Historical Dictionary of Terrorism Third Edition

246 • HEZBOLLAHHezbollah and Amal units. When the Israeli Golani Brigade called onits artillery to provide cover to enable a retreat, the artillery barrageinstead ignited the dry scrub forest on the hillside, creating a firestormthat burned three of its members to death. During April 1996 Hezbollahengaged in Katyusha rocket attacks from southern Lebanon intonorthern Israel, leading to a 16-day exchange of fire in which Israelwould respond to Hezbollah rocket attacks with artillery or air forcebombing attacks on Hezbollah positions within Lebanon. On 18 April1996 one such retaliatory attack hit a United Nations refugee center inQana, Lebanon, by mistake, killing 75 civilians.On 6 September 1997, when 16 members of the Israeli naval commandounit, Shayetet 13, attempted a preemptive strike at Hezbollahpositions in the village of Ansariyah, midway between Sidon andTyre, they were again surprised by joint Hezbollah and Amal unitswaiting in place who had already rigged a roadside bomb to ambushthe Israeli unit. Supported by units of the Lebanese army, the jointAmal-Hezbollah units killed 11 of the Israeli team in what was consideredto be the worst defeat Israel had suffered in southern Lebanonsince 1985.On 28 February 1999 a roadside bomb set by Hezbollah killed IsraeliBrigadier General Erez Gerstein, the highest-ranking IDF officerto be killed in the war in Lebanon. In response, the Israeli air forcebombed Hezbollah strongholds in Baalbak and three other positions.On 24 June 1999, in retaliation for further Hezbollah Katyusha attackson northern Israel, the Israeli air force bombed nine targets in Lebanon,including power stations and bridges, and plunged Beirut into anelectric power failure. On 16 August 1999 the Hezbollah coordinatorfor operations in the south of Lebanon, Ali Hassan Deeb, was assassinatedby two roadside bombs, which Hezbollah blamed on Israel.With the unilateral withdrawal of Israeli forces from southern Lebanonin 2000, Hezbollah invoked the pretext of Lebanese sovereigntyover the Shebaa Farms in the Israel-occupied Golan Heights in orderto justify continued attacks upon Israel. Hezbollah again shifted itstactics away from improvised explosive devices to the kidnapping ofIsraeli soldiers in order to exchange them for Lebanese, Palestinian,or other Arab prisoners held by Israel. On 19 January 2003 Hezbollahmilitamen shelled an Israeli soldier bulldozing a suspected minealong the Lebanese-Israel border, claiming he had entered Lebaneseterritory. In retaliation, the Israeli air force bombed two Hezbollah