Chiyam

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Chiyam
الخيام
Khiam2009Entrance.jpg
Entrance to the former Chiyam prison camp (2009)
State : LebanonLebanon Lebanon
Governorate : Nabataea
District: Marj Uyun
Coordinates : 33 ° 20 ′  N , 35 ° 37 ′  E Coordinates: 33 ° 20 ′  N , 35 ° 37 ′  E
Time zone : UTC + 2
Chiyam (Lebanon)
Chiyam
Chiyam

Chiyam ( Arabic الخيام al-Chiyām , DMG al-Ḫiyām ; often the case Khiam ) known is a place in south Lebanon near Nabataea .

The former prison camp at Chiyam (2004)

During the French Mandate (1920-1943), a military barracks settlement was built on a hill near Chiyams for strategic reasons. Base of the Lebanese Army since 1943 , after the end of the Lebanese Civil War and the formal withdrawal of the Israeli Army (Tzahal) in 1985 it fell under the control of the South Lebanese Army (SLA), which turned it into a detention and interrogation center.

The center remained operational until Israel finally withdrew from southern Lebanon, which it had occupied since March 14, 1978 ( Operation Litani ), in May 2000 and the SLA collapsed. In his work against Lebanese civilians, Chiyam was known for torture and unacceptable detention conditions. Under pressure from Israeli lawyers and the general public, from 1995 the ICRC was able to look after those detained without a court ruling and to facilitate detention.

Israel itself has denied being involved in the Chiyam activities and has stated that it handed over the center in 1988. However, an affidavit by Tzahal Brigadier General Dan Chalutz for the Israeli Defense Ministry confirmed Israel's considerable involvement - including training measures and salaries for the interrogators.

The prison was converted in 2000 by Hezbollah, which dominates southern Lebanon, into a “memorial for the resistance against the occupation” and was visited by Lebanese President Émile Lahoud in 2006 on the anniversary of the Israeli withdrawal .

During the 2006 Lebanon War , much of the camp and the three-story UNTSO building in Chiyam were destroyed by Israeli air strikes on July 26 , killing four UN soldiers.

Web links

Commons : Chiyam  - collection of images, videos and audio files