SUMMARY
The 2008 non-state conflict between Hezbollah and PSP took place in the context of wide-spread sectarian/political fighting during the summer of 2008. A large number of militias, affiliated to sectarian political parties, engaged in street battles in Beirut and the surrounding areas during this tumultuous summer, as a result of a governmental crisis. It has, however, only been possible to trace the exact number of fatalities in the Hezbollah-PSP dyad.
The origins of the 2008 government crisis go back to 2005, and the killing of then-Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The assassination of this prominent Sunni politician, and its aftermath, forced a Syrian exit from Lebanon; a country that it had dominated since its intervention in the civil war in 1976. Government power was subsequently seized by Hariri’s son, Saad Hariri, and his 14 March coalition (mainly Sunni and Druze, but with some Christian parties as well). To oppose this pro-Western coalition a number of political parties, of which the foremost was Hezbollah, formed the March 8 coalition, which in addition to Hezbollah contained parties such as Amal, the Syrian Social Nationalist Party and later the Free Patriotic Movement of Michel Aoun (famous as the last general who fought the Syrians in 1990). The March 8 coalition grouped the major Shiite parties and some Christian parties and is pro-Syrian, in contrast to the 14 March group. The rivalry between these two coalitions has since their formation dominated Lebanese politics.
In May 2008 the Hariri government made decisions to reassign the pro-Hizbollah security chief of Beirut’s airport (due to his bias) and also to investigate Hezbollah’s independent phone network. These were clear challenges to Hezbollah’s military and political position in the country. In response, Hezbollah and its allies organized a civil obedience movement, which effectively closed down Beirut’s airport and major roads. Provocations and violence from both sides followed, culminating on 8 May in a violent take-over of Beirut by Hezbollah and Amal militias, mainly fighting Sunni militias. The Lebanese army, which occupies a special role in Lebanon, did not intervene.
In the Druze areas of Mount Lebanon especially heavy fighting stood between Hezbollah (and allied forces) against the Druze political party, the Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) of Walid Jumblatt, which was a member of the 14 March coalition. The main bouts of fighting stood between 5 and 9 May, with additional fighting towards the end of that month. At least some 38 people were killed in these battles.
The fighting ended when it was clear that Hezbollah had asserted its power over the other Lebanese factions; taking control of Beirut with ease and also challenging the prominence of the Druze in their own territory. The government’s edicts were repealed and Lebanese politics returned to its delicate balancing on the sectarian divide.
The non-state conflict between Hezbollah and PSP is first included in UCDP data in 2008. On 21 May fighting between the two groups in the Chouf Mountains crossed the 25 battle-related deaths threshold.
