IDF Strikes 80 Gaza Targets
In response to an overnight barrage of roughly 30 rockets from the Gaza Strip toward Sderot and other Israeli towns near the border, the IDF strikes 80 Gaza targets by air.
American Embassy Moves to Jerusalem
May 14, 2018 On the 70th anniversary of Israel’s Declaration of Independence, President Donald Trump fulfills a campaign promise and moves the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Although Israel has made Jerusalem its…
MK Basel Ghattas Accepts Plea Deal
March 16, 2017 Basel Ghattas, an Arab member of the Knesset for the Joint List, signs a plea deal to resolve charges that he used his position as a Knesset member to smuggle cellphones and…
Supreme Court Justice Abdel Rahman Zuabi Dies
September 14, 2014 Abdel Rahman Zuabi, a secular Muslim and proud Israeli who was the first Arab to sit on Israel’s Supreme Court, dies at age 82. Born in the village of Sulam in 1932,…
President Obama Addresses Israeli Students
President Obama’s address is delivered in Jerusalem and broadcast on radio and television across the world.
Hamas Military Chief Killed as Pillar of Defense Begins
November 14, 2012 Ahmed Jabari, the Hamas military chief, is killed in an Israel Defense Forces airstrike on Gaza that marks the start of Operation Pillar of Defense. The strike comes in response to an…
Abbas Publicly Refuses to Recognize Israel as a Jewish State
In a speech in Ramallah, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas dismisses a demand from Benjamin Netanyahu to recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
Israel Responds to Rockets From Gaza With Operation Cast Lead
Nearly 12,000 rockets are fired from the Gaza Strip into Israeli civilian areas over eight years. On December 27, 2008, Israel responds with Operation Cast Lead.
Joint Understanding Signed at Annapolis Conference
November 27, 2007 Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and U.S. President George W. Bush release a joint statement of the framework of their approach and goals at the conclusion of…
Bus Bombings in Beersheba Kill 16 Israelis
August 31, 2004 Bombs explode on a pair of buses 100 yards apart along Beersheba’s main street, Ranger Boulevard, shortly after leaving the central bus station. Sixteen Israelis, one as young as 3 years old,…
Palestinian Cabinet OKs Plan for Israeli Withdrawal
August 7, 2002 The Palestinian Authority Cabinet agrees to a truce deal proposed by Israeli Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer to withdraw the Israel Defense Forces from Palestinian-controlled parts of the Gaza Strip and from the…
Suicide Bomber Kills 15 While Bush, Sharon Meet
May 7, 2002 Prime Minister Ariel Sharon flies home to Israel, cutting short a visit to the United States, after a suicide bomber kills 15 Israelis and wounds 55 others in a pool hall in…
Israel Launches Operation Defensive Shield
In September 2000, following the breakdown of peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians at Camp David, the Palestinians launch the Second Intifada. Operation Defensive Shield is an Israeli military operation devised to curtail violence associated with the Second Intifada.
Israel Launches Operation to Capture Weapons Being Smuggled Into Gaza
Israeli commandos overtake a weapons ship, the Karine-A, and seize fifty tons of Iranian weapons, including a number of long-range rockets.
Bus Bombing in Haifa Kills 16
December 2, 2001 Maher Habashi, a 21-year-old Palestinian plumber from Nablus, boards a No. 16 Egged bus driving from Neve Sha’anan to the Giborim bridge in Haifa just after noon and, moments after paying for…
Taba Summit Concludes
A week of discussions between Israeli and Palestinian leaders concludes in the Egyptian resort town of Taba. The talks at Taba take place during the height of the second “Intifada.”
Rioting Responds to New Tunnel Exit
September 24, 1996 A northern exit from the Western Wall Tunnel to the Via Dolorosa opens to the public, leading to three days of Palestinian riots. The excavation of the tunnel began after Israel’s capture…
Suicide Bombing Kills 14 at Dizengoff Center
March 4, 1996 Abdel-Rahim Ishaq, 24, a Palestinian resident of Ramallah, detonates a 45-pound bomb packed with nails outside the Dizengoff Center in Tel Aviv, killing himself and 13 Israelis. Later identified by a caller…
Rabin, Arafat Sign Oslo II Agreement
Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO leader Yasser Arafat sign the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement, sometimes referred to as Oslo II, in a ceremony at the White House.
Agreement on the Gaza Strip and Jericho Area Is Signed
The Agreement on the Gaza Strip and Jericho Area, the first of its kind to grant Palestinians a measure of autonomy, is signed by Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat in a ceremony in Cairo.
PLO and Israel Recognize Each Other’s Existence
After nine months of secret contacts mediated by Norwegian diplomats, the PLO and Israel recognize each other’s existence.
Mubarak Chastises Arab States for Not Negotiating With Israel
Delivering a Labor Day speech in Cairo that is broadcast on Egyptian radio, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak discusses issues relating to the peace process.
Madrid Middle East Peace Conference Convenes
The Soviet Union and the United States convene the Madrid Middle East Peace Conference, based on a two-track approach for bi-lateral as well as multi-lateral talks.
King Hussein of Jordan Officially Disassociates from the West Bank
King Hussein of Jordan announces his intention to politically disengage from the West Bank, leaving the PLO to fill the political vacuum.
