Historical Background
The Israeli army invaded Lebanon for the second time in 1982, in order to stop the Palestinian attacks, starting the 1982 Lebanon War. After three months Israel occupied the capital city of Beirut. Over the next three years the Israeli army partially withdrew, until in 1985 it established what it called the "Security Buffer Zone" in Southern Lebanon.
While Israel did succeed in ousting the PLO from Lebanon, but armed insurgency by radical Shia organizations emerged in the region. In 1993, Israel responded with a massive attack against the Lebanese Hizbullah (Operation Accountability) to disrupt its actions. The military campaign ended in a ceasefire banning targeting civilians on both sides. Hezbollah later broke the agreement, and continued attacking targets in both Lebanon and northern Israel, including Israeli armed forces, South Lebanon Army militia and civilian areas. According to HRW the Israeli military shelled targets often in very close proximity to or inside civilian areas, frequently causing the death of many civilians.
In 9 April 1996, a heavy barrage of rockets was shelled by Hizbullah upon Galilee towns, prompting Israel to respond against, and hence Operation Grapes of Wrath was launched two days later.
Read more about this topic: Operation Grapes Of Wrath
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