ORDER OF BATTLE // June 14, 1982
Siege of Beirut
Estimated force strength by side, with confidence labels per surviving record.
Forces engaged
2 sides catalogued · combined 88,000 estimated
Israel
76,000
Medium-confidence figure
PLO
12,000
Medium-confidence figure
Battle context
The Siege of Beirut was a central episode of the 1982 Lebanon War, following the collapse of a UN-imposed ceasefire during the Lebanese Civil War. Lasting approximately two months from mid-June, the siege resulted in thousands of civilian deaths and ended with the expulsion of the PLO from Beirut and from Lebanon entirely. That outcome represented a decisive strategic shift: the PLO, which had used Lebanon as its primary operational base, lost its foothold in the country, forcing the organization to relocate its leadership and forces. The siege thus accomplished Israel's core objective of dislodging the PLO from Lebanese territory, though at significant human cost and with lasting consequences for the broader Lebanese Civil War context.
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