The number and size of PLO operations…

The number and size of PLO operations in southern Lebanon had accelerated throughout the late 1970s as central authority deteriorated and the country became a battleground of warring militias.

Continued fighting among the Lebanese factions has led to the loss of prestige of the former political elite and to the emergence of a new generation of militia leaders, except in the Phalangist Party, whose existing leadership dominates the Christian-rightist coalition so successfully that the Syrian army of occupation once again begins to support the Muslim-leftist-Palestinian groups in 1978.

The destruction and violence have caused hundreds of thousands of Lebanese to flee their homes in southern Lebanon, where the threat of Israeli intervention stops Syria from imposing a peace.