Fact Sheet

Key Dates In Israel's History

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February 14, 1896

Publication of Theodor Herzl's treatise "The Jewish State"

August 29, 1897

Opening of the First Zionist Congress at Basel, Switzerland

November 2, 1917

Issuing of Boycott (on the Jewish community of Palestine)

July 22, 1946

Irgun bombs King David Hotel

February 14, 1947

Britain gives UN responsibility for Palestine

November 29, 1947

UN Partition Plan approved (Resolution 181)

May 14, 1948

Declaration of the State of Israel

May 15, 1948

Outbreak of War of Independence.  Ends January 1949

January 25, 1949

Israel's first national election; David Ben-Gurion elected Prime Minister

May 1950

Operation Ali Baba; brings 113,000 Iraqi Jews to Israel

September 1950

Operation Magic Carpet; 47,000 Yemeni Jews to Israel

Oct. 29-Nov. 6, 1956

Suez Campaign

October 10, 1959

Creation of Fatah

January 1964

Creation of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)

January 1, 1965

Fatah first major attack: try to sabotage Israel’s water system

May 15-22, 1967

Egyptian Mobilization in the Sinai/Closure of the Tiran Straits

June 5-10, 1967

Six Day War

November 22, 1967

Adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 242

April 4, 1968

Establishment of Jewish settlement in Hebron

July 18, 1968

Hijacking of El Al airliner by PLO

February 1-4, 1969

Arafat becomes PLO Chairman

March 8, 1969

War of Attrition begins, lasts to August 1970

September 5, 1972

Massacre of 11 Israeli athletes at Munich Olympics

October 6-24, 1973

Yom Kippur War

October 17, 1973

Arab Oil Embargo declared

October 22, 1973

Adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 338

May 15, 1974

Terrorist Attack on school in northern Israeli town of Ma’alot

November 10, 1975

Zionism is Racism” resolution passed by the UN

November 19, 1977

Egyptian President Anwar Sadat visits Jerusalem

September 17, 1978

Camp David accords signed

March 26, 1979

Egypt-Israel peace treaty signed

June 7, 1981

Israel attacks Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor

June 6, 1982

Operation “Peace for the Galilee” launched; start of Lebanon War

November 1984

Operation Moses airlifts 7000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel

October 7, 1986

Hijacking of Achille Lauro cruise ship

December 8, 1987

Start of the First Intifada

January 16, 1991

Gulf War; Iraq launches SCUD missiles at Israel

May 24, 1991

Operation Solomon brings 14000 Ethiopian Jews to Israel

October 30, 1991

Madrid Peace Conference

December 16, 1991

UN repeals "Zionism is Racism" resolution

September 13, 1993

Israel-Palestinian Declaration of Principles (Oslo Accord) signed

December 30, 1993

Israel and Vatican sign "Fundamental Agreement"

February 25, 1994

Jewish gunman kills 29 Palestinian worshippers in Hebron

April 6, 1994

Afula suicide bombing, kills 8. In the next years, numerous suicide attacks were perpetrated in Israeli cities, including bus bombings, in restaurants, and malls across the country

May 4, 1994

Agreement on the Gaza Strip and Jericho reached

May 13, 1994

Israel withdraws from Jericho, followed by Gaza on May 18

July 1, 1994

Arafat enters Gaza

October 9, 1994

Hamas kidnaps and kills an Israeli soldier Nachshon Wachsman

October 14, 1994

Rabin, Peres, and Arafat awarded Nobel Peace Prize

October 26, 1994

Israel-Jordan Peace Treaty

December 1, 1994

Transfer of West Bank administrative control to Palestinians

September 28, 1995

Signing of Oslo II agreement

November 4, 1995

Assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin

November 13, 1995

Israel redeploys from Palestinian population centers

January 20, 1996

First Palestinian elections

September 24, 1996

Palestinian "Tunnel Riots" erupt

January 17, 1997

Israel withdraws from Hebron

March 13, 1997

Jordanian soldier kills 7 Israeli schoolgirls

October 23, 1998

Israel-Palestinian "Wye Memorandum" signed

December 10, 1998

Palestinians vote to change PLO charter in presence of President Bill Clinton

May 24, 2000

Israel withdraws from southern Lebanon

July 11-25, 2000

Camp David Summit

September 29, 2000

Outbreak of widespread Palestinian violence, “Second Intifada” begins.  In the next years there were scores of suicide bombings on buses, restaurants, night clubs and city streets

