Into the Ring - Campaign Series: Middle East 1948 -1985

[Khaldah, Lebanon]:[H2H][HIS][CSL]: The entire advance up the Lebanese Coast was marked by a series of stubborn fanatical defenses as the PLO militias met the armour-heavy IDF Task Forces head-on in the narrow streets of the refugee camps and Lebanese cities. Again and again, attempts to clear routes along the coastal highway were met by barrages of RPG fire, satchel charges dropped from roof tops and unseen flanking fires from heavily fortified bunker positions. Israel’s 122nd Armoured Brigade, made repeated flank marches around most of these strongholds, leaving the job of clearing them to the follow on forces behind him. But this was no longer an option when they linked up with the 96th Division, which had landed on the coast north of Sidon. The job now was to advance to the southern suburbs of Beirut and capture the airport. But while this might have seemed an easy task, especially considering the IDF's past performance versus other Arab irregulars, the fact was that the PLO militias had shown remarkable resilience all through the campaign, and the heavily urbanized, hilly terrain of Lebanon heavily favored the defender. Two major urban centers still lay ahead. One was the coastal city of Damour, used as an urban training center by the PLO and defended by elements of the PFLP, and the other was the southern Beirut suburb of Khaldah. Damour fell on June 10, after heavy artillery and air bombardment of its fortifications. But the stubborn resistance encountered there made as the Israelis paused before advancing further. They sent the 35th Parachute Brigade, reinforced by tanks, on a sweeping maneuver to the east hoping to find an alternate route around enemy's positions, while the two remaining formations, the 122nd Armour, and the famous Golani Infantry Brigade, deployed to attack Khaldah. It was decided the 122nd would attack directly northwards up the coast road, while the Golani would conduct an envelopment from the east through the wealthy Lebanese villages of Ainab, Yinnar and the village of Kfar Sil. The Golani, already bloodied by several failed assaults on other defended PLO positions, would be assisted by attached units of the equally famous Barak Brigade most of which would remain in reserve. Meanwhile, the Syrian 85th Mechanized Brigade, on a show of strength deployment in Beirut, began transferring elements to the hilly country to the south and east of the city. These forces consisted largely of armor units backed by well-trained commandos whose goal was to conduct an active anti-armor defense designed to attrite and harass the IDF as much as possible while avoiding an all-out war. The remainder of the Brigade was held in Beirut itself, preparing to defend the city in the event of an Israeli breakthrough. The PLO leadership, previously panicked by the scale of the Israeli advance, finally took heart from the Syrian example and made ready to defend alongside their Arab compatriots. Like the PLO militias, the Syrians had shown a great deal of resourcefulness throughout the war, and while still suffering defeats, had repeatedly bloodied the overconfident Israelis whenever they were given a chance. On the morning of June 11, 1982, the Israeli assault began, and for the next nineteen hours the two sides would fight what would later be called the "most brutal battle of the war." [ALL][Based on a scenario by Wyatt Kappley][1.00]