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Do not fill this in! === State of Israel === {{main|History of Israel (1948–present)}} ==== Establishment and early years ==== {{further|Israeli Declaration of Independence}} [[File:Declaration of State of Israel 1948.jpg|thumb|right|[[David Ben-Gurion]] declaring the [[Israeli Declaration of Independence|establishment of Israel]] on 14 May 1948]] On 14 May 1948, the day before the expiration of the British Mandate, [[David Ben-Gurion]], the head of the Jewish Agency, [[Israeli Declaration of Independence|declared]] "the establishment of a Jewish state in [[Eretz-Israel]], to be known as the State of Israel."<ref>Clifford, Clark, "Counsel to the President: A Memoir", 1991, p. 20.</ref> The only reference in the text of the Declaration to the borders of the new state is the use of the term ''Eretz-Israel'' ("[[Land of Israel]]").{{citation needed|date=March 2024}} The following day, the armies of four Arab countries—[[Kingdom of Egypt|Egypt]], [[Syrian Republic (1946–63)|Syria]], [[Jordan|Transjordan]] and [[Kingdom of Iraq|Iraq]]—entered into parts of what had been British Mandatory Palestine, launching the [[1948 Arab–Israeli War]];<ref>{{cite book |trans-quote=The entry into (the) war of the Arab countries poses a complex legal problem. The crossing of the borders can constitute an act of aggression or a threat against peace, justifying a condemnation and an intervention by the United Nations, but if the armies penetrate only the Arab part of the partition plan, they can be considered as called on (to do so) by the population and at this stage their '''intervention''' would not in itself be a threat against the peace. That would only start were the Jewish part attacked. Now, the Arab armies do directly threaten Jewish territory at certain points while in others the Jews have already largely taken up positions in Arab territory. |quote=L'entrée en guerre des pays arabes pose un problem juridique complexe. Le franchissement des frontières peut constituer un acte d'aggression ou une menace contre la paix, justifiant une condannation et une intervention des Nations unies, mais si les armées pénètrent seulement dans la partie arabe du plan de partage, elles peuvent être considérées comme appelées par la population et à ce stade leur intervention ne serait pas par elle-même une menace contre la paix. Elle ne commencerait qu'avec l'attaque de la partie juive. Or, en certains points, les armées arabes menacent directement le territoire juif et dans d'autres les Juifs se sont déjà largement installés en territoire arabe. |author-link=Henry Laurens (scholar) |author=Henry Laurens |title=La Question de Palestine |publisher=[[Fayard]] |place=Paris |year=2007 |volume=3 |page=104}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Arab–Israeli conflict: The Palestine War 1948 |last=Karsh |first=Efraim |year=2002 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-84176-372-9|page=50}}</ref>{{sfn|Ben-Sasson|1985|p=1058}} contingents from [[Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen|Yemen]], [[Morocco]], [[Saudi Arabia]] and [[Sudan]] joined the war.{{sfn|Morris|2008|p=205}}<ref>{{cite book|title=Israel in the Middle East: Documents and Readings on Society, Politics, and Foreign Relations, Pre-1948 to the Present |last=Rabinovich |first=Itamar |author2=Reinharz, Jehuda |year=2007 |publisher=Brandeis |isbn=978-0-87451-962-4 |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780874519624/page/74 74] |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780874519624/page/74 }}</ref> The apparent purpose of the invasion was to prevent the establishment of the Jewish state; some Arab leaders talked about "driving the Jews into the sea".<ref name="Morris2008396"/><ref>{{cite book |title=War in Palestine, 1948: Israeli and Arab Strategy and Diplomacy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vs2PAgAAQBAJ&pg=PAPR4 |author=David Tal |year=2004 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-135-77513-1 |page=469 |quote=some of the Arab armies invaded Palestine in order to prevent the establishment of a Jewish state, Transjordan... |access-date=1 December 2018 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219070640/https://books.google.com/books?id=Vs2PAgAAQBAJ&pg=PAPR4#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Morris|2008|p=187}}: "A week before the armies marched, Azzam told Kirkbride: "It does not matter how many [Jews] there are. We will sweep them into the sea." ... Ahmed Shukeiry, one of Haj Amin al-Husseini's aides (and, later, the founding chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization), simply described the aim as "the elimination of the Jewish state." ... al-Quwwatli told his people: "Our army has entered ... we shall win and we shall eradicate Zionism""</ref> According to [[Benny Morris]], Jews were worried that the invading Arab armies held the intent to slaughter them.<ref>{{harvnb|Morris|2008|p=198}}: "the Jews felt that the Arabs aimed to reenact the Holocaust and that they faced certain personal and collective slaughter should they lose"</ref> The Arab league stated the invasion was to restore order and prevent further bloodshed.<ref name=cablegram>{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=S/745 |title=PDF copy of Cablegram from the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States to the Secretary-General of the United Nations: S/745: 15 May 1948 |publisher=Un.org |date=9 September 2002 |access-date=13 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140107030419/http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=S%2F745 |archive-date=7 January 2014 }}</ref> After a year of fighting, a [[1949 Armistice Agreements|ceasefire was declared]] and temporary borders, known as the [[Green Line (Israel)|Green Line]], were established.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Arab–Israeli conflict: The Palestine War 1948 |last=Karsh |first=Efraim |year=2002 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=978-1-84176-372-9}}</ref> Jordan [[Jordanian annexation of the West Bank|annexed]] what became known as the [[West Bank]], including [[East Jerusalem]], and Egypt [[Occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt|occupied]] the [[Gaza Strip]]. The UN estimated that more than 700,000 Palestinians were [[1948 Palestinian exodus|expelled by or fled]]—what would become known in Arabic as the ''[[Nakba]]'' ("catastrophe").<ref>{{cite book |last=Morris|first=Benny|author-link=Benny Morris|title=The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited|isbn=978-0-521-00967-6 |publisher=Cambridge University Press|page=602 |year=2004 }}</ref> Some 156,000 remained and became [[Arab citizens of Israel]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://lib.cet.ac.il/pages/item.asp?item=13336|title=עיצוב יחסי יהודים - ערבים בעשור הראשון|website=lib.cet.ac.il|access-date=2 September 2021|archive-date=8 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221008065301/https://lib.cet.ac.il/pages/item.asp?item=13336|url-status=live}}</ref> [[File:Raising the Ink Flag at Umm Rashrash (Eilat) (3x4).jpg|thumb|150px|right|Raising of the [[Ink Flag]] on 10 March 1949, marking the end of the [[1948 Arab–Israeli War|1948 war]]]] Israel [[United Nations General Assembly Resolution 273|was admitted]] as a member of the UN on 11 May 1949.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/1ce874ab1832a53e852570bb006dfaf6/0b3ab8d2a7c0273d8525694b00726d1b |publisher=The United Nations |title=Two Hundred and Seventh Plenary Meeting |date=11 May 1949 |access-date=13 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070912101430/http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/1ce874ab1832a53e852570bb006dfaf6/0b3ab8d2a7c0273d8525694b00726d1b |archive-date=12 September 2007 }}</ref> An Israeli-Jordanian attempt at negotiating a peace agreement broke down after the [[British government]], fearful of the Egyptian reaction to such a treaty, expressed their opposition to the [[Government of Jordan|Jordanian government]].