approved the payment of NIS 40,000 per family to SLA veterans to be paid over the course of seven years. [4]

Israel continues to host the Government of Free Lebanon on whose behalf the SLA operated. The Government of Free Lebanon has operated from Jerusalem since 2000 and still claims to be the true government of Lebanon.

[King-of-Awdal]

Totally Irelevant and different game here. we dont have Shia, Sunni, Christian and Jews among us. I hope not.

[Dr.Galbeyte.]

^whats your argument in somali affairs..

your ajanabi ..talk about your nations affairs.!

[King-of-Awdal]

[quote="Dr.Galbeyte."]^whats your argument in somali affairs..

your ajanabi ..talk about your nations affairs.![/quote]


Did i hit a nerve. Unlike you i have seats in 4 different nation's.

[Somali_4Life]

Somalis are 1 Religion, 1 manhaj(Ahle sunnah), 1 ethnicity and 1 language but still they fight. By Allah,we are cursed.

[Dr.Galbeyte.]

Awdal..No wonder Caydiid gave the Pm "seat" to you guys... for he knew thats all it took to satisfy you.

Seperatist. should not have a say in somali politics because they will look after their own intrest before the national intrest.

Somalia = galkacyo to raas kambooni.

Ajanabiyaasha waa inaan siyaasada somaaliya ka ilaalinaa.

[King-of-Awdal]

Dr.Galbeyte.

No comment on Caydiid he is dead.

Correction Somalia= Bossasso to Ras Kamboni. Like it or not but you elected him and sewed ur own demise. Instead of Talking you should be thanking me that am letting ur refugees come to my homes and feed them.

[AbdiWahab252]

Dr. Galbeyte,

Forget about King of Awdal.

Maxa Cusub

[Dr.Galbeyte.]

AW.. ... since a peaceful xamar is against the intrest of seperatist. i have decided to crack down on any seperatist who tries to discuss Xamar or somaliya for that matter.


If whats good for somaliya isnt in their intrest then why should their thought and comments be of any relevance.

[AbdiWahab252]

Dr. Galbeyte,

Don't worry about the separatist.

If they lose Las Canood, it will become the end of them. They have made a major gamble, if they lose the city, the notion of a "state' no longer exists.

[snm_soulja_18]

afbijo and the tfg regime has lucky the israel of the horn of africa ethiopia will bring him back home to addis ababa if the tfg should fail. free somali goverment dont they claim that they will bring democracy and they will defeat insurgents

victory to al shabaab

[GENERAL_SNM]

Can i make a comment or are only hawyie hype men allowed to reply.
Ethoipia is not leaving and even if it did your in a very weak political position and incapable of fighting anybody alone, under the hawyie name.Your only hope is if somaliland gets involved 100% includeing the kitchen sink.Then and only then could the situation swing your way.But even then a united hawyie is dead and there is a chance you might just turn on eachother as you always seem to do when your so close to glory.

[AbdiWahab252]

SNMGeneral,

Somaliland is under the control of Addis Ababa. It's own government opposes any rally or demonstration by its people against what is happening in Somalia.

How can Somalland in that case even join in ?

[King-of-Awdal]

AbdiWahab252

We in Somaliland dont need some pyshco al-Shabab disturbing our hard earned peace and if u wanna fight the Tigree why the hell are u just fighting in Hamar. There are Tigree in Mudug and Galgadud close to ur own homes so why dont u fight them there.


Dr.Galbeyte.

Somaliweyn died and you have the biggest blame so dont come here and try to twist word's.

[snm_soulja_18]

abdi forget about ethiopia somaliland is owned by ex nss faqash dahir riyaale. all the snm souljas that died are rolling from their graves matter of fact we never fought for somaliland independence we only fought to get rid of afweyne only tuurs clan understood it and thats why they wanted to help the usc but faqash like cigaal and habarawal and gadabuursi alliance blocked it.