LebaneseForces.com: Fighting for Freedom

Q&A: The Ilgha War

Question: I have a question that I’ve been asked many times and I didn't know how to reply so I am hoping you can answer it for me. In the ilgha war which side had more weapons and which side had the best quality weapons?

Answer: During the ilgha war, the army had 25,000 soldiers, 450 tanks, 600 M-113, more than 500 cannons of all caliber, and choppers. The LF on the other hand had 2,500 operational soldiers, 100 tanks, 200 M-113 and around 150 cannons. So the army was very well equipped, and had more material and more ammo and more soldiers. And in addition to all this, they were prepared for the battle since July, six months before it happened. We were not prepared; we were totally taken by surprise.

What made the difference is that we had better soldiers, and we were inspired. We are warrior-poets, and we fight for a cause, for our homeland, for our families. The army soldier fights for his salary at the end of the month. Military experts from all around the world witnessed the battles we won against the army, and they were surprised with what we did against them. They only had one comment; they said that our levels of courage, stamina, and inspiration were at the top.

	Lebanese Army (Aoun)	Lebanese Forces
Soldiers	25,000	2,500
Tanks	450	100
M-113	600	200
Cannons	500	150
Choppers	Yes	No

If you have any military related questions please send them in.

Posted by Dragunov on Thursday, January 29, 2004 | Permalink

Q&A: The MP5 and FAL

Question: After reading the comparison between the AK47 and the M16, I was wondering if you can provide us with some info on the MP5 and FAL.

Answer: The MP5 and FAL can not be compared since they are 2 completely different weapons, but since many people have also asked about them here is some info. The MP5 is a 9mm sub-machine gun, made by the German company Heckler & Koch. It is used in special ops or in security activity and not suitable for urban warfare except for operations behind enemy lines. I don't like 9mm subs because they lack velocity. The best gun in this category is the UMP-45 which is made by the same company Heckler & Koch. The UMP-45 is a 12mm sub-machine gun, very accurate and has an extremely high impact velocity.

The FAL, is made by Belgian FN, a 7.62 mm NATO and is probably the most famous rifle in Lebanon among the Kataeb and Ahrar because it was widely used at the beginning of the war. The FAL is very accurate and a lethal weapon when used for medium range sniping, 250-750 meters, even without scopes. It cannot be used in urban or guerilla warfare, except for support. It is extremely heavy and lengthy.

If you have any military related questions please send them in.

Posted by Dragunov on Thursday, January 29, 2004 | Permalink

Q&A: AK-47 Vs. M-16 A2 - A Comparison

Question: I have been told that in close range combat an AK-47 is better then the M-16. They said it has something to do with the way the M-16 bullet penetrates right through your body while the AK-47 doesn’t. Can u please tell me how accurate this information is? Could you also suggest the best thing to use in close-range combat?

Answer: Regarding the story about M-16 bullets going through the enemy's body and going out from the other side, well, that's just another urban legend. They both kill as fast when you hit the target, the M-16 being much better in long distance shooting because of its amazing muzzle velocity, 948 m/s, compared to that of the Kalach, 710 m/s. My favorite was always the M-4 (the M-16 commando) because its shorter than the M-16, lighter than the AK-47, and it has an amazing sound!!! But for Lebanon's terrain and the nature of battles, street battles, lots of dust, sometimes mud and rain, the AK-47 with a side butt called Akhmass, is the best!! It has an extremely lethal 7.62x39 round, but in the same time it is really noisy and flashy. The light coming out from the rifle when fired can expose your position to the enemy and thus put you in a dangerous position. So its all a matter of choice really, and depends on the battle. If we were to be in war again, I think my favorite would be the AK-74, the new and improved version of the AK-47. With a 5.45x39 mm round. Its smaller and lighter plus the velocity, which was the main drawback of the AK-47, has been greatly improved. It has an effective range of 650 meters, compared to 300 meters for the AK-47, and 450 meter for the M-4. So guys, as I said, it’s hard to recommend any of the many options available.