October 12, 2000

Two Israeli soldiers lynched by Palestinian mob in Ramallah

January 4, 2002

Israel intercepts massive Palestinian arms shipment on Karine A ship

March 27, 2002

Suicide bomber kills 30 at Passover seder at Netanya hotel

March 29, 2002

IDF begins Operation Defensive Shield to uproot terrorist infrastructure in West Bank

April 30, 2003

The “Road Map for Peace” is presented by the Quartet to the Israelis and Palestinians

January 29, 2004

Israel swaps prisoners with the terrorist group Hezbollah; releases 435 Arab prisoners in return for the remains of murdered soldiers and a kidnapped Israeli businessman

August 25, 2004

Windsurfer Gal Fridman wins Israel’s first Olympic gold medal at the Athens games

August 31, 2004

Two simultaneous suicide bombings in Beersheba kill 16

November 11, 2004

Yasir Arafat dies in a Paris hospital

December 23, 2004

The first phase of PA municipal elections are held; Hamas secures nearly half the seats

February 26, 2005

The Knesset gives final approval to the Disengagement Plan, rejects calls for a national referendum

July 12, 2005

Suicide bombing of Netanya mall kills 5

August 17-22, 2005

Evacuation of settlers from the Gaza Strip

August 23, 2005

Evacuation of four settlements in the northern West Bank

September 12, 2005

Israeli military completes withdrawal from the Gaza

January 4, 2006

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon incapacitated by massive stroke; Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert appointed Acting Prime Minister

January 26, 2006

Palestinian parliamentary elections; Hamas wins 74 seats in the132-seat legislature

June 25, 2006

IDF Corporal Gilad Shalit is kidnapped by Hamas from IDF army post; Israel responds with military operation

July 12, 2006

Hezbollah sparks the Second Lebanon War when they cross the border into Israel and attack an Israeli military patrol, killing eight soldiers and kidnapping two others

August 11, 2006

The U.N. Security Council unanimously adopts Resolution 1701 for ceasefire in the Lebanon War

June 15, 2007

Hamas takeover of Gaza

July 16, 2008

Hezbollah releases the bodies of captive Israeli soldiers Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser, whose kidnapping sparked the Second Lebanon War

December 27, 2008

In response to increasing rocket barrages Israel launches Operation Cast Lead against Hamas in Gaza

January 18, 2009

Israel signs a unilateral ceasefire. Twelve hours later Hamas agrees to a week-long ceasefire

May 31, 2010

Israel intercepts a flotilla of six ships en route to Gaza

October 18, 2011

Kidnapped IDF Corporal Gilad Shalit is released in a prisoner exchange deal with Hamas

November 14, 2012

Israel launches Operation Pillar of Defense to end rocket attacks from Gaza. A ceasefire was reached on November 21

April 23, 2014

Palestinian Authority (Fatah) and Hamas sign reconciliation agreement to create a Palestinian unity government, effectively ending Israeli-Palestinian peace talks

June 12, 2014

Israeli teenagers Naftali Fraenkel, Gilad Shaer and Eyal Yifrah are abducted and killed by Palestinian terrorists. Their bodies are discovered on June 30th

July 2, 2014

Jewish extremists kidnap and kill 16 year-old Palestinian Mohammed Abu Khdeir

July 7 - August 26, 2014

Israel launches Operation Protective Edge against Hamas to end rocket fire from Gaza and destroy Hamas’ terror tunnels. Operation expands to a ground operation on July 17. An open-ended ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is reached