<ref>{{cite book|author=William Roger Louis|title=The British Empire in the Middle East, 1945–1951: Arab Nationalism, the United States, and Postwar Imperialism|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ATQQ0FMS1FQC&pg=PAPA579|year=1984|publisher=Clarendon Press|isbn=978-0-19-822960-5|page=579|quote=The transcript makes it clear that British policy acted as a brake on Jordan. "King Abdullah was personally anxious to come to agreement with Israel", Kirkbride stated, "and in fact it was our restraining influence which had so far prevented him from doing so". Knox Helm confirmed that the Israelis hoped to have a settlement with Jordan, and that they now genuinely wished to live peacefully within their frontiers, if only for economic reasons.|access-date=1 December 2018|archive-date=19 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219070639/https://books.google.com/books?id=ATQQ0FMS1FQC&pg=PAPA579#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> In the early years of the state, the [[Labor Zionism|Labor Zionist]] movement led by Prime Minister [[David Ben-Gurion]] dominated [[Politics of Israel|Israeli politics]].{{sfn|Lustick|1988|pp=37–39}}<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/iltoc.html |title=Israel (Labor Zionism) |journal=Country Studies |access-date=12 February 2010 |archive-date=10 July 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120710212220/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/iltoc.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Immigration to Israel during the late 1940s and early 1950s was aided by the Israeli Immigration Department and the non-government sponsored [[Mossad LeAliyah Bet]] ({{Abbr|lit.|literally|class=small}} "Institute for [[Aliyah Bet|Immigration B]]").<ref>{{cite book | author = Anita Shapira | title = Land and Power | pages = 416, 419 | publisher = Stanford University Press | year = 1992}}</ref> The latter engaged in clandestine operations in countries, particularly in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, where the lives of Jews were believed to be in danger and exit was difficult. Mossad LeAliyah Bet was disbanded in 1953.<ref>Segev, Tom. 1949: The First Israelis. "The First Million". Trans. Arlen N. Weinstein. New York: The Free Press, 1986. Print. pp. 105–107</ref> The immigration was in accordance with the [[One Million Plan]]. Some immigrants held Zionist beliefs or came for the promise of a better life, while others moved to escape persecution or were expelled.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Forgotten Millions: The Modern Jewish Exodus from Arab Lands |last=Shulewitz |first=Malka Hillel |year=2001 |publisher=Continuum |isbn=978-0-8264-4764-7}}</ref><ref>Laskier, Michael "Egyptian Jewry under the Nasser Regime, 1956–70" pp. 573–619 from ''Middle Eastern Studies'', Volume 31, Issue # 3, July 1995 p. 579.</ref> An [[Aliyah#Early statehood (1948–1960)|influx of Holocaust survivors]] and [[Jewish exodus from Arab and Muslim countries|Jews from Arab and Muslim countries]] to Israel during the first three years increased the number of Jews from 700,000 to 1,400,000. By 1958, the population had risen to two million.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st02_02&CYear=2016 |title=Population, by Religion |date=2016 |publisher=Israel Central Bureau of Statistics |access-date=4 September 2016 |archive-date=18 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160918223343/http://www.cbs.gov.il/reader/shnaton/templ_shnaton_e.html?num_tab=st02_02&CYear=2016 |url-status=live }}</ref> Between 1948 and 1970, approximately 1,150,000 Jewish refugees relocated to Israel.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bard|first=Mitchell|title=The Founding of the State of Israel|year=2003|publisher=Greenhaven Press|page=15}}</ref> Some new immigrants arrived as refugees and were housed in temporary camps known as ''[[ma'abarot]]''; by 1952, over 200,000 people were living in these tent cities.<ref>{{cite book |title=Immigrants in Turmoil: Mass Immigration to Israel and Its Repercussions in the 1950s and After |last=Hakohen |first=Devorah |year=2003 |publisher=Syracuse University Press|isbn=978-0-8156-2969-6}}; for ma'abarot population, see p. 269.</ref> [[Ashkenazi Jews|Jews of European background]] were often treated more favorably than Jews from [[Mizrahi Jews|Middle Eastern]] and [[Sephardi Jews|North African]] countries—housing units reserved for the latter were often re-designated for the former, so Jews newly arrived from Arab lands generally ended up staying longer in transit camps.<ref>Clive Jones, Emma Murphy, [https://books.google.com/books?id=A144y7qwRJMC&pg=PA37 ''Israel: Challenges to Identity, Democracy, and the State,''] [[Routledge]] 2002 p. 37: "Housing units earmarked for the Oriental Jews were often reallocated to European Jewish immigrants; Consigning Oriental Jews to the privations of ''ma'aborot'' (transit camps) for longer periods."</ref>{{sfn|Segev|2007|pp=155–157}} During this period, food, clothes and furniture had to be rationed in what became known as the [[Austerity in Israel|austerity period]]. The need to solve the crisis led Ben-Gurion to sign a [[Reparations Agreement between Israel and West Germany|reparations agreement with West Germany]] that triggered mass protests by Jews angered at the idea that Israel could accept monetary compensation for the Holocaust.{{sfn|Shindler|2002|pp=49–50}} ==== Arab–Israeli conflict ==== {{main|Arab–Israeli conflict}} During the 1950s, Israel was frequently [[List of attacks against Israeli civilians before 1967|attacked]] by [[Palestinian fedayeen]], nearly always against civilians,<ref>{{cite book |author=Kameel B. Nasr|title=Arab and Israeli Terrorism: The Causes and Effects of Political Violence, 1936–1993|url={{Google books|QRXURzwdXS4C|page=PA40|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|year=1996|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-0-7864-3105-2|pages=40– |quote=Fedayeen to attack...almost always against civilians}}</ref> mainly from the Egyptian-occupied Gaza Strip,{{sfn|Gilbert|2005|p=58}} leading to several Israeli [[reprisal operations]]. In 1956, the UK and France aimed at regaining control of the [[Suez Canal]], which Egypt had nationalized. The continued blockade of the Suez Canal and [[Straits of Tiran]] to Israeli shipping, together with increasing Fedayeen attacks against Israel's southern population and recent Arab threatening statements, prompted Israel to attack Egypt.<ref>{{cite book|author=Isaac Alteras|title=Eisenhower and Israel: U.S.-Israeli Relations, 1953–1960|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ydRHCPWngioC&pg=PAPA192|year=1993|publisher=University Press of Florida|isbn=978-0-8130-1205-6|pages=192–|quote=the removal of the Egyptian blockade of the Straits of Tiran at the entrance of the Gulf of Aqaba. The blockade closed Israel's sea lane to East Africa and the Far East, hindering the development of Israel's southern port of Eilat and its hinterland, the Nege. Another important objective of the Israeli war plan was the elimination of the terrorist bases in the Gaza Strip, from which daily fedayeen incursions into Israel made life unbearable for its southern population. And last but not least, the concentration of the Egyptian forces in the Sinai Peninsula, armed with the newly acquired weapons from the Soviet bloc, prepared for an attack on Israel. Here, Ben-Gurion believed, was a time bomb that had to be defused before it was too late. Reaching the Suez Canal did not figure at all in Israel's war objectives.|access-date=1 December 2018|archive-date=19 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071150/https://books.google.com/books?id=ydRHCPWngioC&pg=PAPA192|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Dominic Joseph Caraccilo|title=Beyond Guns and Steel: A War Termination Strategy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FDA8dQyaQ9MC&pg=PAPA113|date=2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-39149-1|pages=113–|quote=The escalation continued with the Egyptian blockade of the Straits of Tiran, and Nasser's nationalization of the Suez Canal in July 1956. On October 14, Nasser made clear his intent:"I am not solely fighting against Israel itself. My task is to deliver the Arab world from destruction through Israel's intrigue, which has its roots abroad. Our hatred is very strong. There is no sense in talking about peace with Israel. There is not even the smallest place for negotiations." Less than two weeks later, on October 25, Egypt signed a tripartite agreement with Syria and Jordan placing Nasser in command of all three armies. The continued blockade of the Suez Canal and Gulf of Aqaba to Israeli shipping, combined with the increased fedayeen attacks and the bellicosity of recent Arab statements, prompted Israel, with the backing of Britain and France, to attack Egypt on October 29, 1956.