Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Timeline | THE ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR 2025 -

Explore the history and important events behind the long-standing Middle East conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians from 1947 to today.

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COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS June 24, 2025

Smoke rises in Gaza following Israeli strikes on October 9, 2023.

Source: Mohammed Salem / Reuters

The conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians reflects a long-standing struggle in the region encompassing the land between the Jordan River to the east and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. That conflict has deep historical roots, shaped by statehood claims from the Israelis and the Palestinians that have been supported by various international agendas and activities over time.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict dates back more than a century, with flashpoints building from the United Nations 1947 initial UN Partition Plan to the 1973 Yom Kippur War, to the recent Israel-Hamas war sparked in October 2023.

Despite continued efforts at brokering peaceincluding the 1978 Camp David Accords, the Oslo Accords of the 1990s, and the 2020 Abraham Accordsconflict has persisted.

This timeline explores some of the pivotal moments in the conflict from 1947 to today.

November 29, 1947

Partition Plan UN

Jews celebrate the Partition Plan in Jerusalem on.

Universal History Archive

The UN General Assembly passes Resolution 181 calling for the partition of the Palestinian territories into two states, one Jewish and one Arab. The resolution also envisions an international, UN-run body to administer Jerusalem. The Palestinian territories had been under the military and administrative control of the United Kingdom (known as a mandate) since the 1917 defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I. Civil strife and violence between the Jewish and Arab communities of the Palestinian territories intensifies.

May 14, 1948

Israel Declares Independence

Israel declares its independence as the British rule ends. Sparked by Israel's declaration of independence, the first Arab-Israeli War begins. Egypt (supported by Saudi Arabian, Sudanese, and Yemeni troops), Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria invade Israel. The fighting continues until 1949, when Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria signarmisticeagreements.

Dec 11, 1948

UN Addresses Palestinian Displacement

Over the course of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, at least seven hundred thousand Palestinian refugees flee their homes in an exodus known to Palestinians as the nakba (Arabic for catastrophe). Israel wins the war, retaining the territory provided to it by the United Nations and capturing some of the areas designated for the imagined future Palestinian state. Israel gains control of West Jerusalem, Egypt gains the Gaza Strip, and Jordan gains the West Bank and East Jerusalem, including the Old City and its historic Jewish quarter. In 1948, the UN General Assembly passes Resolution 194, which calls for therepatriationof Palestinianrefugees. The Palestinians will later point to Resolution 194 as having established a right of return for Palestinian refugees and their descendants. The specific parameters of that return are debated in the decades that follow, including among many descendants from the 1948 refugees and the three hundred thousand Palestinians who will flee their homes during the June 1967 war.

Jun 5, 1967 - Jun 10, 1967

The Six-Day War

Israel and several of its Arab neighbors fight the Six-Day War. Israel wins a decisive victory: it suffers seven hundred casualties; its adversaries suffer nearly twenty thousand. Israel emerges with control of the West Bank and the Gaza Stripareas inhabited primarily by Palestiniansas we'll as all of East Jerusalem. Israel also takes control of Syrias Golan Heights and the Sinai Peninsula, which is part of Egypt. Israel will stay in the Sinai Peninsula until April 1982.

Nov 22, 1967

The UN Security Council meet in 1967.

The UN Security Council passes Resolution 242 calling for Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied in the recent conflict and for the termination of states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgement of thesovereignty, territorial integrity, and political independence of every state in the area and the right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries. The resolution establishes the concept ofland for peace.

Oct 3, 1973

The Yom Kippur War

Another Arab-Israeli war, known variously as the Yom Kippur War, the Ramadan War, and the October War, is fought when Egypt and Syria attempt to retake the Israeli-occupied Sinai Peninsula and Golan Heights.Cold Wartensions spike as theSoviet Unionaids Egypt and Syria and the United States aids Israel. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries begins an oilembargoon countries that support Israel, and the price of oil skyrockets. The fighting ends after a UN-sponsored ceasefire (negotiated by the United States and the Soviet Union) takes hold. The UN Security Council passes Resolution 338, which calls for implementing UN Security Council Resolution 242.

