1917: The Balfour Declaration

The Balfour Declaration was a British government document written by Arthur James Balfour. It said that Britain would help to establish a Jewish homeland in Palestine, if Britain gained an ally in World War I. Palestine was under the control of the Ottoman Empire at the time. The effect of this event was that it led to controversy between the two nations on to whom the land belonged. This conflict has continued and is still being fought over today.

1948: Declaration of Israel as the Jewish State

The declaration was signed at the Tel Aviv Museum with the help of the United Nations. When Israel declared itself as the Jewish state, many of the Western nations were quick to recognize it as a country. However, most of the neighboring areas were not so thrilled at the presence of the new country and many refused to acknowledge its right to existence. This led to Israel being attacked, but Israel won and continues to be the Jewish state.

1964: Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) is Founded

In Cairo, Egypt an Arab summit meeting was held. People wanted an organization with the goal of the Palestinians once again returning to and controlling the area that Israel occupied. At this meeting, the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) was founded and members were nominated. After this meeting, the PLO worked to achieve their goal and started to resort to terrorism. They refused to admit that Israel was it's own nation.

1967: The Six-Day War

Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon joined their forces together to attack Israel. It was a short war, but it led to many important changes in the area. Despite the fact that the neighboring countries had formed an alliance, Israel won. As a result, they gained control over the West Bank,

Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula, Old City of Jerusalem, and Golan Heights. However, this later led to intifadas.

1979: Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty

In the capital of the United States, Washington D.C., on March 26, 1979 a peace treaty was signed by two forces that had been at war for over 30 years. The Egyptian president Anwar el-Sadat and Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin finally had come to a compromise, which was witnessed by the 39th president of the United States, Jimmy Carter. Israel was to withdraw from its occupation of the Sinai Peninsula and Egypt would let Israeli ships have use if the Suez Canal, and Egypt would recognize Israel as a country. There had been many talks of peace between the two nations before the peace treaty was signed, which made it official.

1981: Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat is Assassinated

On October 6, 1981 in Cairo, Egypt the leader of the land was killed. People had been opposed to the president's signing of a treaty with Israel. As a result, at a parade celebrating the anniversary of the crossing of the Suez Canal, Muslim fundamentalists attacked el-Sadat. His death led to Hosni Mubarak becoming president and the ruling of Egypt by martial law.

1993: Oslo Declaration of Principles

In Oslo, Norway in the September of that year, the Israel and PLO met to discuss working on future peace. Their ideas included that they would recognize the existence of the other side, Israel would withdraw its forced from the Gaza Strip, and they would work to make more treaties at a later date. Although there was much discussion, this did not lead straight to peace. In fact, the two sides did not follow the Declaration of Principles. It did lead to other attempts at peace.

1995: Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin is Assassinated

The prime minister was just about to leave a mass peace rally in Tel Aviv, Israel on November 4, 1995 when he was killed by a Jewish right-wing extremist. A monument was later erected at the site. His death hindered the peace movement greatly and led to an increase in violence. Also, the Likud gained power in the country.

1998: Wye River Plantation Talks

The talks between Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian president Yasser Arafat were held at Wye Plantation in Wye, Maryland. The agreement stated that Israel troops would have to leave part of the West Bank, Palestine would stop terrorists and stop advocating for destruction of Israel, and an international airport would be built on the Gaza Strip. The memorandum was signed in Washington D.C. on October 23, 1998. Not many of the conditions of the agreement were followed through on. The airport was built, but it was later closed. It was similar in the case of Israel leaving the West Bank. When there there was a disagreement, Israel reclaimed the area.

2003: Road Map for Peace

The Road Map for Peace was a plan that was proposed by United States president George W. Bush. The plan wanted an end to the conflict by 2005. The main idea of this peace talk was that there would be separate states. The United States, European Union, Russia, and the United Nations would supervise the progress of the movement. At first, this idea was widely accepted, but "road map" was never truly used due to the death of Arafat and the takeover of Hamas in Palestine.

2006: The Summer War (The Second Lebanon War)

This war was started because some Israeli soldiers were being held captive in Lebanon. A series of attacks followed on both sides, and it ended in a truce on August 14, 2006. Israel withdrew its troops. Hezbollah, in Lebanon, wanted more control over the government there because of its

part in the war. When Hezbollah did not gain any control, they decided to turn against the government.

2007: The Annapolis Conference

In November, at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland a conference was held to work on following the ideas from the Road Map for Peace in 2003 and the "Two-State Solution." There was an introduction of a three-state solution and discussion of the possibility of a shared Jerusalem there as well. In the end, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas had different opinions and disagreed.

2009: War in Gaza

In late 2008, Israel attacked Hamas in Gaza for "Operation Cast Lead." On January 19, 2009 Israel declared a cease-fire. Israel maintained its control over the air, sea, space, and borders.