The alliance was formed during public demonstrations which took place one month after the
assassination of Lebanon's former Prime Minister,
Rafiq Hariri. This was known as the
Cedar Revolution. Two protests against Syria's 29-year occupation of Lebanon were staged because it was believed that Syria had supported the murder. The Alliance was given its name in honor of the day that Syrian forces left Lebanon, which is perceived as the major achievement of the Cedar Revolution. The March 14 Alliance was made up of a range of sectarian and secular organizations that ordinarily have divergent political agendas. To pursue their shared interest in seeing Syrian forces leave Lebanon, the parties banded together.
Free Patriotic Movement's withdrawal The
Free Patriotic Movement of General
Michel Aoun left the informal grouping before the
2005 general election, before March 14 was an established alliance, due to major disagreements and when its leader
Michel Aoun signed a
Memorandum of Understanding with
Hezbollah. After the 2005 elections, The
Free Patriotic Movement was the sole political opposition, but one year later joined the pro-Syrian government
March 8 Alliance in November 2006.
2006 Lebanon War On 12 July 2006, the
2006 Lebanon War between Israel and
Hezbollah started when the latter ambushed an Israeli army border patrol, killing three soldiers and capturing two others. During the war, the March 14 coalition took a stance against Hezbollah accusing the armed party of causing the war on Lebanon. However, Hezbollah claimed that Israel preplanned such a war, supposed to be waged on September during the annual rally Hezbollah holds on the International
Qods (Jerusalem) Day. The March 14 coalition, amidst the war, urged Hezbollah to hand over their weapons, accusing the party of causing the war on Lebanon. During the first few days of the war, former US Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice visited Beirut and held a meeting with the March 14 coalition and declared afterwards that a new
Middle East will be born after this war, saying: "It's time for a new Middle East." Rice and
Fouad Siniora met during her visit to Lebanon.
2008 clashes In May 2008, the tensions between the pro-government and opposition parties escalated when the Cabinet announced a series of security decisions. Tensions began with revelations on Friday May 2 made by
Progressive Socialist Party leader
Walid Jumblatt, a key politician in the ruling March 14 alliance. He announced that a remote-controlled camera had been set up in a container park overlooking
Beirut international airport's runway 17, which was frequently being used by March 14 politicians. In March 14 circles, fear was that the monitoring could be used for a possible attack on its leaders, as Lebanon had faced a series of
political assassinations in recent times. Although Jumblatt did not accuse the party directly, he made clear that he thought March 8's Hezbollah was behind the monitoring system's installment. Therefore, it declared that the matter would be referred not only to the Lebanese judicial system, but also to the
Arab League and the
United Nations. The strike turned violent as the opposition threw their weight behind the strike, paralyzing large parts of Lebanon's capital
Beirut. Clashes later erupted throughout the country in the following weeks
2009 parliamentary elections On 8 June 2009, March 14 won the majority in the Lebanese parliament with 71 out of 128 seats. 14 out of 26 electoral districts were won by March 14: • Akkar (7/7) • Minniyeh-Danniyeh (3/3) • Tripoli (8/8) • Koura (3/3) • Bcharreh (2/2) • Batroun (2/2) • Beirut 1 (5/5) • Beirut 2 (2/4) • Beirut 3 (10/10) • Aley (4/5) Jumblatt left an empty seat for Talal Arslan • Chouf (8/8) • Saida (2/2) • Zahle (7/7) • West Bekaa-Rashaya (6/6)
Progressive Socialist Party's withdrawal In August 2009, the
Progressive Socialist Party left the alliance, claiming political neutrality after the
2008 Lebanon conflict, though they still supported lists of March 14 members, mostly the
Lebanese Forces. == Death of the March 14 Alliance ==