The following is a list of massacres that have occurred in Lebanon:
Antiquity NameDateLocationDeathsVictimsPerpetratorsNotesSiege of Tyre (332 BC)332 BCTyre2,000TyriansAncient Macedonian army2,000 Tyrians crucified on the beach by Alexander the Great's army Medieval NameDateLocationDeathsVictimsPerpetratorsNotes1283 Mamluk offensive against Mount LebanonMay–August, 1283Northern Mount LebanonThousandsMaronitesAfter decades of Maronite resistance against the Sultanate, Mamluk forces launched a massive siege on the northern strongholds. The campaign culminated in the fall of the mountain fortress of Hadat.This event led to the capture and execution of Patriarch Daniel of Hadshit, the leader of the resistance. It marked the end of Maronite political autonomy in the North for centuries and forced the population to seek refuge in the inaccessible heights of the Qadisha Valley."A Brief History of the Maronites." Maronite Foundation. [Online].1305 Kisrawan campaignJuly, 1305KisrawanThousands Shia Alawites Druze MaronitesFollowing several failed attempts to subdue the mountain, the Mamluk Sultanate launched a massive "scorched earth" expedition with 50,000 soldiers. The goal was to eliminate "heterodox" groups accused of aiding Crusader and Mongol interests.Salibi, K. (1988). A House of Many Mansions: The History of Lebanon Reconsidered.
Ottoman Era NameDateLocationDeathsVictimsPerpetratorsNotes1820 Lehfed massacre1820Lehfed50–100 villagersMaronites Shihab dynastyDuring the uprisings against the heavy taxation of Emir Bashir Shihab II, the Emir’s forces launched a brutal crackdown on the village of Lehfed, which had become a center of peasant resistance. It was a rare instance of "intra-sectarian" massacre, where a Christian ruler used violence against his own Maronite subjects to maintain his tax collection rights for the Ottoman Sultan.Makdisi, U. (2000). The Culture of Sectarianism: Community, History, and Violence in Nineteenth-Century Ottoman Lebanon.1841 Deir al-Qamar massacreOctober–November, 1841Deir al-Qamar1,000–1,500MaronitesDruze militiasThis was the first major explosion of sectarian violence in the modern era. After a dispute over hunting rights, Druze fighters besieged the town. Ottoman authorities remained neutral or actively assisted in the disarmament of Christians, who were then attacked. This event signaled the collapse of the "Double Qaimaqamate" (the administrative division of the mountain) and served as the direct psychological precursor to the much larger 1860 Civil War.Fawaz, L. T. (1994). An Occasion for War: Civil Conflict in Lebanon and Damascus in 1860.1845 sectarian conflict in Mount Lebanon and Beqaa ValleyMay–June, 1845 Mount Lebanon Beqaa ValleyHundredsMaronitesDruze militiasThis was a period of systemic tit-for-tat killings that followed the failed 1841 partition. In the Bekaa, the town of Mallaqa was attacked, and Zahleh was besieged. The Ottoman military often intervened only after Christian villages were already disarmed and vulnerable. This conflict proved that the "Double Qaimaqamate" (the administrative division of Lebanon into two sectarian sectors) was a failure. It directly led to the total social breakdown that caused the 1860 Civil War.Fawaz, L. T. (1994). An Occasion for War: Civil Conflict in Lebanon and Damascus in 1860.1860 civil conflict in Mount Lebanon and Damascus23 May–11 July, 1860 Mount Lebanon Beqaa Valley Beirut Damascus7,000–25,000Christians Druze militias Muslim militiasDuring the 1860 Civil conflict in Mount Lebanon, large massacres of Christians at Deir al-Qamar, Hasbaya, and Rashaya took place. Many Christians fled to Damascus and Beirut, where Muslim militias with the support of rogue Ottoman troops and massacred several thousand Christian civilians.Execution of Arab nationalistsMay 6, 1916 Beirut Damascus23Arab Nationalists Ottoman EmpireOn May 6, 1916, Djemal Pasha publicly executed simultaneously seven Arabs in Damascus and fourteen in Beirut for alleged anti-Turkish activities. The date, May 6, is commemorated annually in both countries as Martyrs' Day, and the site in Beirut has come to be known as Martyrs' Square.
French Lebanon NameDateLocationDeathsVictimsPerpetratorsNotesAin Ebel massacre Ain Ebel 50–100MaronitesShia militiaMahmoud Bazzi's militia, which "proceeded from brigandage to confronting France and its Christian friends in the south," attacked Ain Ebel on May 5, 1920, pillaging and killing more than 50 people. The people of Ain Ebel defended the town from sunrise to sunset until they ran out of ammunition. The town was completely destroyed, and the damage done to the two churches, school and convent, was evidence of sectarian malice.Rashaya revolt massacreNovember, 1925RashayaHundredsChristiansDruze militiaThe anti-French revolt's expansion into Lebanon and stories of massacres targeting local Christians sparked worry among the Christians of southern Lebanon.Khoury, p. 181. Around 400 Christian homes in Rashaya were either damaged or destroyed in the fighting.Tripoli student massacreNovember 13, 1943Tripoli14Student protestersFrench-Senegalese soldiersThe students were struck by French tanks driven by Senegalese soldiers while participating in a peaceful march through the streets. During the demonstration, the students were fervently advocating for an end to the occupation. All the victims were under the age of 15.