|access-date=1 December 2018|archive-date=19 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071150/https://books.google.com/books?id=FDA8dQyaQ9MC&pg=PAPA113|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Alan Dowty|title=Israel/Palestine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9iFxq6NPPgEC&pg=PAPA102|year=2005|publisher=Polity|isbn=978-0-7456-3202-5|pages=102–|quote=Gamal Abdel Nasser, who declared in one speech that "Egypt has decided to dispatch her heroes, the disciples of Pharaoh and the sons of Islam and they will cleanse the land of Palestine....There will be no peace on Israel's border because we demand vengeance, and vengeance is Israel's death."...The level of violence against Israelis, soldiers and civilians alike, seemed to be rising inexorably.|access-date=1 December 2018|archive-date=19 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071150/https://books.google.com/books?id=9iFxq6NPPgEC&pg=PAPA102#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref> Israel joined [[Protocol of Sèvres|a secret alliance]] with the UK and France and overran the [[Sinai Peninsula]] in the [[Suez Crisis]], but was pressured to withdraw by the UN in return for guarantees of Israeli shipping rights.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/5195582.stm|title=Suez Crisis: Key players|date=21 July 2006|access-date=19 July 2018|language=en-GB|archive-date=26 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026234223/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/5195582.stm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://sunnycv.com/steve/20th/suez.html |title=The Suez Crisis |last=Schoenherr |first=Steven |date=15 December 2005 |access-date=31 May 2013 |archive-date=30 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140430091614/http://sunnycv.com/steve/20th/suez.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Suez Crisis |last=Gorst |first=Anthony |author2=Johnman, Lewis |year=1997 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-11449-3}}</ref> The war resulted in significant reduction of Israeli border infiltration.<ref>{{cite book|author=Benny Morris|title=Righteous Victims: A History of the Zionist-Arab Conflict, 1881–1998|url={{Google books|jGtVsBne7PgC|page=|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|date=25 May 2011|publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group|isbn=978-0-307-78805-4|pages=300, 301|quote=[p. 300] In exchange (for Israeli withdrawal) the United states had indirectly promised to guarantee Israel's right of passage through the straits (to the Red sea) and its right to self defense if the Egyptian closed them....(p 301) The 1956 war resulted in a significant reduction of...Israeli border tension. Egypt refrained from reactivating the Fedaeen, and...Egypt and Jordan made great effort to curb infiltration}}</ref> [[File:1961-04-13 Tale Of Century - Eichmann Tried For War Crimes.ogv|thumb|U.S. newsreel on the trial of [[Adolf Eichmann]]]] In the early 1960s, Israel captured Nazi war criminal [[Adolf Eichmann]] in Argentina and brought him to Israel for [[Eichmann trial|trial]].{{sfn|Bascomb|2009|p=219–229}} Eichmann remains the only person executed in Israel by conviction in an [[Israeli judicial system|Israeli civilian court]].<ref>{{cite journal |author=Shlomo Shpiro |title=No place to hide: Intelligence and civil liberties in Israel |journal=Cambridge Review of International Affairs |volume=19 |issue=44 |pages=629–648 |year=2006 |s2cid=144734253 |doi=10.1080/09557570601003361}}</ref> During the spring and summer of 1963 Israel was engaged in a diplomatic standoff with the United States due to the Israeli [[Nuclear weapons and Israel|nuclear programme]].<ref name="Haaretz2019">{{Cite news|url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.MAGAZINE-how-a-standoff-with-the-u-s-almost-blew-up-israel-s-nuclear-program-1.7193419|title=How a Standoff with the U.S. Almost Blew up Israel's Nuclear Program|newspaper=Haaretz|date=3 May 2019|last1=Cohen|first1=Avner|access-date=11 November 2019|archive-date=2 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202173023/https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.MAGAZINE-how-a-standoff-with-the-u-s-almost-blew-up-israel-s-nuclear-program-1.7193419|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/nuclear-vault/2019-05-02/battle-letters-1963-john-f-kennedy-david-ben-gurion-levi-eshkol-us-inspections-dimona |title=The Battle of the Letters, 1963: John F. Kennedy, David Ben-Gurion, Levi Eshkol, and the U.S. Inspections of Dimona {{pipe}} National Security Archive |date=29 April 2019 |access-date=11 November 2019 |archive-date=11 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191111141328/https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/nuclear-vault/2019-05-02/battle-letters-1963-john-f-kennedy-david-ben-gurion-levi-eshkol-us-inspections-dimona |url-status=live }}</ref> Since 1964, Arab countries, concerned over Israeli plans to divert waters of the [[Jordan River]] into the [[Israeli coastal plain|coastal plain]],<ref>"The Politics of Miscalculation in the Middle East", by Richard B. Parker (1993 Indiana University Press) p. 38</ref> had been trying to divert the headwaters to deprive Israel of water resources, provoking [[War over Water (Jordan river)|tensions]] between Israel on the one hand, and Syria and Lebanon on the other. [[Arab nationalist]]s led by Egyptian President [[Gamal Abdel Nasser]] refused to recognize Israel and called for its destruction.<ref name="RoutledgeAtlas">{{Harvnb|Gilbert|2005|p=1}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Syria and Israel: From War to Peacemaking |last=Maoz |first=Moshe |year=1995 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-828018-7 |page=70 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/5/newsid_2654000/2654251.stm |title=On This Day 5 Jun |date=5 June 1967 |publisher=BBC |access-date=26 December 2011 |archive-date=14 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070714044705/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/june/5/newsid_2654000/2654251.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> By 1966, Israeli-Arab relations had deteriorated to the point of battles taking place between Israeli and Arab forces.{{sfn|Segev|2007|p=178}} [[File:Six Day War Territories.svg|thumb|Territory held by Israel: {{legend|#ffffd0|before the [[Six-Day War]]}} {{legend|#f7d3aa|after the war}} The [[Sinai Peninsula]] was returned to Egypt in 1982.]] In May 1967, Egypt massed its army near the border with Israel, expelled [[United Nations Emergency Force|UN peacekeepers]], stationed in the Sinai Peninsula since 1957, and blocked Israel's access to the Red Sea.<ref>{{cite book |last=Gat |first=Moshe |title=Britain and the Conflict in the Middle East, 1964–1967: The Coming of the Six-Day War |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ntLdA8QIgXIC&q=On+the+night+of+May+22-23,+Nasser+declared+the+Gulf+of+Aqaba+closed+to+Israeli+shipping&pg=PA202 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |year=2003 |page=202 |isbn=978-0-275-97514-2 |access-date=4 October 2020 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071151/https://books.google.com/books?id=ntLdA8QIgXIC&q=On+the+night+of+May+22-23,+Nasser+declared+the+Gulf+of+Aqaba+closed+to+Israeli+shipping&pg=PA202 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>[[John Quigley (academic)|John Quigley]], [https://books.google.com/books?id=0zEi3qGWLFIC&pg=PA32 ''The Six-Day War and Israeli Self-Defense: Questioning the Legal Basis for Preventive War''], Cambridge University Press, 2013, p. 32.