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Zionism
The idea the jewish should have their own state. -
First Zionist Congress
The congress officially annonced Zionism's goal of establishing a legally assured home for the jewish people in the Land of Israel. -
McMahon-Hussein Correspondance
During World War 1, British High Commissioner Henry McMahon promised Sharif Hussein that britain would grant independence to most Arab areas. -
Balfour Declaration
British foreing minister promised support to the creation of the Jewish State. -
British Mandate for Palestine
The League of Nations divided Ottoman land between the British and the French after World War 1. -
The Holocaust and World War II
The Nazis persecuted Jews, eventually carrying out a genoside known as the Holocaust. This resulted in the murder of 6 million Jews. When the full horror of the holocaust came to light, international support for the creation of a Jewish state increased. -
UN Partition Plan
The UN Generall Assembly voted to partition thre Palestine Mandate into an Arab state and a Jewish state and to internationalize the city of Jerusalem. -
1948 War
Arab armies from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq attacked Israel. As a result of the war, Israel obtained twenty percent more land than the UN partition alloted. -
Establishment of the PLO
The Palestine Liberation Organization was formed with the aim of destroying Israel and creating a Palestine State. -
Six Day War / 1967 Arab Israeli War
In the days before the war, Egypt, Jordan, Siri, and Iraq moved their armies to Israel"s borders. A six day war ensued between them. -
Settlement Construction Begins
The Israeli government approved the building of settlements in the Sinai Penninsula, Gaza Strip, and West Bank. The future of the Settlements is one of the issues that te Israel and the Palestanian Authority must negotiate as a part of a comprehensive peace agreement. -
Khartoum Resolution / Attrition Battles / The War of Attrition
During the 1967 War, Israel gained land from Egypt, Jordan, and Siria. Egypt began small scaled attacks against Israeli positions along the Suez Canal which continued until Anwar Sadat came to power in 1970. In 1970, after an attempt by the PLO to overthrow Jordan's king Hussein, the Jordinian army attacked PLO forces and what became known as Black September. -
October War / Yom Kippur War / 1973 Arab Israeli War
Egypt and Siria attacked Israel on Yom Kippur, the holliest day of the jewish year. After initial arab military successes, the Isrelis managed to push back the attack. After the war, Israel retained the territories captured in 1967, but did not keep any additional land. -
Camp David Accords
Menachem Begin of Israel and Anwar al Sadat of Egypt signed agreements in camp David. The American sponsored talks paved the way to the peace treaty signed in 1979 -
Egypt Israel Peace Treaty
As a result of intense diplomatic efforts by the United States, Egypt became the first Arab country to recognize and enter into a peace treaty with Israel. This agreement became a model for Israel's "land for peace" policy.
