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Zionist Movement
The Zionist movement was founded in response to the worsening persecution of European Jews
and out of the desire to join the community of modern nation-states that defined Europe.
Thousands of Jews began immigrating to Palestine, which was then part of the Ottoman Empire. -
British Controls
As a result of World War I, Britain wins control over the area of Palestine from the Ottoman
Empire. The area becomes known as British-mandate Palestine. [A mandate is an authorization
to govern over conquered territory]. From 1918 to 1948, Britain governs over the Jews and
Arabs living in this territory. -
British Gives Area to Palestine
Britain gives the area of British-mandate Palestine east of the Jordan River to Emir Abdullah, to
form the Hashemite Kingdom of TransJordan. This area is now known as the country of Jordan.
The first major intercommunal violence of the mandate period erupts along the Jaffa-Tel Aviv
border on May Day, leaving scores of Jews and Arabs dead. -
Major Violence interrupts Jerusalem
The second major intercommunal violence erupts in Jerusalem, spreading throughout the country,
particularly in Hebron, where sixty-seven Jews are killed. -
Partition of British-Mandate
The General Assembly of the United Nations recommended the partition of British-mandate
Palestine into two separate states, one for Jews and one for Arabs. Fighting breaks out soon
thereafter, as all the surrounding Arab states rejected the partition plan. -
Zionist Leaders Proclaim Israel
In May, Zionist leaders proclaimed the state of Israel. Fighting breaks out between the newly
declared state of Israel and its Arab neighbors as British troops are leaving the country. -
Israel and Arab Neighbors
Ongoing skirmishes between Israel and its Arab neighbors. -
Palestine Liberation Organization
Following an Arab League decision, 422 Palestinian national figures meet in Jerusalem under the
chairmanship of Ahmad Shuqeiri, who founded the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and
laid down the structure of the Palestine National Council (PNC), the PLO Executive Committee,
the National Fund and the Palestine Liberation Army (PLA). The meeting also approved a
Palestinian national covenant and basic law. -
Palestine Liberation Organization
Palestine Liberation Organization’s involvement in Jordanian politics, King Hussein declares war on the PLO and imposes martial law. Three thousand people lost their lives in the fighting that ensued between the Jordanian and the PLO forces. In a peace agreement brokered by the Arab League and by Gamel Abdel Nasser, leader of Egypt, the PLO agreed to move its headquarters from Jordan to Lebanon. This was one of Nasser’s last acts as leader of Egypt, as he died later that month of a heart attack. -
Gunman Go Crazy
Palestinian gunmen kill 11 Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics. -
UN Security Council passes Resolution 338
The UN Security Council passes Resolution 338, which calls for an immediate cease-fire and the immediate commencement of negotiations toward the implementation of UNSCR 242 with the goal of “establishing a just and durable peace in the Middle East.” -
Surprise Attack
Egypt and Syria organize a surprise attack on Israeli forces in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan
Heights on the day of the Jewish fast of Yom Kippur and the Muslim month of Ramadan, in
which the annual fast is performed. The war lasted for 3 weeks, ending on October 22 on the
Syrian front and October 26 on the Egyptian front. -
P.L.O. spokesman for the Palestinian Arabs
The Arab League declares the P.L.O. the sole spokesman for the Palestinian Arabs. -
Land Day
In what has become an annual event, the first “Land Day” protests by Palestinian citizens of Israel erupt to protest Government confiscations of Palestinian land and other discrimination in access
to land and housing. -
Rescue Israel and Jewish Hostages
Israeli commandos rescue 98 Israeli and Jewish hostages in Entebbe, Uganda, held by Palestinians who hijacked an Air France Airbus. -
Signature of Camp David
President Anwar Sadat of Egypt, Menachem Begin of Israel and President Jimmy Carter of the United States sign the Camp David accords. Israel agrees to hand back the Sinai
Peninsula to Egypt in return for peace and normalization. This was significant because it was the
first time an Arab country signed a peace treaty with Israel and thus accepted the state’s existence.
