Historian Benny Morris Is Born
December 8, 1948 Benny Morris, a renowned Israeli professor of history, is born on a kibbutz in Ein HaHoresh to diplomat Ya’akov Morris and journalist Sadie Morris. Morris spends some time in the United States…
Nasser Closes Straits of Tiran, Pushing Toward Six-Day War
Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser feared that Israeli troops would gather on the Egyptian border and felt compelled to uphold the mutual defense pact he had signed with Syria. On May 19, Nasser banned the 3,500 UNEF troops from Sinai so that he could mobilize Egyptian forces without interference.
Arab Rebellion Breaks Out in Palestine
Violence between Jews and Arabs quickly escalated as Arab workers went on a six-month strike as violence erupted in different parts of British-ruled Palestine.
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.
Ruling: Reservists Must Serve in Territories
December 30, 2002 The Israeli Supreme Court rules that Israeli Defense Forces reservists may not refuse to serve in the West Bank and Gaza. Coming during the deadly violence of the Second Intifada, the ruling…
U.N. Resolution 194 Offers “Option of Return” If Palestinians Wish to Live in Peace
December 11, 1948 The United Nations General Assembly passes Resolution 194, addressing “the situation in Palestine” amid the ongoing Israeli War of Independence, on a vote of 35-15 with eight abstentions. The resolution never references…
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.
Israel, Kazakhstan Sign Defense Pact
January 20, 2014 Defense Ministers Moshe Ya’alon of Israel and Adilbek Dzhaksbekov of Kazakhstan, a former Soviet republic that has a Sunni Muslim majority, sign a security cooperation accord in Tel Aviv that formalizes the…
U.S. Announces Arms Deal for Israel, Others Opposing Nuclear Iran
As fears about a nuclear Iran intensify, the United States agrees to provide Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates with $10 billion in military aid.
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…
Ex-Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir Dies
Yitzhak Shamir, Israel’s seventh Prime Minister and staunch advocate for settlements in the West Bank, passes away in Tel Aviv at the age of 96.
Major General Israel Tal Passes Away
Major General Israel Tal passes away at the age of 85. Tal is best known for heading the 1970 committee that designed and developed the Israeli-made Merkava tank.
Lebanon Wins Film Award
For the first time since the award was introduced in 1949, an Israeli film, Lebanon, wins the Golden Lion Award at the 66th annual Venice International Film Festival.
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.
Exodus 1947 Commander Yossi Harel Dies
Yossi Harel, commander of the Aliyah Bet ship Exodus, passes away at the age of ninety.
Gen. Moshe Levi Dies
January 8, 2008 Moshe Levi, the first Mizrahi chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces, dies at age 72 of a brain aneurysm at HaEmek Medical Center in Afula a week after suffering his…
Israeli Military Launches Operation Orchard
In Operation Orchard, Israel’s air force secretly destroys a reactor at Al Kibar, a Syrian military facility thought to be a nuclear site constructed with the help of North Korea.
Israel Expands Second Lebanon War
August 9, 2006 Israel’s Security Cabinet approves an expansion of the military offensive in southern Lebanon nearly a month after the outbreak of the Second Lebanon War. Also known as the Israel-Hezbollah War, the conflict…
Second Lebanon War Begins
July 12, 2006 The Second Lebanon War begins when Hezbollah launches Katyusha rockets and mortars at Israeli border towns and Israel Defense Forces positions, a diversion for a raid across the border to ambush an…
Gilad Shalit Is Captured
IDF soldier Gilad Shalit is captured by a group of Palestinian militants and is held hostage for over five years before being exchanged for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners.
NATO Holds First International Workshop in Israel
Forty-nine participants from eleven countries gather in Haifa for a five-day NATO conference on mass-casualty medical preparedness. The conference is NATO’s first ever event held in Israel.
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,…
Suicide Bomber Strikes Haifa Restaurant
A suicide bombing kills 17 Jews and four Arabs and injures some 60 others at Maxim restaurant in Haifa.
23 Killed in Jerusalem Suicide Blast
August 19, 2003 A suicide bomber kills 23 people and injures more than 130 others by detonating an 11-pound explosive packed with ball bearings on a bus in the ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Shmuel Hanavi in…
