Battle of Jezzine ( 1982 ) The Battle of Jezzine was fought on June 8 , 1982 between the Israel Defense Forces ( IDF ) and the Syrian Army in the Lebanese town of Jezzine . It was the first battle between Israel and Syria in the 1982 Lebanon War . It resulted in Israel capturing the town . Prelude . Jezzine was considered strategically important due to its location near a junction in which one road passed through the town and led to the southern Beqaa Valley and the other led north to Jebel Baruk , passing west of Lake Qaraoun . Menachem Einan ' s division was driving down a road that ended in a fork west of Jezzine and had to pass through the town . Control of both the town and the junction would have given the IDF access to the southern Beqaa Valley from the west . The Syrian 424th Infantry Battalion was stationed in the town . On June 7 , Syria detected an Israeli division advancing north and sent several commando companies and a tank battalion to ambush the Israelis on their way to Jezzine . On the night of Tuesday June 8 , Israeli Defense Minister , Ariel Sharon , said at a meeting in the Northern Command headquarters " We know today that there will be a direct confrontation with the Syrians " and argued that it would be best to move deeper into Lebanon . He said to the other officers that " We have to build a context because we know that tomorrow we will take on the Syrians " . Israel was not yet aware that a reduced Syrian battalion of tanks and a commando unit had joined the defending forces in Jezzine . Einan was ordered to reach the main highway as quickly as possible . He avoided the crossroads as he closed in on the town at 1 : 00 AM on Tuesday , June 8 . He left a blocking force behind as he pushed north . The blocking force spilled over the slope above the town and opened fire on the Syrians . It did not assault the town , but a battle ensued and the IDF lost two tanks . Meanwhile , an Israeli drone had discovered a Syrian force moving south through the Shouf Mountains toward Jezzine . Israeli Air Force planes accurately attacked that Syrian force . The Syrian Surface - to - air missile ( SAM ) s , were not activated against them . Battle . The 460th Armor Brigade , under Colonel Hagai Cohen ' s command , had crossed the Litani River on the Hardele Bridge on Monday , June 8 . it was supposed to follow the column headed for the Beirut - Damascus Highway . After the Syrian force moving south was detected , it was ordered to change course and move east through Jezzine . At that point , Hagai Cohen was convinced that a fight with the Syrians was imminent . Shortly after 1 : 30 PM , Major General Avigdor Ben - Gal , commander of the eastern sector , ordered Cohen to prepare for an attack on the town . Cohen had no artillery or infantry . He tried to get Einan ' s artillery officer to send him an artillery unit , but by 2 : 00 AM Ben - Gal ordered him to attack immediately . One tank company of 198th Battalion waited on the outskirts of the town while another moved up the main street . When it reached the center of town , it was assaulted by RPG s and grenades from several buildings . The company made it across town and destroyed three T - 62 tanks stationed to block the exit . The former company was attacked by Syrian commandos using Sagger missiles , who knocked out three tanks . The company retreated . The Israeli battalion was now split between the two sides of town while the Syrians were firmly positioned in it . At this point , Col . Cohen sent his second battalion , the 196th , to the front . One of its companies entered the town , but then it took a wrong turn at a fork in the road and reached a dead end . It was now positioned in a high commanding area , but exposed to Syrian armor fire behind the opposite ridge , southeast of the town . In a few minutes , two of its tanks were lost , but the company continued to provide cover fire from the ridge for the rest of the force . The other companies continued fighting the Syrians , until the company which entered the town has reached the nearby village of Huna . On the way there , the tank crew of company commander Tzur Maor destroyed six Syran T - 62 tanks , which were well positioned and ambushed around each corner of the winding road . Captain Maor and his crew were then killed by a Syrian tank , which was later destroyed by the Israelis . Jezzine had fallen by nightfall . During the night , the armor crews , not being trained in infantry warfare , were fighting until dawn against dozens of Syrian commando troops trying to attack the tanks . The commando teams were destroyed without further casualties to the Israelis that night . Aftermath . Syrian President , Hafez al - Assad , was convinced that the Israelis were lying when they said they were only interested in striking at the Palestine Liberation Organization ( PLO ) , and were in fact interested in fighting Syria . He decided to speed up the deployment of the 3rd Armored Division in the Beqaa Valley , and sent additional commando battalions to Lebanon . On Tuesday afternoon , Syria sent five additional SAM batteries into Lebanon , bringing the system to a total of nineteen . Israel saw the fact that those SAMs were brought to Lebanon from the Golan Heights as a sign that Syria was not interested in expanding the war . The Israeli Air Force considered this to be an encouraging sign , and decided to launch Operation Mole Cricket 19 .