August 1982. French troops, armed with ample combat material, patrol in war-torn Beirut. Three hundred fifty French paratroopers were the first of the multinational protection force to arrive in the city to oversee the evacutaion of Palestinian forces. During the Lebanon War of 1982, Yasser Arafat and PLO forces were trapped in Beirut as Israeli Defense Forces encircled and bombed the city for 70 days. After Lebanese leaders petitioned the PLO to leave the city, Arafat negotiated a Palestinian evacuation of Beirut through talks with U.S Ambassador Philip Habib. On August 21, multinational forces arrived in Beirut to provide protection for the exodus, which was completed by September 1.