Primer on the Arab/Israeli Conflict- Timeline

-1915-16- Sykes Picot Agreement
-1917- Balfour Declaration
-1921- Arab riots
-1929- Arab riots
-1936-1939- Arab Revolt
-1947- Arab riots
-1948- Israel's War of Independence (Israel vs Palestinians militias and armies from modern day Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, Syria, Lebenon, Saudi Arabia, & Yemen).
-1956- Suez Campaign
-1964- Palestinian Liberation Organization ("PLO") formed
-1967- Six Day War (Israel defeats Egypt, Jordan, & Syria, conquering territory from each of the Arab states and reclaiming East Jerusalem and the Western Wall).

-1973- Yom Kippur War (Egypt & Syria along with allies launch surprise attack on Jewish Day of Atonement. Israel eventually fended back the attack and a ceasefire was negotiated when the Israelis had pushed their army close to the capitals of the Arab states.)
-1979- Peace signed between Israel & Egypt.
-1981- Israel destroys Iraqi nuclear reactor.
-1982- Lebanon War (Israel attacks southern Lebanon in response to PLO cross-border raids from the area. Israel eventually occupies the area as a security buffer.).
-1987-90- First Palestinian Intifada (uprising).
-1991- Persian Gulf War (Palestinians support Saddam Hussein, lose support from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Syria and other Arab players).
-1993- Oslo Accords signed between Israel & Palestinians.
-1995- Yitzhak Rabin assassinated by Jewish extremist (Shimon Peres takes his place).
-1996- Benyamin "Bibi" Netanyahu from center-right Likud elected P.M. of Israel.
-1999- Ehud Barak from center-left Labor elected P.M. of Israel.
-2000- Camp David Summit (Yasser Arafat rejects Clinton final status proposals).
-2000- Beginning of Second Palestinian Intifada (starts wide-spread use of suicide bombs).
-2001- Ariel Sharon of Likud elected P.M. of Israel.
-2004- Arafat dies (replaced by Mahmoud Abbas, a.k.a. Abu Mazen, as Chairman of the Palestinian Authority).
-2005- Disengagement (Israel pulls settlers and its military out of the Gaza strip).
-2005- Ariel Sharon forms centrist Kadima party.
-2005- Ariel Sharon becomes incapacitated due to a stroke (replaced by Ehud Olmert).
-2006- Ismail Haniyah of Islamist terrorist group Hamas elected Prime Minister of Palestinian Authority.
-2006- Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit kidnapped by Hamas, Israeli soldiers Ehud Goldwasser & Eldad Regev kidnapped by Lebanon-based terrorist group Hezbollah.
-2006- Second Lebanon War (Israel fights Hezbollah. Hezbollah wins media war, actual fighting comes to a draw when U.N. called a ceasefire.).
-2007- Hamas & secular Fatah (Abu Mazen's party) form unity government after factional fighting.
-2007- Hamas conquers Gaza, humiliating Fatah. Abu Mazen fires Ismail Haniyah and appoints independent Salam Fayad (an internationally respected technocrat, former World Bank official) as P.M. of the Palestinian Authority.