</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Samir A. Mutawi|title=Jordan in the 1967 War|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g9bBJusRJIMC|year=2002|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-52858-0|page=93|quote=Although Eshkol denounced the Egyptians, his response to this development was a model of moderation. His speech on 21 May demanded that Nasser withdraw his forces from Sinai but made no mention of the removal of UNEF from the Straits nor of what Israel would do if they were closed to Israeli shipping. The next day Nasser announced to an astonished world that henceforth the Straits were, indeed, closed to all Israeli ships|access-date=17 September 2021|archive-date=31 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231031043157/https://books.google.com/books?id=g9bBJusRJIMC|url-status=live}}</ref> Other Arab states mobilized their forces.{{sfn|Segev|2007|p=289}} Israel reiterated that these actions were a ''[[casus belli]]'' and, on 5 June, launched a [[Operation Focus|pre-emptive strike]] against Egypt. Jordan, Syria and Iraq attacked Israel. In a [[Six-Day War]], Israel captured and occupied the West Bank from Jordan, the Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, and the [[Golan Heights]] from Syria.<ref>{{harvnb|Smith|2006|p=126}}. "Nasser, the Egyptian president, decided to mass troops in the Sinai{{nbsp}}... ''casus belli'' by Israel."</ref> Jerusalem's boundaries were enlarged, incorporating [[East Jerusalem]], and the 1949 [[Green Line (Israel)|Green Line]] became the administrative boundary between Israel and the [[Israeli-occupied territories|occupied territories]].{{sfn|Shlay|Rosen|2010|pp=362–363}} Following the 1967 war and the "[[Three Nos]]" resolution of the Arab League, Israel faced attacks from the Egyptians in the Sinai Peninsula during the 1967–1970 [[War of Attrition]], and from Palestinian groups targeting Israelis in the occupied territories, in Israel, and around the world. Most important among the various Palestinian and Arab groups was the [[Palestinian Liberation Organization]] (PLO), established in 1964, which initially committed itself to "armed struggle as the only way to liberate the homeland".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/13/magazine/13PALESTINIANS.html |title=The Interregnum |last=Bennet |first=James |date=13 March 2005 |work=The New York Times Magazine |access-date=11 February 2010 |archive-date=16 April 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416021652/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/13/magazine/13PALESTINIANS.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Palestinian groups launched [[Palestinian political violence|attacks]]<ref>{{cite book |title=Research on Terrorism: Trends, Achievements and Failures |last=Silke |first=Andrew |year=2004 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-7146-8273-0 |page=149 (256 pp.) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rSpfNJQ4CbAC&q=palestinian+terror+1970s&pg=PA149 |access-date=8 March 2010 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071201/https://books.google.com/books?id=rSpfNJQ4CbAC&q=palestinian+terror+1970s&pg=PA149#v=snippet&q=palestinian%20terror%201970s&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Routledge Atlas of the Arab–Israeli Conflict: The Complete History of the Struggle and the Efforts to Resolve It |last=Gilbert |first=Martin |year=2002 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-28116-4 |page=82 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UNvJ1FOwiAwC&q=palestinian+terror+1970s&pg=PA82 |access-date=8 March 2010 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071251/https://books.google.com/books?id=UNvJ1FOwiAwC&q=palestinian+terror+1970s&pg=PA82#v=onepage&q=palestinian%20terror%201970s&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> against Israeli and Jewish targets around the world,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/world/middleeast/27habash.html |title=George Habash, Palestinian Terrorism Tactician, Dies at 82 |first1=Edmund |last1=Andrews |author-link=Edmund Andrews (reporter) |first2=John |last2=Kifner |author-link2=John Kifner |newspaper=The New York Times |date=27 January 2008 |access-date=29 March 2012 |archive-date=13 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313121747/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/world/middleeast/27habash.html |url-status=live }}</ref> including [[Munich massacre|a massacre of Israeli athletes]] at the [[1972 Summer Olympics]] in Munich. The Israeli government responded with an [[Operation Wrath of God|assassination campaign]] against the organizers of the massacre, a [[1972 Israeli air raid in Syria and Lebanon|bombing]] and a [[1973 Israeli raid on Lebanon|raid on the PLO headquarters in Lebanon]]. On 6 October 1973, the Egyptian and Syrian armies launched [[Operation Badr (1973)|a surprise attack]] against Israeli forces in the Sinai Peninsula and Golan Heights, opening the [[Yom Kippur War]]. The war ended on 25 October with Israel repelling Egyptian and Syrian forces but having suffered over 2,500 soldiers killed in a war which collectively took 10–35,000 lives in about 20 days.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/6/newsid_2514000/2514317.stm |title=1973: Arab states attack Israeli forces |work=On This Day |publisher=BBC News |access-date=15 July 2007 |date=6 October 1973 |archive-date=14 July 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120714014851/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/6/newsid_2514000/2514317.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> An [[Agranat Commission|internal inquiry]] exonerated [[Fifteenth government of Israel|the government]] of responsibility for failures before and during the war, but public anger forced Prime Minister [[Golda Meir]] to resign.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.knesset.gov.il/lexicon/eng/agranat_eng.htm |title=Agranat Commission |publisher=Knesset |year=2008 |access-date=8 April 2010 |archive-date=29 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101229175926/http://knesset.gov.il/lexicon/eng/agranat_eng.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>{{better source needed|date=February 2023}} In July 1976, an airliner was hijacked in flight from Israel to France by Palestinian guerrillas and landed at [[Entebbe International Airport]], Uganda. Israeli commandos [[Operation Entebbe|rescued]] 102 out of 106 Israeli hostages. ==== Peace process ==== {{main|Israeli–Palestinian peace process}} The [[1977 Israeli legislative election|1977 Knesset elections]] marked a major turning point in Israeli political history as [[Menachem Begin]]'s [[Likud]] party took control from the [[Labor Party (Israel)|Labor Party]].<ref>{{harvnb|Bregman|2002|pp=169–170}}: "In hindsight we can say that 1977 was a turning point ..."</ref> Later that year, Egyptian President [[Anwar El Sadat]] made a trip to Israel and spoke before the [[Knesset]] in what was the first recognition of Israel by an Arab head of state.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|pp=171–174}} Sadat and Begin signed the [[Camp David Accords]] (1978) and the [[Egypt–Israel peace treaty]] (1979).{{sfn|Bregman|2002|pp=186–187}} In return, Israel withdrew from the Sinai Peninsula and agreed to enter negotiations over an autonomy for Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|pp=186–187}} On 11 March 1978, a PLO guerilla raid from Lebanon led to the [[Coastal Road massacre]]. Israel responded by launching an [[1978 South Lebanon conflict|invasion of southern Lebanon]] to destroy PLO bases. Most PLO fighters withdrew, but Israel was able to secure southern Lebanon until a [[United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon|UN force]] and the Lebanese army could take over. The PLO soon resumed its [[Palestinian insurgency in South Lebanon|insurgency]] against Israel. In the next few years, the PLO infiltrated the south and kept up a sporadic shelling across the border. Israel carried out numerous retaliatory attacks. Meanwhile, Begin's government provided incentives for Israelis to [[Israeli settlements|settle]] in the [[Israeli occupation of the West Bank|occupied West Bank]], increasing friction with the Palestinians there.<ref>{{cite book|title=A history of the modern Middle East |last=Cleveland |first=William L. |year=1999 |publisher=Westview Press |isbn=978-0-8133-3489-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernm00clev/page/356 356] |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernm00clev/page/356 }}</ref> The [[Jerusalem Law]] (1980) was believed by some to reaffirm Israel's 1967 annexation of Jerusalem by government decree, and [[UN Security Council Resolution 478|reignited international controversy]] over the [[Positions on Jerusalem|status of the city]]. No Israeli legislation has defined the territory of Israel and no act specifically included East Jerusalem therein.