President Nasser Speech to the Egyptian National Assembly, 1967
Nasser asserts that the conflict with Israel is not over access to the Gulf of Aqaba but the very existence of Israel; Egypt’s foes are Britain and the US that support Israel.
Prime Minister Levi Eshkol’s Radio Address to the Nation, May 1967
With tensions on its borders, Eshkol tries to reassure Israeli public. Instead he gives a “painfully faltering” speech. Popular and party disgruntlement follow, opening the way for Eshkol to turn over the Defense Ministry two days later to General Moshe Dayan.
Eisenhower Doctrine, 1957
Further reinforcing the Truman Doctrine, the US President promises military or economic aid to any Middle Eastern country resisting Communist aggression.
Yigal Allon, Lessons From the War of Independence, 1952
With crisp analysis, Haganah Commander Yigal Allon, later a Prime Minister of Israel attributes Israel’s successes to multiple factors including the absence of a centralized Arab command, limited Arab military training, underestimating the potential fighting capabilities of local Arabs, and Israel’s success in integrating its citizens into the war effort.
1951 U.N. Report, “The Situation of Jews in Moslem Countries”
This report submitted to the United Nations at the end of 1951 notes that “some one million Jews have become the victims of accelerated antiSemitism” since 1948 in the Muslim countries of the Arab League and North Africa, “communities which have existed for thousands of years.” The report analyzes the situation for Jews overall and explains restrictions and oppressive measures country by country.
Israeli Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett to the Knesset, 1949
Sharett gives an overview of Israeli foreign policy, key issues, and relationships with UN and Arab states.
Maps Comparing 1947 Palestine Partition Plan and 1949 Israeli Armistice Lines
The area of Israel expanded and the potential area for a Palestinian Arab state decreased because of the 1948-49 war, Israel’s War of Independence. The Arab rejection of the 1947 U.N. partition plan thus hurt…
Israeli-Egyptian General Armistice Agreement, Excerpts, 1949
One of four agreements Israel signed in 1949 with Arab neighbors, it does not end “state of war,” between Israel and Arab states. No treaty is signed until 1979.
Jordan’s Army Moves to Drive Out PLO
September 17, 1970 King Hussein sends the Jordanian army to attack the headquarters of Palestinian militant groups in and around the capital, Amman, and the city of Irbid, where the militants, known as fedayeen, had…
Jewish Settlement Established at Hebron
April 4, 1968 Moshe Levinger and several other Israeli Jews pretending to be Swiss tourists check into a Hebron hotel to establish the first permanent Jewish presence in the city in almost 40 years, taking…
Ben-Gurion Rejects International Status for Jerusalem
December 5, 1949 Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion declares in a Knesset speech that “Jewish Jerusalem is an organic, inseparable part of the state of Israel” and that Israel rejects any attempt by the United Nations…
Nasser Is Named Egypt’s Premier
April 17, 1954 Gamal Abdel Nasser, 36, is appointed the prime minister of Egypt. Nasser’s interest in politics goes back to age 12 when he accidentally participated in an ultranationalist protest calling for the overthrow…
PLO Attacks Savoy Hotel
March 6, 1975 An eight-man Palestine Liberation Organization raid planned by Abu Nidal hits the beach in Tel Aviv around 11 p.m. and, after being spotted by police, attacks the Savoy Hotel. The terrorists kill…
Yigal Allon Dies
Yigal Alon, born in 1918 in Kfar Tabor, begins his career in the Haganah. Later elected to the Knesset in 1954, he remains a parliament member until his death.
U.N. Resolution Declares Zionism Is Racism
The United Nations passes UN Resolution 3379, which defines Zionism as a form of racism and racial discrimination. It passes with a vote of 72 in favor, 35 against, and 32 abstentions.
Israel Signs Second Disengagement Agreement with Egypt
In Geneva, Switzerland, Israel and Egypt sign their Second Disengagement Agreement (Sinai II) following the October 1973 War.
76 U.S. Senators Urge President Ford to Stand With Israel
After a breakdown in diplomatic talks between Gerald Ford and PM Yitzhak Rabin, seventy-six Senators sign a letter to the President stressing the importance of both military and economic assistance to Israel.
Reassessment of Washington-Israel Relationship Begins
The US undertakes a “reassessment” of the Washington-Israel relationship, creating enormous tension between the US executive branch and the Israeli government.
Rabin First Becomes Prime Minister
June 3, 1974 Having defeated Shimon Peres in an election for Labor Party leader, Yitzhak Rabin formally succeeds Golda Meir as prime minister when he presents his coalition government to the Knesset for approval. He…
Kissinger Delivers List of Syria’s Israeli POWs
February 27, 1974 U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger arrives in Tel Aviv from Damascus with a list of 65 Israeli prisoners held by Syria since the Yom Kippur War in October 1973, along with…
Geneva Middle East Peace Conference Opens
Convened under the co-chairmanship of the United States and Soviet Union, the Geneva Middle East Conference is “aimed at establishing a just and durable peace in the Middle East.”
Cease-Fire Ends War of Attrition
Israel, Jordan and Egypt finally signed a ceasefire, ending the 1967-1970 War of Attrition.
Arson Burns Al-Aqsa
August 21, 1969 A new immigrant to Israel, Denis Michael Rohan, sets fire to Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. Born and raised in Australia, Rohan moved to Israel only a few months before the attack. He…
United Nations Adopts Resolution 242
In the wake of the June 1967 Six Day War, the United Nations Security Council adopts Resolution 242, a document which has served as a framework for all major Arab/Israel negotiations since.
