 On 16 September 1983 Druze forces massed on the threshold of Suk El Gharb , a village defended by the Lebanese Army . Suk El Gharb was a village with strategic importance : the militias coming up from the south had to traverse Suk El Gharb to get to the Beirut – Aley road . Moreover , Suk El Gharb controlled a ridge that overlooked Baabda , Yarze , which was the location of the Ministry of Defence , and East Beirut . From that ridge , the Militia gunners could shoot directly downhill at those locations with artillery . United States Navy warships shelled Druze positions and helped the Lebanese Army hold the town of Suk El Gharb until a cease @-@ fire was declared on 25 September , on which day the battleship New Jersey arrived on the scene . The arrival of New Jersey was one of several factors contributing to a reduction in the number of attacks on the Marines . 
