Qana

Qana is a village located southeast of Tyre, Lebanon. On April 18, 1996, during heavy fighting between the Israeli Defense Forces and Hezbollah during "Operation Grapes of Wrath", a Fijian UNIFIL battallion compound was shelled by Israeli artillery. Around 800 Lebanese civilians had taken refuge in the compound to escape the fighting, of whom over 100 were killed and 300 were wounded. Four UNIFIL soldiers were also seriously injured. Critics of Israel often refer to this attack as the Qana massacre. ( UNHCR: [1]) Qana File links The following pages link to this file: Qana ... Qana File links The following pages link to this file: Qana ... For a wheel tyre, see the article under the US English spelling of the word, tire. ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) (Hebrew: צבא ההגנה לישראל Tsva Ha-Haganah Le-Yisrael ([Army] Force [for] the Defense of Israel), often abbreviated צהל Tsahal, alternative English spelling Tzahal, is the name of Israels armed forces (army, air force and navy). ... The Hezbollah flag Hezbollah (Arabic ‮حزب الله‬, meaning Party of God, for other designations or alternative spellings, see name part of this article) is a political and military party in Lebanon founded in 1982 to fight Israel in southern Lebanon. ... UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Forces In Lebanon) was created in 1978 by the United Nations to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore the international peace and security, and help the Lebanese Government restore its effective authority in the area. ... Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) (established December 14, 1950) protects and supports refugees at the request of a government or the United Nations and assists in their return or resettlement. ...

Background

In April 1996, a cease-fire that had ended the July 1993 fighting between Hezbollah and Israel broke down due to violations, which involved several attacks on Israeli population centers by Hezbollah. During the five weeks of fighting between March 4 and April 10, seven Israeli soldiers, three Lebanese civilians and at least one Hezbollah fighter were killed. The tally of injured was sixteen Israeli soldiers, seven Lebanese civilians, and six Israeli civilians.¹ On April 9, in response to the cease fire violations, Maj.-Gen. Amiram Levine declared: "The residents in south Lebanon who are under the responsibility of Hezbollah will be hit harder, and the Hezbollah will be hit harder, and we will find the way to act correctly and quickly."² On April 11th, after initial strikes against Hezbollah positions, Israel, through SLA radio stations, warned residents in forty-four towns and villages in southern Lebanon, to evacuate within twenty four hours³. 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... An armistice is the effective end of a war, when the warring parties agree to stop fighting. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... The Hezbollah flag Hezbollah (Arabic ‮حزب الله‬, meaning Party of God, for other designations or alternative spellings, see name part of this article) is a political and military party in Lebanon founded in 1982 to fight Israel in southern Lebanon. ... March 4 is the 63rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (64th in leap years). ... April 10 is the 100th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (101st in leap years). ... April 9 is the 99th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (100th in leap years). ... April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ... SLA stands for South Los Angeles Symbionese Liberation Army, kidnappers of Patty Hearst South Lebanon Army, an Israeli-backed militia during the Lebanese Civil War Sudan Liberation Army rebel group in the sudanese region Darfur A role-playing game written by Dave Alsop. ...

