1864- 1915

Indirectly elected administrative Council of Ottoman establishes autonomous province of Mount Lebanon.

1920

The League of Nations grants France stewardship of Lebanese and Syrian mandates; results in the formation of the State of Greater Lebanon.

1926

Lebanese Constitution introduces a bicameral Parliament (Chamber of Deputies and Senate–which were later suspended). First Chamber of Deputies appointed.

1932

First and only Lebanese census.

1934

First direct elections of Parliamentarians.

1943

Sixth Chamber of Deputies abrogates mandate. French authorities briefly imprison communal leaders and Lebanon achieves independence under the “National Pact” (an informal understanding of a sectarian arrangement based on the 1926 Constitution).

1948

Israel declares statehood. Many Palestinians are expelled and refugees begin arriving in Lebanon.

1958

Brief violent breakdown of Lebanese state. Pressures come from creation of the United Arab Republic and president's interest in an extended term. US interaction enables elite to step back from the brink.

1967

Arab defeat in Arab-Israeli war leads to an increased flow of Palestinian militants into Lebanon followed by intermittent Israeli military incursions and strains in Lebanese Christian-Muslim relations.

1969

Cairo Accord formally establishes Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) role in Lebanon including the right of all Palestinians in Lebanon to join in an “armed struggle” against Israel. PLO consequently establishes a “state within a state” in Lebanon and opens the door to future Israeli and Syrian intervention.

1975- 1976

Lebanon erupts in civil war between Christians, Muslims and Palestinians.

1976

Syrian troops enter Lebanon under the banner of the Arab Deterrent Forces.

1978

First Israeli invasion in response to attacks from PLO and affiliated groups operating within Lebanon.

1982

Israel invades Lebanon with the stated aim of permanently evicting the PLO from the country.

1985

Israel establishes security zone in South Lebanon but withdraws from the remainder of the country.

1989

Ta’if Accord ends the Lebanese Civil War and amends the Constitution to inaugurate the “Second Lebanese Republic.” Executive power shifts from President to Council of Ministers.

1990- 2005

Lebanese state is slowly restored under Syrian hegemony. Major anti-Syrian Christian leaders either in exile or incarceration.

1991

“Brotherhood Treaty” between Syria and Lebanon is unduly imposed upon Lebanon.

1992

First post-war parliamentary elections; Syria provides guidance and support amid a designed boycott by the majority of Christian voters. Rafik Hariri becomes prime minister and launches a Lebanese reconstruction program.

1995

Under pressure from Syria, parliament extends President Elias Hrawi’s term.

1996

In an attempt to prevent further Hezbollah rocket attacks, Israel initiates “Operation Grapes of Wrath,” a naval blockade coupled with a massive 16-day shelling campaign of Lebanon. Hezbollah and Israel agree—under an informal, US- Hariri brokered agreement known as the April Understanding—that neither party would continue to carry out cross-border attacks against civilian targets.

1998

Syria pressures parliament into electing Lebanese Army Chief Emile Lahoud as president and supports de facto strengthening of the Presidency to promote a Syrian agenda. Lahoud pressures Hariri out of office.

2000

Israel withdraws from Southern Lebanon. Hafez al-Assad dies and is succeeded by his son, Bashar, as president of Syria. Rafik Hariri scores impressively in the Lebanese Parliamentary elections despite the hostility of the rhetoric and brutality of political tactics from both the Syrian and pro-Syrian camps in Lebanon. Hariri returns as prime minister.

2000- 2004

Syria withdraws 25,000 troops from Beirut and the surrounding suburbs. However 20,000 Syrian troops remain spread throughout the countryside amid rising Lebanese animosity generated by their presence.

2003

Syrian Accountability and Lebanese Restoration Act is passed into US Law by the United States Congress which calls for an end to the Syrian occupation of Lebanon, discontinuation of terrorist support—particularly in Iraq- prevent Syria from developing Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) program and an end to the illegal importation of Iraqi oil.

2004

Bashar al-Assad forces Hariri to agree to an extended term for President Emile Lahoud. The US and France sponsor UN Security Council resolution 1559 demanding Syrian military withdrawal from Lebanon.

2005

Prime Minister Rafik Hariri is assassinated sparking the “Cedar Revolution.” The Syrians withdraw from Lebanon and the first, free Parliamentary elections since 1972 are held. The UN begins its first murder inquiry into Hariri’s death while Damascus and its allies are pointed at. Further political assassinations occur.

2006

Hezbollah captures two Israeli soldiers. Israel responds by bombarding both Hezbollah and non-Hezbollah targets alike and begins a ground war against Hezbollah inside Lebanon. UN Security Council Resolution 1701 is approved and a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel is reached. The resolution demands the complete disarmament of Hezbollah in addition to other paramilitary forces in Lebanon (as consistent with the Ta’if Accord and UN resolutions 1559 and 1680), the withdrawal of all Israeli forces from Lebanon, the deployment of additional United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) joined by the Lebanese army south of the Litani River and the full and complete control of the sovereignty ceded exclusively to the Lebanese state.

2007

UN Security Council Resolution 1757 establishes the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) for prosecution of criminal acts relating to the assassination of PM Rafik Hariri. Hostilities erupt between Lebanese army and Fatah al-Islam jihadists. A crisis of governance occurs when President Lahoud’s term ends without a successor.

2008

Political paralysis between the “Cedar Revolution” government and the Parliamentary majority with the Hezbollah-led opposition culminates in May violence. Hezbollah takes over West Beirut. The Arab League promotes Doha consensus candidate, Army chief Michel Suleiman, as new president and a national-unity government and a new parliamentary election law for 2009.

2009

Special Tribunal for Lebanon opens in Hague. Lebanese security apparatus detains an army colonel on suspicion of spying for Israel, the latest of about 30 such arrests. The pro-Western March 14 alliance led by Saad Rafik Hariri wins 71 of 128 seats in parliamentary elections while rival March 8 alliance, led by Hezbollah, secures 57.

2010

National Unity Government led by Prime Minister Saad Hariri halfhearted in delivering on its ministerial platform due to political bickering over the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL). Highlighting the regional dimension of the crisis, Saudi, Syrian, Iranian and Turkish senior officials visit Beirut in an attempt to alleviate tensions. This while Hezbollah called on the Lebanese public and leadership to boycott “Israeli-motivated and sponsored STL”.

2011

Hariri National unity government collapses over a shift of alliances induced by Hezbollah. UN prosecutor issues indictment for murder of Rafik Hariri. Najib Mikati is appointed Prime Minister and succeeds in forming a cabinet dominated by Hezbollah and its allies who control 16 of 30 seats. STL issues four arrest warrants over assassination of Rafik Hariri. Political divides and local uncertainties remains amid strife that erupted in neighboring Syria.