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Lustick |first=Ian |year=1997 |title=Has Israel Annexed East Jerusalem? |journal=Middle East Policy |volume=V |issue=1 |pages=34–45 |issn=1061-1924 |oclc=4651987544 |doi=10.1111/j.1475-4967.1997.tb00247.x |url=https://www.sas.upenn.edu/polisci/sites/www.sas.upenn.edu.polisci/files/Lustick_Has%20Israel%20Annexed%20Jerusalem_1997.pdf |access-date=1 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091120090306/http://www.mepc.org/journal_vol5/9701_lustick.asp |archive-date=20 November 2009 }}</ref> In 1981 Israel [[Golan Heights Law|effectively annexed]] the [[Golan Heights]].<ref name="bbc_golan_profile">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14724842 |title=Golan Heights profile |date=27 November 2015 |work=BBC News |access-date=6 January 2017 |archive-date=17 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190617170912/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14724842 |url-status=live }}</ref> The international community largely rejected these moves, with the UN Security Council declaring both the Jerusalem Law and the Golan Heights Law null and void.<ref>{{cite book | last=Hillier | first=T. | title=Sourcebook on Public International Law | publisher=Routledge | year=1998 | isbn=978-1-135-35366-7 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DmuPAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA242 | access-date=12 October 2021 | archive-date=19 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071301/https://books.google.com/books?id=DmuPAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA242#v=onepage&q&f=false | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last1=Monacella | first1=R. | last2=Ware | first2=S.A. | title=Fluctuating Borders: Speculations about Memory and Emergence | publisher=RMIT University Press | year=2007 | isbn=978-1-921166-48-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q7r4wd57FqIC&pg=RA1-PA62 | access-date=12 October 2021 | archive-date=19 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219071154/https://books.google.com/books?id=q7r4wd57FqIC&pg=RA1-PA62#v=onepage&q&f=false | url-status=live }}</ref> Several waves of [[Ethiopian Jews]] [[Aliyah from Ethiopia|immigrated]] to Israel since the 1980s, while between 1990 and 1994, [[1990s Post-Soviet aliyah|immigration from the post-Soviet states]] increased Israel's population by twelve percent.<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Economics/Papers/1996/pdfs/96-28.pdf |journal=The Quarterly Journal of Economics |date=November 2001 |title=The Impact of Mass Migration on the Israeli Labor Market |last=Friedberg |first=Rachel M. |pages=1373–1408 |issue=4 |doi=10.1162/003355301753265606 |volume=116 |hdl=10419/102605 |citeseerx=10.1.1.385.2596 |access-date=14 August 2012 |archive-date=23 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120923025501/http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Economics/Papers/1996/pdfs/96-28.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> On 7 June 1981, during the [[Iran–Iraq War]], the Israeli air force [[Operation Opera|destroyed]] Iraq's sole [[Osirak|nuclear reactor]] under construction just outside [[Baghdad]], to impede Iraq's nuclear weapons programme. Following a series of PLO attacks in 1982, Israel [[1982 Lebanon War|invaded]] Lebanon to destroy the PLO bases.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|p=199}} In the first six days, the Israelis destroyed the military forces of the PLO in Lebanon and decisively defeated the Syrians. An Israeli government inquiry—the [[Kahan Commission]]—would later hold Begin and several Israeli generals indirectly responsible for the [[Sabra and Shatila massacre]] and hold [[Defense Minister of Israel|Defense minister]] [[Ariel Sharon]] as bearing "personal responsibility".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Schiff |first1=Ze'ev |author-link=Ze'ev Schiff |last2=Ehud |first2=Yaari |author-link2=Ehud Yaari |title=Israel's Lebanon War |year=1984 |page=[https://archive.org/details/israelslebanonwa0000schi/page/284 284] |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]] |isbn=978-0-671-47991-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/israelslebanonwa0000schi}}</ref> Sharon was forced to resign.<ref>{{cite book |last=Silver |first=Eric |title=Begin: The Haunted Prophet |publisher=[[Random House]] |year=1984 |page=[https://archive.org/details/beginhauntedprop00silv/page/239 239] |isbn=978-0-394-52826-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/beginhauntedprop00silv}}</ref> In 1985, Israel responded to a Palestinian [[Larnaca yacht killings|terrorist attack]] in [[Cyprus]] by [[Operation Wooden Leg|bombing]] the PLO headquarters in Tunisia. Israel withdrew from most of Lebanon in 1986, but maintained a [[Israeli occupation of Southern Lebanon|borderland buffer zone]] in southern Lebanon until 2000, from where Israeli forces [[South Lebanon conflict (1985–2000)|engaged in conflict]] with [[Hezbollah]]. The [[First Intifada]], a Palestinian uprising against Israeli rule,<ref>{{cite book|title=A History of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict |last=Tessler |first=Mark A. |year=1994 |publisher=Indiana University Press |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofisraeli00tess_0/page/677 677] |isbn=978-0-253-20873-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofisraeli00tess_0}}</ref> broke out in 1987, with waves of uncoordinated demonstrations and violence in the occupied West Bank and Gaza. Over the following six years, the Intifada became more organized and included economic and cultural measures aimed at disrupting the Israeli occupation. More than a thousand people were killed.<ref>{{harvnb|Stone|Zenner|1994|p=246}}. "Toward the end of 1991 ... were the result of internal Palestinian terror."</ref> During the 1991 [[Gulf War]], the PLO supported [[Saddam Hussein]] and Iraqi missile [[Iraqi rocket attacks on Israel|attacks against Israel]]. Despite public outrage, Israel heeded American calls to refrain from hitting back.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D0CE7DB173EF93AA35751C1A967958260 |title=After 4 Years, Intifada Still Smolders |work=The New York Times |date=9 December 1991 |access-date=28 March 2008 |last=Haberman |first=Clyde |archive-date=17 July 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120717180855/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/09/world/after-4-years-intifada-still-smolders.html |url-status=live }}</ref>{{sfn |Mowlana |Gerbner |Schiller |1992 |p=111}} [[File:Flickr - Government Press Office (GPO) - Foreign Min. Peres and King Hussein.jpg|thumb|[[Shimon Peres]] (left) with [[Yitzhak Rabin]] (center) and King [[Hussein of Jordan]] (right), prior to signing the [[Israel–Jordan peace treaty]] in 1994]] In 1992, [[Yitzhak Rabin]] became prime minister following [[1992 Israeli legislative election|an election]] in which his party called for compromise with Israel's neighbours.{{sfn|Bregman|2002|p=236}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bc.edu/dam/files/research_sites/cjl/texts/cjrelations/resources/education/Israel_Palestine/cold_war_ends.htm |publisher=[[Boston College]] |title=From the End of the Cold War to 2001 |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130827235024/http://www.bc.edu/dam/files/research_sites/cjl/texts/cjrelations/resources/education/Israel_Palestine/cold_war_ends.htm |archive-date=27 August 2013 }}</ref> The following year, [[Shimon Peres]] on behalf of Israel, and [[Mahmoud Abbas]] for the PLO, signed the [[Oslo Accords]], which gave the [[Palestinian National Authority]] (PNA) the right to govern [[West Bank Areas in the Oslo II Accord|parts of the West Bank]] and the Gaza Strip.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://history.state.gov/milestones/1990-2000/Oslo |publisher=U.S. Department of State |title=The Oslo Accords, 1993 |access-date=30 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100122102530/http://history.state.gov/milestones/1990-2000/Oslo |archive-date=22 January 2010 }}</ref> The PLO also [[Israel–Palestine Liberation Organization letters of recognition|recognized]] Israel's right to exist and pledged an end to terrorism.