Operation Grapes of Wrath

Within forty-eight hours, Israel launched the military compaign known as Operation Grapes of Wrath. On April 11, Israel bombarded what it claimed to be Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon and Beirut first, with artillary and later laser guided missiles. On April 13, Israeli warships initiated a blockade against Beirut, Sidon and Tyre, Lebanon's main ports of entry. Meanwhile, Hezbollah continuously bombarded northern Israel with Katyusha rockets. Israel continued to bomb what it said to be Hezbollah installations. According to U.N. spokeswoman, Sylvana Foa, on April 18, Hezbollah fired two Katyusha rockets and eight mortars at Israel from an area 300 yards away from the Fijian compound, 15 minutes before an Israeli unit responded by shelling the area with M-109A2 155 mm guns⁴ without taking civilians into consideration. As a result of the shelling, 102 civilians died, with more wounded. Most of the casualties were residents of nearby villages who had fled the conflict, while four were U.N. troops. April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ... 13 April is the 103rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (104th in leap years). ... Central Beirut (2004) Beirut (Arabic: , transliterated BayrÅ«t - the French name, Beyrouth, was also commonly used in English in the past) is the capital, largest city and chief seaport of Lebanon. ... Sidon, Zidon or Saida, (Arabic صيدا á¹¢aydā is the third-largest city in Lebanon. ... For a wheel tyre, see the article under the US English spelling of the word, tire. ... BM-13 Katyusha on Studebaker US6 Katyusha RS-132 rockets mounted underneath the wing of LaGG-3 fighter Damage caused to a German tank Pz Kpfw 38(t) by direct hit of RS-132 The 82mm BM-8 and 132mm BM-13 Katyusha rocket launchers were built and fielded by... This article is about the United Nations, for other uses of UN see UN (disambiguation) Official languages English, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Arabic Secretary-General Kofi Annan (since 1997) Established October 24, 1945 Member states 191 Headquarters New York City, NY, USA Official site http://www. ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... Mortar has several meanings: A mortar is a military weapon into which is dropped a mortar shell, which is then fired in a high ballistic trajectory. ... This article is about the United Nations, for other uses of UN see UN (disambiguation) Official languages English, French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Arabic Secretary-General Kofi Annan (since 1997) Established October 24, 1945 Member states 191 Headquarters New York City, NY, USA Official site http://www. ...

Response

U.N. Compound pictured with bombardment trajectory

Israel immediately expressed regret for the loss of innocent lives, saying that the Hezbollah position and not the UN compound was the intended target of the shelling, and that the compound was hit "due to incorrect targeting based on erroneous data." Army Deputy Chief of Staff, Matan Vilnai stated that the shells hit the base not because they were off target, but because Israeli gunners used outdated maps of the area. He also stated that the gunners miscalculated the firing range of the shells. Download high resolution version (505x652, 98 KB)Qana compound map File links The following pages link to this file: Qana ... Download high resolution version (505x652, 98 KB)Qana compound map File links The following pages link to this file: Qana ...

Prime Minister Shimon Peres claimed that "We did not know that several hundred people were concentrated in that camp. It came to us as a bitter surprise."⁵ Following the attack, Lt.-Gen. Amnon Shahak, Israel's chief of staff, at a press conference in Tel Aviv on April 18 defended the shelling: "I don't see any mistake in judgment… We fought Hezbollah there [in Qana], and when they fire on us, we will fire at them to defend ourselves… I don't know any other rules of the game, either for the army or for civilians…"⁶. Both the US and Israel accused Hezbollah of "shielding", the use of civilians as a cover for military activities, which is a breach of the laws of war. The U.S. State Department spokesperson, Nicolas Burns stated, "Hezbollah [is] using civilians as cover. That's a despicable thing to do, an evil thing."⁷ and Prime Minister Shimon Peres cited the use of human shielding to blame Hezbollah. On April 18 he said, "They used them as a shield, they used the UN as a shield — the UN admitted it."⁸ However, not all members of the government were supportive. Rabbi Yehuda Amital, a member of Peres' cabinet, called the Qana killings a desecration of God's name (chilul hashem) ⁹. Shimon Peres Shimon Peres â–¶(?) (Hebrew שִׁמְעוֹן פֶּרֶס (without Niqqud: שמעון פרס) (born August 16, 1923), an Israeli Labour politician and served as 8th Prime Minister of Israel from 1984-1986 and 1995-1996 and Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel from 2001-2002, and became Vice Premier in a coalition under Ariel Sharon at the... Tel-Aviv was founded on empty dunes north of the existing city of Jaffa. ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... Human shield is a military term describing the use of civilians to deter an enemy from attacking certain targets—in particular military targets. ... The laws of war (Jus in bello) define the conduct and responsibilities of belligerent nations, neutral nations and individuals engaged in warfare, in relation to each other and to protected persons, usually meaning civilians. ... The United States Department of State, often referred to as the State Department, is the Cabinet-level foreign affairs agency of the United States government, equivalent to foreign ministries in other countries. ... Shimon Peres Shimon Peres â–¶(?) (Hebrew שִׁמְעוֹן פֶּרֶס (without Niqqud: שמעון פרס) (born August 16, 1923), an Israeli Labour politician and served as 8th Prime Minister of Israel from 1984-1986 and 1995-1996 and Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel from 2001-2002, and became Vice Premier in a coalition under Ariel Sharon at the... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... Rav Yehuda Amital (born 31 October 1924), a noted Orthodox Jewish rabbi, is the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Har Etzion and a former member of Knesset. ...

