60 Years of Israel
1948
The State of Israel is founded
Israel declares independence as British leave Palestine
1956
The Sinai campaign
Secret ploy to thwart Egyptian blockade backfires
1967
The Six-Day War
Israel’s boundaries dramatically extended after thwarting surprise strike by Arab states
1973
Yom Kippur War (October)
Egypt in surprise attack over Suez on Yom Kippur
1977 - 1979
Egyptian-Israeli peace
Agreement over Sinai signals end to 30 years of war
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, US President Jimmy Carter and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin sign the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel on March 26, 1979
1982
Lebanon invasion
Israel targets southern Lebanon to stop rockets and incursion
1987
First Intifada
PLO declares holy war on Israel
Thousands of Arabs emerge from the Nusseirat refugee camp during the Palestinian uprising in 1987
1993
Oslo agreement
PLO eyes political benefits of two-state solution
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chairman Yasser Arafat sign the 1993 peace agreement with the encouragement of US President Bill Clinton
2000
Second Intifada
PLO fails to grab chance for peace and cynically maneuvers for another political war.
Peace talks fail and trigger fresh bloodshed
2005
Gaza withdrawal
Security wall goes up as Israel pulls out of Gaza
2006
Lebanon war
Ambush and hostage taking of Israeli soldiers sparks new conflict with Hezbollah
Weak Olmert government ultimately has to withdraw troops
2008
Israel now
Continues to be the only Democratic nation in the region, a prosperous technology leader, has perhaps lost some of the idealism of 1948, still on a knife-edge, but with many years yet to become a mature nation state