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace%20Process/Guide%20to%20the%20Peace%20Process/Israel-PLO%20Recognition%20-%20Exchange%20of%20Letters%20betwe |publisher=Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs |title=Israel–PLO Recognition – Exchange of Letters between PM Rabin and Chairman Arafat – Sept 9, 1993 |access-date=31 March 2010 |archive-date=16 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120716184929/http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Peace%20Process/Guide%20to%20the%20Peace%20Process/Israel-PLO%20Recognition%20-%20Exchange%20of%20Letters%20betwe |url-status=live }}</ref>{{better source needed|date=January 2023}} In 1994, the [[Israel–Jordan peace treaty]] was signed, making Jordan the second Arab country to normalize relations with Israel.<ref>{{harvnb|Harkavy|Neuman|2001|p=270}}. "Even though Jordan in 1994 became the second country, after Egypt to sign a peace treaty with Israel ..."</ref> Arab public support for the Accords was damaged by the continuation of Israeli settlements<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fmep.org/settlement_info/settlement-info-and-tables/stats-data/sources-of-population-growth-total-israeli-population-and-settler-population-1991-2003 |title=Sources of Population Growth: Total Israeli Population and Settler Population, 1991–2003 |access-date=20 March 2012 |publisher=Foundation for Middle East Peace |website=Settlements information |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130826051148/http://www.fmep.org/settlement_info/settlement-info-and-tables/stats-data/sources-of-population-growth-total-israeli-population-and-settler-population-1991-2003 |archive-date=26 August 2013 }}</ref> and [[Israeli checkpoint|checkpoints]], and the deterioration of economic conditions.<ref>{{cite book|title=Negotiating Arab-Israeli peace: American leadership in the Middle East |last=Kurtzer |first=Daniel |author2=Lasensky, Scott |year=2008 |publisher=United States Institute of Peace Press |isbn=978-1-60127-030-6 |page=[https://archive.org/details/negotiatingarabi0000kurt/page/44 44] |url=https://archive.org/details/negotiatingarabi0000kurt/page/44 }}</ref> Israeli public support for the Accords waned after [[List of Palestinian suicide attacks|Palestinian suicide attacks]].<ref>{{cite book|title=A history of the modern Middle East |last=Cleveland |first=William L. |year=1999 |publisher=Westview Press |isbn=978-0-8133-3489-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernm00clev/page/494 494] |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofmodernm00clev/page/494 }}</ref> In November 1995, Yitzhak Rabin [[assassination of Yitzhak Rabin|was assassinated]] by [[Yigal Amir]], a far-right Jew who opposed the Accords.<ref>{{cite news |title=Israel marks Rabin assassination |publisher=BBC News |date=12 November 2005 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4431728.stm |access-date=12 May 2010 |archive-date=17 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100117220054/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4431728.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> During [[Benjamin Netanyahu|Benjamin Netanyahu's]] premiership at the end of the 1990s, Israel agreed to [[Protocol Concerning the Redeployment in Hebron|withdraw]] from [[Hebron]],{{sfn|Bregman|2002|p=257}} though this was never ratified or implemented,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20151002002611/http://www.ijcv.org/index.php/ijcv/article/view/14/14 Hanne Eggen Røislien, "Living with Contradiction: Examining the Worldview of the Jewish Settlers in Hebron"], 2 October 2015 ''[[International Journal of Conflict and Violence]]'', Vol.1 (2) 2007, pp.169–184</ref> and signed the [[Wye River Memorandum]], giving greater control to the PNA.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://1997-2001.state.gov/www/regions/nea/981023_interim_agmt.html|publisher=[[U.S. Department of State]]|title=The Wye River Memorandum|date=23 October 1998|access-date=30 March 2010|archive-date=4 January 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110104074037/http://1997-2001.state.gov/www/regions/nea/981023_interim_agmt.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Ehud Barak]], [[1999 Israeli general election|elected]] Prime Minister in 1999, withdrew forces from Southern Lebanon and conducted negotiations with PNA Chairman [[Yasser Arafat]] and U.S. President [[Bill Clinton]] at the [[2000 Camp David Summit]]. Barak offered a plan for the establishment of a [[Palestinian state]], including the entirety of the Gaza Strip and over 90% of the West Bank with Jerusalem as a shared capital.{{sfn|Gelvin|2005|p=240}} Each side blamed the other for the failure of the talks. ==== 21st century ==== {{further|Iran–Israel proxy conflict}} {{Update section|date=March 2023|reason=the events of the last two decades outside of conflict is barely covered}} [[File:Rocket Attacks fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip by year.png|thumb|upright=1.25|[[Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel|Rocket attacks fired at Israel]] from the Gaza Strip, 2001-2021<ref name="pinfold">{{cite journal|last1=Pinfold|first1=Rob Geist|year=2023|title=Security, Terrorism, and Territorial Withdrawal: Critically Reassessing the Lessons of Israel's "Unilateral Disengagement" from the Gaza Strip|url=https://academic.oup.com/isp/article/24/1/67/6762979|journal=International Studies Perspectives|volume=24|issue=1|pages=67–87|doi=10.1093/isp/ekac013|institution=King’s College London, UK and Charles University, Czech Republic|doi-access=free|access-date=2 November 2023|archive-date=17 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231017014412/https://academic.oup.com/isp/article/24/1/67/6762979|url-status=live}}</ref>]] In late 2000, after a controversial visit by Likud leader [[Ariel Sharon]] to the [[Temple Mount]], the [[Second Intifada]] began. It would continue for the next four and a half years. [[Palestinian suicide attacks|Suicide bombings]] were a recurrent feature of the Intifada.<ref>Sela-Shayovitz, R. (2007). Suicide bombers in Israel: Their motivations, characteristics, and prior activity in terrorist organizations. ''International Journal of Conflict and Violence (IJCV)'', ''1''(2), 163. "The period of the second Intifada significantly differs from other historical periods in Israeli history, because it has been characterized by intensive and numerous suicide attacks that have made civilian life into a battlefront."</ref> Some commentators contend that the Intifada was pre-planned by Arafat due to the collapse of peace talks.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thejc.com/news/world-news/114827/the-big-myth-he-caused-second-intifada |title=The big myth: that he caused the Second Intifada |last=Gross |first=Tom |date=16 January 2014 |newspaper=The Jewish Chronicle |access-date=22 April 2016 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304193513/http://www.thejc.com/news/world-news/114827/the-big-myth-he-caused-second-intifada |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Hong |first=Nicole |date=23 February 2015 |title=Jury Finds Palestinian Authority, PLO Liable for Terrorist Attacks in Israel a Decade Ago |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/jury-finds-palestinian-authority-plo-liable-for-terrorist-attacks-in-israel-a-decade-ago-1424715529 |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=22 April 2016 |archive-date=14 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160414204555/http://www.wsj.com/articles/jury-finds-palestinian-authority-plo-liable-for-terrorist-attacks-in-israel-a-decade-ago-1424715529 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=jewishweek>{{cite news |url=http://jewishweek.org/news/newscontent.php3?artid=3846 |title=PA: Intifada Was Planned |last=Ain |first=Stewart |date=20 December 2000 |newspaper=The Jewish Week |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013083338/http://jewishweek.org/news/newscontent.php3?artid=3846 |archive-date=13 October 2007}}</ref><ref name=atlantic>{{cite news |title=In a Ruined Country |first=David |last=Samuels |date=1 September 2005 |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2005/09/in-a-ruined-country/304167/ |newspaper=The Atlantic |access-date=27 March 2013 |archive-date=30 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080830024459/http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/prem/200509/samuels |url-status=live }}</ref> Sharon became prime minister in a [[2001 Israeli prime ministerial election|2001 election]]; he carried out his plan to [[Israeli disengagement from Gaza|unilaterally withdraw]] from the Gaza Strip and spearheaded the construction of the [[Israeli West Bank barrier]],<ref>{{cite news|title=West Bank barrier route disputed, Israeli missile kills 2 |newspaper=USA Today |date=29 July 2004 |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2004-07-29-west-bank_x.htm |access-date=1 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020225835/http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2004-07-29-west-bank_x.htm |archive-date=20 October 2012}}</ref> ending the Intifada.