All Objectives Achieved Israeli Forces Withdraw from Lebanon After Air, Ground. Assault on Terrorist

Israel announced late this afternoon the complete withdrawal of its forces from Lebanon following a 36-hour ground and air assault on terrorist strongholds in that country. The action, described officially as a “combing and purging operation,” involved the largest Israeli armored force ever to penetrate Lebanon, supported by waves of jet fighter-bombers.

Israeli casualties were announced as three dead and six wounded. Terrorist fatalities were estimated at least 60 dead in the ground actions and possibly more from air attacks. Unexpected resistance by units of the Lebanese Army is believed to have cost them at least 20 dead and a larger number of wounded. At mid-day today Israeli forces were reported still engaged in mopping-up operations in Lebanon. The action was described by Chief of Staff Gen. David Elazar last night as a complete success in which all objectives were achieved.

During the fighting which began early Saturday morning when three Israeli armored infantry columns plunged across the Lebanese border, nine terrorist strongholds were overrun in a wide sector extending westward from the slopes of Mt. Hermon. They included the principal terrorist headquarters for southern Lebanon near Nabatiye village. Israeli jets destroyed two bridges over the Litani River which provided the main access route from the north into the area of central and southern Lebanon known as Fatahland. An Israeli military spokesman said 13 Lebanese villages were systematically cleared of terrorists and between 130-150 houses sheltering terrorists were destroyed.

U.S.-ISRAEL IN CONTACT DURING ACTION

Sources in Jerusalem disclosed today that the Israeli and US governments were in contact throughout Saturday while the main Israeli action in Lebanon was underway. The sources said the US Charge d’Affaires, Owen Zurhellen, had asked the Foreign Ministry for information on the operation yesterday morning and was in contact with Ministry officials several times during the day. The sources did not indicate how the US reacted to the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the third since Feb.

There was no hint in Jerusalem that the US had expressed displeasure although Washington is traditionally concerned with the political and security situation in Lebanon which is one of the few pro-Western Arab states.

Elazar said that strict orders were issued to avoid harming the civilian population during the fighting. “We did our best not to hurt civilians. If isolated cases occurred it is to be greatly regretted but we did our utmost to avoid this happening,” he said. Another senior military officer said the main objective of yesterday’s action was to knock out the terrorist infra-structure in southern Lebanon and to destroy as much equipment as possible.

Early reports indicated the capture of large quantities of arms, ammunition, equipment and documents. The officer conceded that in terms of overall casualties, the terrorists did not suffer a crippling blow. He said that even the destruction of their strongholds did not render them incapable of continuing operations on Lebanese territory unless the Lebanese government decided to curb them.

ENEMY IS NOT LEBANESE

Israeli military sources said the instructions to soldiers participating in the operation emphasized that “the Lebanese are not our enemies” and are not to be fired on. “Our enemy is the terrorist movement and the terrorists themselves.” The order had to be amended, however, because of Lebanese Army resistance in one sector. It was described as consisting of small arms and mortar fire on an Israeli column and in one case tank fire.

One of the Israeli dead was killed in a clash with Lebanese forces and two by terrorists in Juwaya village. They were identified as Second Lt. Avner Saador, 20, of Kiryat Gad; Lance Corp. Melech Minster, 19, of Moshav Reshafim; and Pvt. David Heller, 19, of Haifa. Funeral services for Heller were held in Haifa this morning.

Yesterday’s fighting in Lebanon followed by a week a series of wide-ranging Israeli air attacks on terrorist bases in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes continued along the border during the week. An Israeli soldier was killed by terrorist infiltrators Tuesday and two others were killed and a third wounded in a clash with terrorists on Friday. The latter were identified as William Ozen, 20, of Lod, and Zion Anaki, 19 of Rehovot.

(Yosef Tekoah, Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, referred to those deaths in a letter yesterday to Huang Hua, the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China and this months Security Council President. Tekoah wrote that “murderous attacks perpetrated from Lebanon” during recent days had resulted in the death of three Israeli soldiers and the wounding of two others.”

Tekoah said the assaults were “part of the Arab campaign of atrocity and slaughter carried on in the Middle East and elsewhere and culminating in the barbaric massacre at Lod Airport and in Munich.” Tekoah added that Israel had information that “the murder squads” had been concentrating during the past few days along the Lebanese frontier “in preparation for further attacks.”)