Signing the Camp David accord made Sadat unpopular among many Egyptians as well as Arabs
living outside Egypt. -
Israel Invades Lebanon
Israel invades Lebanon and establishes a “security zone” in Southern Lebanon in order to block
Hezbollah (a Lebanese Shi’a Muslim group whose name means “Party of God” in Arabic) forces
from staging attacks on Northern Israeli communities from Lebanon. The Israeli Army reaches
Beirut and succeeds in driving out Yasse -
Israel makes a phased withdrawal
Israel makes a phased withdrawal from most of Lebanon, except for a “security zone” in south. -
Uprising Intifada
A Palestinian Intifada [“uprising” in Arabic] begins in the West Bank and Gaza. -
Yasser Arafat condemns all forms of terrorism
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat condemns all forms of terrorism and recognizes the state of Israel. U.S. President Ronald Reagan authorizes the U.S. to enter with the Palestine Liberation Organization. Israel remains hostile to the PLO. Jordan renounces all territorial claims to the West Bank. The next day, in a clear show of support for the PLO, which Palestinians and Syrians in the Golan, called on Israel not to exploit natural resources in the
occupied territories. -
The Madrid Peace Conference
The Madrid Peace Conference takes place in Madrid, Spain. The conference includes delegations
from Israel, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, and the Palestinians. The Madrid conference marks
the first time most of the Arab parties (except for Egypt) and Israel sat down at a table together.
The conference is organized along bi-lateral [involving or participated in by two nations] lines as
well as multilateral [participated in by more than two nations] lines. -
Secret Talk
Secret talks between Israeli and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) negotiators begin in
Oslo, Norway. On September 13, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister
Yitzhak Rabin sign a Declaration of Principles in Washington on the basis of the negotiations
between Israeli and Palestinian teams in Oslo, Norway. -
Militant Jewish Killer
In February a militant Jewish settler kills 29 Palestinians praying at the main mosque in Hebron, the West Bank. In May, Israel and the PLO reach the which
Israeli military withdrawal from about 60% of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank town of Jericho. Further Israeli withdrawals were
anticipated during a five year period in which a permanent resolution would be negotiated on the
issues of Jerusalem, settlements, Palestinian refugees and Palestinian sovereignty. -
Taba Agreement
On September 28, Arafat and Rabin sign the Taba agreement (known as Oslo II) in Washington
to expand Palestinian self-rule in the West Bank and Gaza and allow Palestinian elections (held on
January 20, 1996). However, on November 4, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin is
assassinated by Yigal Amir, an orthodox Jewish student opposed to Israeli withdrawals from the
occupied West Bank. Shimon Peres becomes Prime Minister of Israel. -
Suicide Bomb Attacks
A series of Hamas suicide bomb attacks kills 57 Israelis. Shimon Peres suspends negotiations with
Syria. Hamas is an Islamist political group founded in 1988 that opposes Israel and rejects the
Oslo peace process and other negotiations. Hamas is not an abbreviation but a nickname, and
comes from the Arabic for “zeal.” The full name is Harakatu Mujawamati Islamiya, or Islamic
Resistance Movement. -
Election
In May, Likud candidate Binyamin Netanyahu wins the election for prime minister, defeating
incumbent Shimon Peres, of the Labor party. Netanyahu had campaigned against the Labor
party’s approach to the peace process, promising that he would provide “Peace with Security.”
Yet in September, violence claims the lives of 61 Arabs and 15 Israeli soldiers over Israel’s opening
of an archaeological tunnel site close to Muslim shrines in Jerusalem. -
Israel Hands Over 80%
Under the leadership of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, Israel hands over 80% of the West
Bank town of Hebron to Palestinian rule, but holds on to the remainder, where several hundred
Jewish settlers live among 20,000 Palestinians. -
Wye River Memorandum
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu signs the Wye River Memorandum outlining further
Israeli withdrawals from the West Bank. The Wye River Memorandum resulted from meetings
between President Bill Clinton and Netanyahu at the Wye Plantation in Maryland. The U.S. had
been pressuring Israel to end 18 months of stagnation of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. -
Ehud Barak
On May 19, Labor Party leader Ehud Barak is elected Prime Minister of Israel, defeating Likud party incumbent Binyamin Netanyahu. Barak campaigned on a platform of bringing an end to all of Israel’s conflicts with all its neighbors, Syria, Lebanon, and the Palestinians. Israel and the Palestinian Authority sign a revised deal based on the stalled Wye River accord, aimed at reviving the Middle East peace process. On November 8, 1999 final status talks resume between Israel and the Palestinians. -
Disagreement on a Promised Israeli Withdrawal
In February a summit between Barak and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat breaks up over a
disagreement on a promised Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank under the revised Wye accord.
Final status negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians are deadlocked as the deadline for a
framework agreement is missed. In March, Israel hands over part of the West Bank to
Palestinians as part of a land transfer agreed to at the Wye River conferences of 1998. -
New Prime Minister
Likud Party (Israel’s right wing) candidate Ariel Sharon is elected as Prime Minister of Israel,
beating Ehud Barak by more than 20 percentage points. Sharon campaigned on the platform of
“Peace with Security,” and promised that he would take a different approach to the Palestinian
conflict than the Oslo Peace Process approach. Palestinians are long-time critics of Ariel Sharon
because of his role in Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon, and his support of Israel’s settlement
activity.