<ref>See for example:<br/>* {{cite news |title=Years of rage |first1=Amos |last1=Harel |first2=Avi |last2=Issacharoff |date=1 October 2010 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/years-of-rage-1.316603 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=2 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702094014/http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/years-of-rage-1.316603 |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite news |title=Losing Faith in the Intifada |first=Laura |last=King |date=28 September 2004 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |url=http://articles.latimes.com/2004/sep/28/world/fg-intifada28 |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=21 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120921132644/http://articles.latimes.com/2004/sep/28/world/fg-intifada28 |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52801-2004Sep26.html |title=From Jenin To Fallujah? |last=Diehl |first=Jackson |date=27 September 2004 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=3 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203212546/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A52801-2004Sep26.html |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite web |url=http://www.jcpa.org/text/Amidror-perspectives-2.pdf |title=Winning Counterinsurgency War: The Israeli Experience |last=Amidror |first=Yaakov |website=Strategic Perspectives |publisher=Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=11 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811130134/http://www.jcpa.org/text/Amidror-perspectives-2.pdf |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite web |last=Frisch |first=Hillel |url=http://www.biu.ac.il/SOC/besa/perspectives57.html |title=The Need for a Decisive Israeli Victory Over Hamas |date=12 January 2009 |website=Perspectives Papers on Current Affairs |publisher=Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120614054502/http://www.biu.ac.il/SOC/besa/perspectives57.html |archive-date=14 June 2012 }}<br/>* {{cite web |url=http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf&AD=ADA449421 |title=The "Defensive Shield" Operation as a Turning Point in Israel's National Security Strategy |last=Buchris |first=Ofek |date=9 March 2006 |website=Strategy Research Project |publisher=United States Army War College |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=7 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121007044643/http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf&AD=ADA449421 |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A50910-2004Jun17.html |title=Israel's Intifada Victory |last=Krauthammer |first=Charles |date=18 June 2004 |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=19 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170919235122/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A50910-2004Jun17.html |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3558676,00.html |title=2nd Intifada forgotten |last=Plocker |first=Sever |date=22 June 2008 |work=Ynetnews |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=19 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140819220413/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3558676,00.html |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite web |last=Ya'alon |first=Moshe |date=January 2007 |url=http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/uploads/Documents/pubs/PolicyFocus64.pdf |title=Lessons from the Palestinian 'War' against Israel |website=Policy Focus |publisher=Washington Institute for Near East Policy |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120811130133/http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/uploads/Documents/pubs/PolicyFocus64.pdf |archive-date=11 August 2012 }}<br/>* {{cite news |date=20 September 2010 |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/1,7340,L-3957131,00.html |title=Letting the IDF win |last=Hendel |first=Yoaz |work=Ynetnews |access-date=12 August 2012 |archive-date=24 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120924144858/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/1,7340,L-3957131,00.html |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite book |author1=Zvi Shtauber |author2=Yiftah Shapir |title=The Middle East strategic balance, 2004–2005 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=t7C-ZDXrfOgC&pg=PAPA7 |access-date=12 February 2012 |year=2006 |publisher=Sussex Academic Press |isbn=978-1-84519-108-5 |page=7 |archive-date=19 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219072213/https://books.google.com/books?id=t7C-ZDXrfOgC&pg=PAPA7 |url-status=live }}</ref> Between 2000 and 2008, 1,063 Israelis, 5,517 Palestinians and 64 foreign citizens had been killed.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.btselem.org/statistics/fatalities/before-cast-lead/by-date-of-event |title=Fatalities before Operation "Cast Lead" |publisher=B'Tselem |access-date=14 January 2017 |archive-date=20 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180120010413/https://www.btselem.org/statistics/fatalities/before-cast-lead/by-date-of-event |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2006, a Hezbollah artillery assault on Israel's northern border communities and a [[2006 Hezbollah cross-border raid|cross-border abduction]] of two Israeli soldiers precipitated the month-long [[Second Lebanon War]].<ref name="UN1701">{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sc8808.doc.htm |title=Security Council Calls for End to Hostilities between Hizbollah, Israel, Unanimously Adopting Resolution 1701 (2006) |website=[[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701]] |date=11 August 2006 |access-date=28 June 2017 |archive-date=30 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090130025538/http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sc8808.doc.htm |url-status=live }}<br />Escalation of hostilities in Lebanon and in Israel since Hizbollah's attack on Israel on 12 July 2006</ref><ref name="HRTZ_Harel">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/hezbollah-kills-8-soldiers-kidnaps-two-in-offensive-on-northern-border-1.192965 |title=Hezbollah kills 8 soldiers, kidnaps two in offensive on northern border |access-date=20 March 2012 |last=Harel |first=Amos |date=13 July 2006 |newspaper=Haaretz |archive-date=13 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513084315/http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/hezbollah-kills-8-soldiers-kidnaps-two-in-offensive-on-northern-border-1.192965 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2007, the Israeli Air Force [[Operation Outside the Box|destroyed]] a nuclear reactor in Syria. In 2008, [[2008 Israel–Hamas ceasefire|a ceasefire]] between [[Hamas]] and Israel collapsed. The [[Gaza War (2008–2009)|2008–2009 Gaza War]] lasted three weeks and ended after Israel announced a unilateral ceasefire.