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Witness History

When the Syrian Army Withdrew from Lebanon

Witness History

BBC

History, Personal Journals, Society & Culture

4.41.6K Ratings

🗓️ 26 April 2017

⏱️ 10 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On April 26th 2005, Syrian forces finally pulled out of Lebanon, after being stationed there for almost 30 years. The withdrawal came after a series of massive popular protests, and international criticism following the assassination of a popular Lebanese politician - Rafik Hariri. Zeinab Dabaa has been speaking to two Lebanese people with very different opinions about the Syrian presence in their country.

Photo: Syrian Army trucks carrying tanks cross the Lebanese-Syrian border crossing point of Masnaa in April 2005. Credit: AFP/Getty Images

Transcript

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0:30.6

downloading the witness podcast.

0:32.8

History as told by people who were there.

0:35.5

I am Zine up Dabba.

0:37.0

Today I am taking you back to April 2005.

0:40.8

When the Syrian army withdrew from Lebanon after being stationed there for almost 30 years.

0:48.0

Syria has officially ended its 29-year military presence in Lebanon four days before a UN deadline.

0:55.0

It was an indescribable feeling for me to see the Syrian occupying army, the Army

1:02.3

of Basha al-Al-Assad forced to leave Lebanon

1:04.8

humiliated because it was the will of the Lebanese people I wished we could have

1:09.7

been able to punish them. A mixed feeling between upset about this end which we didn't wish

1:19.8

for the senior army to go under this circumstances. I think it was very bad. So they should have

1:26.2

lift Zibbonon as an army that helped to stabilize Zibbonon and to reconstruct its army after getting rid of the Civil War.

1:37.0

Syrian troops had first entered Lebanon in 1976, a year after the beginning of the Lebanese civil war.

1:46.4

The Syrians claimed that they were moving in to protect the Lebanese Maronite Christians

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