Independent Lebanon NameDateLocationDeathsVictimsPerpetratorsNotesHula massacre Hula34–89Lebanese Israel Defense ForcesHula, located in Lebanon, was captured on October 24 by the Carmeli Brigade of the Israel Defense Forces without any resistance. The women and children were expelled, most of the men aged between 15 and 60 were shot. In total between 35 and 58 men were executed in a house which was later blown up on top of them.Tveit, Odd Karsten (2010) Goodbye Lebanon. Israel's First Defeat. Rimal Publication. Translated by Peter Scott-Hansen. . p.368. Quoting General Dov Yermiya.Miziara massacreJune 16, 1957Miziara30Douaihy clanFrangieh clanSleiman Frangieh and his followers killed 30 loyalist to the Douaihy family in a church in Miziara. Victims included nuns, priests, women and children.
Civil War Period NameDateLocationDeathsVictimsPerpetratorsNotesChurch shootingAin El Remmaneh4Lebanese Christians PLODrive-by shooting assassination attempt on Pierre Gemayel outside a church ceremony. Gemayel survived but four men were killed.Bus massacreAin El Remmaneh27Palestinians Kataeb Regulatory ForcesOn the morning of 13 April 1975, PLO gunmen in a speeding car fired on a church in the Christian East Beirut suburb of Ain el-Rummaneh, killing four people, including two Maronite Phalangists. Hours later, 27 Palestinian civilians traveling in a bus through one of the Ain el Rummaneh neighborhoods of Beirut were attacked and killed by Christian Phalangists. Many more people were killed in subsequent fighting in other areas of the city later that day. Together, these incidents have been identified by several historians as the starting point of the Lebanese Civil War. Black ThursdayMay 30, 1975Beirut30–50Lebanese Christians LNM Knights of Ali PLO As-Sa'iqaThe bodies were abandoned in a Muslim cemetery, with possible intention of provoking a sectarian message, close to the Green Line separating East and West Beirut, all with their genitals mutilated off.Harris, William (1996), Faces of Lebanon, p. 161.Salibi, Kamal (2005). Crossroads to Civil War: Lebanon 1958–1976. I.B. Tauris. p. 104. ISBN 978-1845111243.Beit Mellat massacreSeptember 10, 1975Beit Mellat30Lebanese Christians LNM INM PLO As-Sa'iqaOn September 10, 1975, during the initial phase of the civil war, the village was attacked by joint forces of the LNM and the PLO, in what became known as the "Beit Mellat massacre", resulting in the death of approximately 30 Christian residents and the torching of several houses. This incident became known for being one of the first mass killings in a series of massacres targeting Christian residents during the civil war.Black Saturday Beirut 150–200 Lebanese Muslims Lebanese Druze Kataeb Regulatory ForcesFour young Christian Phalangists were assassinated on the Fanar (Matn) road in Beirut. In retaliation, Phalangists murdered hundreds of non-Christians. It is estimated that more than 300 civilians were murdered in what was the first ethnic cleansing of the Lebanese Civil War.Karantina massacreBeirut600–1,500 Palestinians Lebanese Muslims Kataeb Regulatory ForcesKarantina was an impoverished predominantly Muslim district housing Lebanese and Palestinian refugees, as well as others in northeastern Beirut, and was overrun by the Lebanese Christian militias.Damour massacreDamour150-582Nisan, 2003Lebanese Christians LNM INM SSNP-L CAOL LCP PLO Fatah As-Sa'iqaFollowing the Jiyeh Massacre several days earlier where the Damour entry point had been strategically penetrated in preparation, PLO and LNM militia forces launched a brutal assault on the town of Damour. The operation, which aimed to "empty the city" of its estimated 35,000 residents, resulted in a humanitarian catastrophe. Militants systematically killed entire families—including women, children, and the elderly—within their homes and in places of refuge, such as the local church. Survivors and historical accounts document widespread atrocities, including gang rapes, looting, arson, and the desecration of cemeteries.Chekka massacreJuly 5, 1976 Chekka Hamat200Lebanese Christians LNM INM LCP PLO As-Sa'iqaThe attack was launched from Tripoli by Palestinian militants and members of a left-wing group called Jund Allah. The group stormed the Christian pro-SSNP-L settlement of Chekka as well as Hamat. An estimated 200 people were killed in the ensuing 24 hours. Residents tried to flee through a tunnel to Batroun but the attackers blocked the exit. Many were killed as their cars caught fire, and they suffocated to death.Tel al-Zaatar massacreBeirut1,500–3,000Palestinians Kataeb Regulatory ForcesChristian Phalangists and other right-wing Christian militias besieged Tel Al-Zaatar; after heavy fighting, they massacred Palestinian civilian refugees who resided in the camp.Aishiyeh massacreOctober 19–21, 1976Aishiyeh70+Lebanese Christians LNM SSNP-L LCP CAOL PLO Fatah