The U.N. appointed military advisor Major-General Franklin van Kappen of the Netherlands to investigate the incident. Van Kappen's findings included that, "The distribution of point impact detonations and air bursts makes it improbable that impact fuzes and proximity fuzes were employed in random order, as stated by the Israeli forces," and ultimately that, "While the possibility cannot be ruled out completely, it is unlikely that the shelling of the United Nations compound was the result of gross technical and/or procedural errors." A proximity fuse (sometimes spelled fuze) is a fuse that is designed to detonate an explosive automatically when close enough to the target to destroy it. ...

A video recording made by a UNIFIL soldier showed an unmanned drone and a helicopter in the vicinity at the time of the shelling. Uri Dromi, an Israeli government spokesman, confirmed there was a drone in the area, but stated that it did not detect civilians in the compound. The Israel response to the report stated that "The IAF drone shown on videotape did not reach the area until after the UN position was hit and was not an operational component in the targeting of Israeli artillery fire in the area."[2] UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Forces In Lebanon) was created in 1978 by the United Nations to confirm Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon, restore the international peace and security, and help the Lebanese Government restore its effective authority in the area. ...

Commemoration

Qana Anniversary April 18, 1997

April 18 is held as an anniversary to commemorate the victims of the bombardment. At other times, Hezbollah has used this event to arouse ill will toward Israel and the United States, prominently marching after the relatives of the victims, or making inflammatory speeches at the event[3]. Qana commemoration File links The following pages link to this file: Qana ... Qana commemoration File links The following pages link to this file: Qana ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ...

Footnotes

• Note 1: Lebanon: Main Events in Recent Hizbollah-Israel Violence, Reuters, April 11, 1996.
• Note 2: Shlomi Afriat, Israel vows retaliation for Lebanon rocket attacks, Reuters, April 9, 1996.
• Note 3: "Israel Steps Up Lebanese Attacks," Washington Post, April 13, 1996, p. A23
• Note 4: United Nations: Hizbollah Fired From Near U.N. Post Hit by Israel, Reuters, April 18, 1996.
• Note 5: Serge Schmemann, Voicing Regret, Israeli Leader Offers a Cease-Fire, The New York Times, April 19, 1996.
• Note 6: Israeli Army Chief Says UN Forewarned of Shelling, Reuters, April 18, 1996.
• Note 7: Steven Erlanger, Christopher Sees Syria Chief in Bid on Lebanon Truce, The New York Times, April 21, 1996, quoting State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns.
• Note 8: ICRC Condemns Shelling of Civilians in Southern Lebanon, Communication to the press no. 96/14, April 19, 1996.
• Note 9: Jewish Chronicle, 3 May 1996, p. 1 (quoted in Prior, M. (1999). Zionism and the State of Israel: A Moral Inquiry. London: Routledge, ISBN 0415204623, p. 42)

Reuters Group plc is best known as a news service that provides reports from around the world to newspapers and broadcasters. ... April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... April 9 is the 99th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (100th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... 13 April is the 103rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (104th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... The New York Times is a newspaper published in New York City by Arthur O. Sulzberger Jr. ... April 19 is the 109th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (110th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... April 19 is the 109th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (110th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... May 3 is the 123rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (124th in leap years). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ...

External links

• Robert Fisk's dispatch
• Images from the bombing
• UN report on the incident
• Israel's response to the UN report
• Name of the victims