War of Lebanon

The War of Lebanon is a 4 DVD, 15-part documentary produced exclusively by Al Jazeera Satellite Channel. This 2-year project cost several hundred thousand dollars and entailed filming over 150 hours of interviews with the major players in the events that took place in Lebanon between 1976 - 1990. The idea for the War of Lebanon stemmed from the need to document a critical and turbulent period in the history of Lebanon and the Middle East. Barring the Palestinian cause, the Lebanese war was the most important issue in Arab politics for almost two decades. Having the cause of Palestine at the heart of the Lebanese conflict in addition to the intricacies of Lebanon's internal power struggles made it imperative to document the period. In addition to a wealth of archive material in the form of television footage, still photographs and historical documents, the program relied heavily on the testimony of those who took an active political military part in the conflict. Some victims of the often savage fighting spoke on camera for the very first time in graphic and chilling detail. The recollections of journalists and independent observers were also documented. The ultimate aim was for an Arab broadcast to document for the vey first time a crucial period of modern Middle Eastern history so that the misery and suffering are not easily forgotten and perhaps provide a lesson for future generations.