Bhamdoun abduction operation
| Bhamdoun abduction operation | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the 1982 Lebanon War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Israel | Palestine Liberation Organization | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Brig. Gen. Haim Oren (Commander of Nahal Brigade) |
Issa Hajo (Commander of al-Jarmaq battalion) | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 8 IDF soldiers from Nahal Brigade | 4 fighters from Fatah al-Jarmaq battalion | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 8 soldiers captured | No casualties | ||||||
The Bhamdoun abduction operation was a military operation carried out by Fatah, the main constituent organization of the PLO. During the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, a Palestinian four-man squad infiltrated the IDF-held mountainous area north of Bhamdoun, in central Lebanon, and attacked an IDF observation point, capturing the entire 8-men IDF unit without firing a single bullet. The Palestinian squad took eight Israeli soldiers as prisoners. This provided the Palestinian side with plenty of leverage in the two controversial prisoner exchanges with Israel, which freed 5,900 Palestinian and Lebanese prisoners.