A few things you have to take into consideration with any weapon you use:

1- Keep your weapon clean at all times. Clean it every time you have the opportunity, thoroughly.
2- Always check your ammo, one by one, making sure you don't have dirty, dented or even empty rounds in your magazines. Clean the rounds as well, when you have the time.
3- Use good quality ammo. The NATO issue for 5.56 mm ammo, and the Russian army issue for the 7.62 mm ammo. Bad quality ammo results in extensive muzzle flashing and are very noisy.
4- Treat your M-16 like a girlfriend, take good care of her and give her a lot of attention. That's the only way to keep it fully operational.
5- Never carry your weapons like a bag, across your shoulders. Leave it hanging from the shoulder you use to shoot. It’s much easier to handle that way. Example: Right Way and Wrong Way
6- As I said last time, always shoot in semi-auto mode, or if you have to, in short bursts of two or three rounds at a time. Full auto is for pussies, weddings, and funerals. Not for war.

If you have any military related questions please send them in.

Posted by Dragunov on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 | Permalink

Virus Alert

We would like to inform the community that LebaneseForces.com does not send any mail with attachments. If you have recently received an email with an attachment from LebaneseForces.com or ouwet.com, please DO NOT open it. In the meantime, please update your virus checkers. The worm is known as: W32/Mydoom@MM [McAfee], Novarg (F-Secure), W32.Novarg.A@mm (Symantec), Win32/Shimg (CA), WORM_MIMAIL.R (Trend).

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 | Permalink

Radio LF

More songs have been added to the Radio's playlist.
Click here to listen to Radio LF.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, January 26, 2004 | Permalink

LF Boston Meeting

The Boston Chapter of the Lebanese Forces is holding a meeting on Sunday, the 25th of January.

Location: Saint Anthony Church in Lawrence, MA
Time: Around noon, right after the mass

Everyone is welcome to attend, for more information, please contact: admin@lfboston.org or visit the official Boston Chapter website www.LFboston.org

Posted by 40-Tactical on Saturday, January 24, 2004 | Permalink

Friendly LF Links

There are two LF sites I would like to mention. The first one is an old site that has been redesigned and expanded. The address is www.lebaneseforces.tk. The second site is a new LF site and the address is lebaneseforces.5u.com. The links section will be updated soon so if anyone has an LF site that wants it to be linked, now would be a good time to email it to us.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 | Permalink

U.S. Urges Syria to Curb Hizbullah as Jets Bomb Lebanon

The United States has served a stiff warning on Syria to halt its support of Hizbullah and urged Lebanon anew to deploy its regular army en masse along the border with Israel and end the Party of God's effective control of the most volatile Arab front with the Jewish state. The Bush administration's move dramatized the last two days of air and ground hostilities that flared along the U.N.-carved Blue Line on the Lebanon-Israel frontier, turning the volatile region once again into a Middle East flashpoint.

Waves of Israeli fighter jets staged 30 minutes of rocketing and dive-bombing sorties against suspected Hizbullah bases in South Lebanon's districts of Marwaheen and Mazraat Alman Tuesday evening. Ariel Sharon's government called it a "moderate retaliation that averts a further border escalation."

click here to read more (naharnet)

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, January 21, 2004 | Permalink

Left Hand Side

The sections on the left hand side have been revamped. The Historical Facts section was combined with the Special Features section and renamed to Features & Articles. Some sections under Information were removed and placed in the F&A section. The site's search engine now runs on Google power which means better reliability and accuracy. A permanent search box was also placed on the left hand side for easy access. Finally a new section called Legends was added.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 | Permalink

MSN 6.0 Pictures

For a while now our site's statistics has been showing us that everyday we get around 400 visitors that come in directly to the MSN Pictures section of this site from the google search engine. Turns out f you go to google.com and do a search for MSN 6.0 Pictures, the first site listed is LebaneseForces.com.

click here to see the google search result

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 | Permalink

Israel Threatens to Reinvade Lebanon

Israel has threatened a large-scale invasion of Lebanon coupled with air strikes on Syrian targets to avenge a Hizbullah missile attack that killed one Israeli soldier and wounded another aboard a bulldozer at the U.N.-carved border Blue Line, the Beirut media reported on Tuesday. Hizbullah fighters fired an armor-piercing rocket at the bulldozer as it crossed the Blue Line in the Birket Risha district of South Lebanon at sundown Monday, setting it ablaze. Israel admitted that one soldier on board was burned to death and another suffered critical injuries.

An Israeli army spokesman first said the bulldozer was hit inside Israeli-held territory, but later admitted that the bulldozer crossed 10 meters across the Blue Line, searching for roadside bombs possibly planted by Hizbullah fighters. Israel's northern commander Maj. Gen. Benny Gantz told reporters on the Israeli side of the border that Lebanon and Syria should together expect an Israeli retaliation that may involve a far-reaching invasion of Lebanese territory behind a screen of air attacks on Syrian and Hizbullah positions.

