Palestinian insurgency in South Lebanon peaked in the early 1970s , as Lebanon was used as a base to launch attacks on northern Israel and airplane hijacking campaigns worldwide , which drew Israeli retaliation . During the Lebanese Civil War , Palestinian militants continued to launch attacks against Israel while also battling opponents within Lebanon . In 1978 , the Coastal Road massacre led to the Israeli full-scale invasion known as Operation Litani . Israeli forces , however , quickly withdrew from Lebanon , and the attacks against Israel resumed . In 1982 , following an assassination attempt on one of its diplomats by Palestinians , the Israeli government decided to take sides in the Lebanese Civil War and the 1982 Lebanon War commenced . The initial results for Israel were successful . Most Palestinian militants were defeated within several weeks , Beirut was captured , and the PLO headquarters were evacuated to Tunisia in June by Yasser Arafat 's decision . However , Israeli intervention in the civil war also led to unforeseen results , including small-scale conflict between Israel and Syria . By 1985 , Israel withdrew to a 10 km occupied strip of South Lebanon , while the low-intensity conflict with Shia militants escalated
Coastal Road massacre
Coastal Road massacre
Israeli–Palestinian conflict