A History of Zionism in Palestine
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Israeli PM speaks to Congress
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits Washington D.C. to drum up continued support for Israel's assault on Palestine. Dozens of Democrats boycotted his speech to Congress. However, Netanyahu received numerous standing ovations while calling anti-war demonstrators "Iran's useful idiots" and describing the genocide as a clash between "barbarism and civiliation". Palestinian-American Congress Woman, Rashida Tlaib, was the only one present who denounced Israel's Human Rights Violations in Palestine
Hamas attacks Israel
On October 7, 2023, Hamas carried out coordinated attacks on Israel from inside Gaza. The operation included the launch of thousands of rockets and the breach of the Gaza blockade by armed fighters using vehicles and paragliders. According to Israeli authorities, 1,195 people were killed, including an estimated 800 civilians. Hamas and other armed groups also took approximately 240 hostages, including civlians and soldiers, back into Gaza. This was the deadliest single day in Israel's history since the state's founding in 1948. Hamas stated that Operation Al‑Aqsa Flood was carried out in response to Israel's military occupation, the blockade of Gaza, and escalating settler violence in the West Bank.
The "Nakba Law"
The Israeli Knesset and cabinet approve the "Nakba Law" that criminalizes any Israeli citizen who denies Israel is a "democratic and Jewish state." The law targets Palestinians with Israeli citizenship.
Netanyahu's Thirty-Second Government
The Thirty-Second Israeli government forms in the spring, led by Benjamin Netanyahu and his foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman. Labor party leader Ehud Barak rounds out the alliance as defense minister. U.S. envoy George Mitchell meets with Netanyahu and Lieberman in April. The two Israeli leaders refuse to make any references to a Palestinian state.
Israel Launches the Gaza War
Israel launches massive air strikes on Gaza. The three-week offensive leaves 1,417 Palestinians dead, more than 5,500 wounded, and causes over $2 billion in damage.
Obama Elected U.S. President
Barack Obama is elected U.S. president.
Ceasefire Violation
Israel kills six people inside Gaza in violation of the cease-fire. It seals off Gaza completely. Palestinian resistance forces resume rocket fire.
Hamas–Israel Ceasefire
Hamas and Israel negotiate a cease-fire. Israel continues its blockade of Gaza.
Israel Attacks Lebanon
Israel attacks Lebanon with U.S. backing. Israel suffers relatively high casualties and is driven out by mid-August without achieving its goals. Hezbollah leads the resistance in Lebanon.
Hamas Wins Parliamentary Election
Hamas wins the Palestinian parliamentary election. Israel imposes a blockade on Gaza.
Israel Withdraws from Gaza
Israel withdraws troops and settlements from Gaza. Israel continues to surround Gaza and wages a campaign of bombings and targeted assassinations.
First Intifada
The 1987 Palestinian Intifada erupts. The emergence of a National Unified Leadership, bringing together the Palestinian resistance organizations, creates a situation of dual power for nearly four years.
Israel Invades Lebanon
Israel invades Lebanon with U.S. backing. Three months of relentless bombing leave more than 20,000 Lebanese and Palestinian civilians dead.
Yom Kippur War
The 1973 Arab-Israeli War (Yom Kippur War) begins. Egypt and Syria launch a war to regain territories lost to Israel in 1967. No territory changes hands.
Palestine National Front Forms
The Palestine National Front forms in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
PFLP Forms
The Palestinian wing of the Arab National Movement, together with a number of smaller organizations, forms the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War begins. Israel attacks Egypt, Syria and Jordan, quickly tripling in size. The rest of Palestine, as well as the Egyptian Sinai and the Syrian Golan, are occupied. U.S. imperialists are convinced that Israel will be an indispensable ally against Arab nationalism.
Armistice Reached
A ceasefire is reached. Israel occupies 80 percent of Palestine. 750,000 Palestinians are made refugees.
U.N. Resolution 194
U.N. Resolution 194 passes. It states that all refugees must be allowed to return and compensated for damages suffered. Israel continues to defy the resolution to this day.
The Nakba
British troops withdraw from Palestine. The state of Israel is proclaimed, known as "al-Nakba" by the Palestinians. Arab League troops intervene on behalf of the Palestinians. By this date, 300,000 Palestinians are already in exile.
Deir Yassin Massacre
Nearly all residents of the village of Deir Yassin are massacred by the Irgun, a Zionist paramilitary organization.
Plan Dalet Begins
Plan Dalet begins. Palestinian villages not involved in the fighting are attacked by the Haganah and the Irgun.
UN Partition Plan
Without consulting the Palestinians, the United Nations votes to partition Palestine. War starts in Palestine between Zionists and Palestinian Arabs.
British Crush the Uprising
The British crush the Palestinian uprising that began three and a half years earlier. The British employ extreme violence with the assistance of the Jewish Agency and the main Zionist army, the Haganah.
Arab Revolt Begins
Starting with a six-month general strike, Palestinians launch an armed rebellion against the British Mandate government in a struggle for independence.
British Mandate over Palestine
Britain secures a mandate over Palestine in the aftermath of World War I. Riots erupt in Jerusalem.
Sykes-Picot Revealed
The Bolshevik party leads the victorious Russian Revolution. The new socialist government publishes the secret treaties signed by the ousted czarist government, including the Sykes-Picot Agreement. The agreement allocated to the UK control of what is today Palestine and southern Israel.
Balfour Declaration
British Foreign Secretary Arthur Balfour issues the Balfour Declaration, promising the Zionists a "national home" in Palestine.
Sykes-Picot Agreement
The Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire begins. Britain promises independence to the Arab people, but secretly negotiates the Sykes-Picot Agreement with France.
Arab Congress
Arab Congress in Paris demands self-government from the Ottoman Empire. Palestinians begin to organize anti-Zionist groups.
Zionist Congress Rejects Uganda
Seventh Zionist Congress votes against a national home for Jews anywhere but in Palestine. Other sites, including Uganda, had been previously considered.
Herzl Seeks Rhodes' Support
Theodor Herzl, founder of the modern Zionism movement, asks "the architect of apartheid" Cecil Rhodes for support.
First Zionist Congress
The First Zionist Congress is held in Basle, Switzerland. It articulates the goal of creating "for the Jewish people a home in Palestine secured by public law."