An official of the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon said a person on the Lebanese side had fired a missile at an Israeli army vehicle. Asked whether the vehicle had crossed into Lebanon, Milos Strugar told the AP: "We are in the process of ascertaining the facts about the whole incident." Gantz said the border situation was bound to escalate."Hizbullah keeps operating. The Lebanese army doesn't deploy to the area according to its obligations under U.N. Resolution 425. The Syrians are encouraging them. One day this is going to blow up," Gantz said. A senior aide to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Raanan Gissin, said Syria was responsible for the attack. "We have no intention of escalating the situation," Gissin told the AP, but Syria must "stop supporting terrorist organizations and dismantle the terrorist infrastructure that it built in Lebanon." The Israeli military fatality was the tenth since Israel withdrew its army from South Lebanon on May 24, 2000, ending a 22-year-occupation.(Naharnet-AP)

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, January 20, 2004 | Permalink

Samir Geagea in St Charles Hospital

A story has been circulating that Samir Geagea was recently spotted at St Charles Hospital having a physical check up surrounded by secret agents and armed security. The doctors were told not to look at the Hakim straight in the eye and when the convoy of armed personal with Samir Geagea past through the hallways people were made to face the wall.

This story is not true and is only a rumor that is being spread. Our sources reveal that no such event took place at all.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, January 19, 2004 | Permalink

Radio LF

We have updated the Radio's play list and more songs are now being played with a lot more coming this week. In the 1 week the radio has been online we have so far had 908 listeners averaging an 1 hour and 19 minutes of play time per person. This result was better then we expected with most of the radio's listeners originating from the US, Canada and Australia. To listen to Radio LF click on the Radio LF icon on the right hand side of the page.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, January 19, 2004 | Permalink

Blast Goes Off at Army Barracks in Sidon

An explosion occurred Friday at a Lebanese army barracks in the southern port city of Sidon, police said, without giving details about casualties. The explosion, which was heard across the city, damaged the outside wall of the barracks located near the Ain el-Helweh Palestinian refugee camp, an AFP correspondent said. (AFP)

Posted by 40-Tactical on Friday, January 16, 2004 | Permalink

Charles Malik

Two more articles were added in the Charles Malik section:
Talk on Human Rights
International Bill of Human Rights

Two more articles still left to be added.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Friday, January 16, 2004 | Permalink

High-res unedited photos of Saddam capture

Although not related to the Lebanese Forces, I thought I would share these 7 high-res unedited pictures of Saddam's capture.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, January 14, 2004 | Permalink

Charles Malik

Two articles were added today:
What Are Human Rights?
A conversation with Habib Malik about the crucial role of his father

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, January 14, 2004 | Permalink

RADIO LF

LebaneseForces.com now has a radio station playing LF songs all day long. To listen to the radio station click on the RADIO LF icon on the right hand side of the site. At the moment the station just plays music but in the future we will be scheduling special hours where you would be able to listen to speeches and more. Finally we will be adding more songs every week to the station.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Tuesday, January 13, 2004 | Permalink

Basic Rules to keep you Alive - Part 1

1] The two most popular rifles among LF members are the AK-47 (Kalach) and the M-16 in different versions, rifle, commando, carbine, etc… The standard magazines for both can take up to 30 rounds but never put 30 rounds in the magazine. Put 25 or 26 maximum, cause this will cause less pressure on the spring. The most common reason for rifles to “hang” is a magazine spring that did not function properly.

2] When in close-range combat, always put a tracer bullet as your 23rd or 24th round in the magazine. This will help you to know when to reload, instead of being in a situation where an empty magazine can get you killed. Do not do this if you’re using a sniper rifle of course, or if you’re in a middle to long distance battle where a tracer bullet can help the enemy discover your location.

3] Never put your rifle on full-auto mode. Always use semi-auto. Full-auto is for pussies. Semi-auto is for soldiers. Full-auto will make you waste a lot of ammo and will heavily affect accuracy.

4] Always have a lot of ammo and equipment on you, even if it’s heavy and hurts your shoulders and back. Believe me, that support that they always say is arriving soon, it will never arrive, lol, you’re on your own, so have self-sufficiency

5] When you’re in close combat situations, DO NOT put your hand grenades or any other explosive material in the front of your harness (je3beh). A small shrapnel or any stray bullet can turn you into a flying torch. Keep them in the back. It would also be very useful to add a small backpack on the harness, it would give you a lot of additional space.