<ref>{{cite news |first = Jason |last = Koutsoukis |title = Battleground Gaza: Israeli ground forces invade the strip |url = http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/battleground-gaza/2009/01/04/1231003847085.html |work = Sydney Morning Herald |date = 5 January 2009 |access-date = 5 January 2009 |archive-date = 8 January 2009 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090108013919/http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/battleground-gaza/2009/01/04/1231003847085.html |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name=ravid>{{cite news |last=Ravid |first=Barak |title=IDF begins Gaza troop withdrawal, hours after ending 3-week offensive |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=20 March 2012 |date=18 January 2009 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/idf-begins-gaza-troop-withdrawal-hours-after-ending-3-week-offensive-1.268326 |archive-date=17 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140817072019/http://www.haaretz.com/news/idf-begins-gaza-troop-withdrawal-hours-after-ending-3-week-offensive-1.268326 |url-status=live }}</ref> Hamas announced its own ceasefire, with its own conditions of complete withdrawal and opening of [[Blockade of the Gaza Strip|border crossings]]. Despite neither the [[Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel|rocket launchings]] nor Israeli [[Military operations of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict|retaliatory strikes]] having completely stopped, the fragile ceasefire remained.<ref>{{cite news |first=Yuval |last=Azoulay |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/two-idf-soldiers-civilian-lightly-hurt-as-gaza-mortars-hit-negev-1.266841 |title=Two IDF soldiers, civilian lightly hurt as Gaza mortars hit Negev |newspaper=Haaretz |date=1 January 2009 |access-date=20 March 2012 |archive-date=2 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702082345/http://www.haaretz.com/news/two-idf-soldiers-civilian-lightly-hurt-as-gaza-mortars-hit-negev-1.266841 |url-status=live }}</ref> In what Israel described as a response to [[List of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel in 2012|more than a hundred Palestinian rocket attacks]] on southern Israeli cities,<ref name="pound">{{cite news |title=Gaza groups pound Israel with over 100 rockets |first1=Yaakov |last1=Lappin |first2=Tovah |last2=Lazaroff |url=http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Gaza-groups-pound-Israel-with-over-100-rockets |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=12 November 2012 |access-date=27 March 2013 |archive-date=14 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414151101/https://www.jpost.com/Defense/Gaza-groups-pound-Israel-with-over-100-rockets |url-status=live }}</ref> Israel began [[2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip|an operation in the Gaza Strip]] in 2012, lasting eight days.<ref>{{cite news |author=Stephanie Nebehay |date=20 November 2012 |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/palestinians-israel-humanitarian-idUSL5E8MK6MG20121120 |title=UN rights boss, Red Cross urge Israel, Hamas to spare civilians |work=Reuters |access-date=20 November 2012 |archive-date=5 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305052435/http://www.reuters.com/article/palestinians-israel-humanitarian-idUSL5E8MK6MG20121120 |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite news |title=Hamas leader defiant as Israel eases Gaza curbs |first=Nidal |last=al-Mughrabi |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-palestinians-israel-hamas-idUSBRE8AD0WP20121124 |publisher=Reuters |date=24 November 2012 |access-date=8 February 2013 |archive-date=14 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160114184249/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-palestinians-israel-hamas-idUSBRE8AD0WP20121124 |url-status=live }}<br/>* {{cite news |url=http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=291779 |title=Israeli air strike kills top Hamas commander Jabari |work=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=14 November 2012 |archive-date=14 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114141727/http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=291779 |url-status=live }}</ref> Israel started another [[2014 Gaza War|operation]] in Gaza following an [[List of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel in 2014|escalation of rocket attacks]] by Hamas in July 2014.<ref>{{cite news|title=Israel and Hamas Trade Attacks as Tension Rises|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/09/world/middleeast/israel-steps-up-offensive-against-hamas-in-gaza.html|work=The New York Times|date=8 July 2014|access-date=16 February 2017|archive-date=22 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150222154524/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/09/world/middleeast/israel-steps-up-offensive-against-hamas-in-gaza.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In May 2021, another [[2021 Israel–Palestine crisis|round of fighting]] took place in Gaza and Israel, lasting eleven days.<ref>{{cite news |title=Israel and Hamas agree Gaza truce, Biden pledges assistance |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/hamas-official-predicts-ceasefire-soon-israel-gaza-fight-goes-2021-05-19/ |publisher=Reuters |date=21 May 2021 |access-date=26 May 2021 |archive-date=31 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210531014137/https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/hamas-official-predicts-ceasefire-soon-israel-gaza-fight-goes-2021-05-19/ |url-status=live }}</ref> By the 2010s, the [[Arab–Israeli alliance|increasing regional cooperation]] between Israel and [[Arab League]] countries have been established, culminating in the signing of the [[Abraham Accords]]. The Israeli security situation shifted from the traditional [[Arab–Israeli conflict]] towards the [[Iran–Israel proxy conflict]] and [[Iran–Israel conflict during the Syrian civil war|direct confrontation with Iran during the Syrian civil war]]. On 7 October 2023, Palestinian militant groups from Gaza, led by [[Hamas]], launched [[2023 Hamas attack on Israel|a series of coordinated attacks]] on Israel, leading to the start of the [[2023 Israel–Hamas war]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Martínez |first1=Andrés R. |last2=Bubola |first2=Emma |title=What We Know About the Hamas Attack and Israel's Response |url=https://www.nytimes.com/article/israel-gaza-hamas-what-we-know.html |access-date=10 October 2023 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=10 October 2023 |archive-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008143358/https://www.nytimes.com/article/israel-gaza-hamas-what-we-know.html |url-status=live }}</ref> On that day, approximately 1300 Israelis, predominantly civilians, were killed in communities near the Gaza Strip border and [[Re'im music festival massacre|during a music festival]]. [[Kidnappings during the 2023 Israel–Hamas war|Over 200 hostages]], including elders, women, and children as young as 9 months, were kidnapped and taken to the Gaza Strip.<ref name="Gillett">{{cite news |last1=Gillett |first1=Francesca |date=8 October 2023 |title=How an Israel music festival turned into a nightmare after Hamas attack |agency=[[BBC News]] |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67047034 |url-status=live |access-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008143208/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67047034 |archive-date=8 October 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Tabachnick |first1=Cara |date=8 October 2023 |title=Israelis search for loved ones with posts and pleas on social media |publisher=[[CBS News]] |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israelis-search-loved-ones-posts-pleas-social-media-hamas-attack/ |url-status=live |access-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231008061931/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israelis-search-loved-ones-posts-pleas-social-media-hamas-attack/ |archive-date=8 October 2023}}</ref><ref name="natureparty">{{cite news |author=Amanda Borschel-Dan |date=7 October 2023 |title=Thousands flee rocket and gunfire at all-night desert 'Nature Party'; dozens missing |work=[[The Times of Israel]] |url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/thousands-flee-rocket-and-gunfire-at-all-night-desert-nature-party-dozens-missing/ |url-status=live |access-date=8 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007231525/https://www.timesofisrael.com/thousands-flee-rocket-and-gunfire-at-all-night-desert-nature-party-dozens-missing/ |archive-date=7 October 2023}}</ref> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. 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