6] If you’re fighting in civil clothes, as we did on many occasions, without proper uniform or equipment, NEVER wear synthetic or nylon clothes. They catch fire extremely fast and when you’re in battle, you’re around fire the whole time. A dark colored sweatshirt or t-shirt and a pair of jeans will do the job.

7] If you’re injured and the enemy can see you, control your pain and fake death if you can. This way you can avoid being a live target for shooting practice. We faced this situation lots of times, when injured rife’ were shot more than 20 times, at intervals.
8- Always keep these useful gadgets with you: a flashlight, a utility knife (Swiss Army knife, Leatherman, etc…), a 10 meter rope with a hook, POWDER disinfectant (the liquid one will make you bleed more), and last but not least, a couple of sneakers bars, a really good substitute for food at all times.

Posted by Dragunov on Sunday, January 11, 2004 | Permalink

The Art of War

The Art of War by Sun Tzu has been added to the ebooks section. The Art of War is the Swiss army knife of military theory.. pop out a different tool for any situation. This classic written by a Chinese philosopher-general will help you negotiate conflicts and succeed.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Saturday, January 10, 2004 | Permalink

U.S. May Send Commandos to Hunt Down Bekaa 'Terrorists'

U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is reportedly contemplating the dispatch of special U.S. troops to east Lebanon's Bekaa valley to "track down and arrest terrorists there." But Lebanon said Thursday the Bush administration aught not act on deliberately fabricated reports. "Those who plant such fantasies in the mind of the U.S. administration are actually scheming to sabotage any chance of a positive dialogue between the United States and Lebanon," Lebanon's Information Minister Michel Samaha said in an interview published by the London-based Asharq Al Awsat newspaper.

Samaha said the U.S. embassy in Beirut, which has long been arranging fact-finding forays into every part of the country can readily assure President Bush that there are no terrorist cells in the Bekaa or any other spot in Lebanon.

"Lebanon does not want to let undocumented charges to spin into a new controversy with the United States," Samaha said. He was responding to a report carried by Asharq Al Awsat a day earlier that Rumsfeld was toying with the idea of dispatching U.S. army commandos to such areas as Lebanon's Bekaa valley and Somalia to hunt down terrorists operating there.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Friday, January 09, 2004 | Permalink

Lebanese Forces Pictures

If you havent already, please go check LFpics.com for the largest collection of LF pictures online. Since the last time we posted about it, the site added over 300 new pictures. www.LFpics.com

Posted by 40-Tactical on Wednesday, January 07, 2004 | Permalink

Sfeir celebrates Harissa icon’s 100th year

Celebrating the centennial of Harissa’s Notre Dame statue, Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Nasrallah Butros Sfeir celebrated a mass in the adjacent chapel Sunday. Many eminent political and religious figures attended the mass, including representatives of President Emile Lahoud, Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, as well as Papal Nuncio Luigi Gatti, Syriac Catholic Patriarch Butros VIII, Armenian Catholic Patriarch Narssis Pedros XIX and Latin Patriarch Michel Sabbah.

“Many countries around the world also venerate our Lady of Harissa on this day,” Sfeir said, “such as France, Mexico and Argentina, where small statues and icons of the Notre Dame of Harissa have been decorated.” Sfeir added that ever since it was built in 1904, Harissa’s Notre Dame “has been protecting and safeguarding this country from various dangers and difficult episodes.” One of these “difficult episodes” was the civil war, Sfeir said, during which the statue “was miraculously unharmed.”

During the mass, Gatti recited the papal benediction, which blessed the holy place and promised forgiveness to true believers. He also recalled the Apostolic Exhortation, delivered by Pope John Paul II during his visit to Lebanon in 1997 and calling for authentic national reconciliation. Thousands of participants carried the flags of Lebanon and other countries where Maronite and Catholic Lebanese live.

Posted by 40-Tactical on Monday, January 05, 2004 | Permalink

Lebanese Forces Wap Site

LebaneseForces.com now has a wap site. With this service you can now download all the logos and ringtones from this site directly to your phone.

Our wap site address is: http://wap.lebaneseforces.com
Note: You can only access the wap site using the wap browser on your phone. Most of the recent GSM phones have a wap browser.

To help you configure your phone for wap we have provided you with some links:
Cellis
Libancell
T-Mobile (USA)

Please send feedback to webmaster@lebaneseforces.com

Posted by 40-Tactical on Saturday, January 03, 2004 | Permalink