Sep 1, 1978

The Camp David Accords

Israel and Egypt sign the Camp David Accords, which establish a basis for a peace treaty between the two countries. The accords also commit the Israeli and Egyptian governments, along with other parties, to negotiate the disposition of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Mar 26, 1979

Israel Withdraws From the Sinai Peninsula

Egypt and Israel sign a peace treaty, the first between Israel and one of its Arab neighbors. The treaty commits Israel to withdraw from the Sinai Peninsula and evacuate its settlements there. The termination of the state of war between Egypt and Israel leads to the normalization of diplomatic and commercial relations between the two countries. Israel's prime minister and Egypt's president exchange letters reaffirming their commitmentoutlined in the Camp David Accordsto negotiate the disposition of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Dec 1, 1987

First Intifada

An Israeli driver kills four Palestinians in a car accident that sparks the first intifada, or uprising, against Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza. The image of Palestinians throwing rocks at Israeli tanks becomes the enduring image of the intifada. Over the next six years, roughly 200 Israelis and 1,300 Palestinians are killed.

A Palestinian cleric named Sheikh Ahmed Yassin establishes the militant group Hamas as an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood. Hamas endorsesjihadas a way to regain territory for Muslims; the United States designates Hamas a foreignterroristorganization in 1997.

Jul 31, 1988

Jordan Surrenders Claims on the West Bank and East Jerusalem

King Hussein of Jordan relinquishes his country's claims to the West Bank and East Jerusalem in favor of the claims of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). In December of the same year, PLO Chairman Yasir Arafat denounces violence, recognizes Israel's right to exist, and acknowledges UN Security Council Resolution 242 and the concept of land for peace. The United States responds to Arafats announcement by beginning direct talks with him, though it suspends the talks following a Palestinianterroristattack against Israel.

Oct 30, 1991

The Madrid Peace Conference

The Madrid Peace Conference begins, sponsored jointly by the United States and theSoviet Union. Israeli, Jordanian, Lebanese, Palestinian, and Syrian delegates attend the first negotiations among those parties. The talks proceed alongbilateraltracks between Israel and its neighbors, though the Lebanese join the Syrian delegation and the Jordanian team includes Palestinian representatives. Amultilateraltrack includes the wider Arab world and addresses regional issues. The talks last for two years without any breakthroughs.

Sep 13, 1993

The Oslo Accords

Secret negotiations in Norway result in the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements, also known as the Oslo Accords. Before the accords are signed, Israel and the PLO recognize each other in an exchange of letters. Israel and the PLO agree to the creation of the Palestinian Authority to temporarily administer the Gaza Strip and West Bank. Israel also agrees to begin withdrawing from parts of the West Bank, though large swaths of land and Israeli settlements remain under the Israeli militarys exclusive control. The Oslo Accords envision a peace agreement by 1999. Palestinian leader Arafat, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, and Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres win the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 for their efforts on the Oslo Accords.

May 4, 1994

The Gaza-Jericho Agreement

The Israelis and the Palestinians sign the Gaza-Jericho Agreement, which begins implementation of the Oslo Accords. The agreement provides for an Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza and Jericho, a town in the West Bank, and for a transfer of authority from Israeli administration to the newly formed Palestinian Authority. The agreement also establishes the structure and composition of the Palestinian Authority, its jurisdiction and legislative powers, a Palestinian police force, and relations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Arafat returns to the Gaza Strip after a long absence.

Oct 26, 1994

Israel and Jordan Sign a Peace Treaty

Sep 28, 1995

Oslo II Accord

Israel and Jordan sign a peace treaty, settling their territorial dispute and agreeing to future cooperation in sectors such as trade and tourism. This is Israel's second peace treaty with an Arab state. It accords special administrative responsibilities for Jerusalem's Muslim holy places to Jordan.

Israeli and Palestinian negotiators sign the Interim Agreement, sometimes called Oslo II. It gives the Palestinians control over additional areas of the West Bank and defines the security, electoral, public administration, and economic arrangements that will govern those areas until a final peace agreement is reached in 1999.

Jul 11, 2000 - Jul 25, 2000

Camp David Summit

President Bill Clinton hosts Israeli and Palestinian leaders for talks at Camp David. Reports indicate that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak is prepared to accept, among other things, Palestiniansovereigntyover some 91 percent of the West Bank and certain parts of Jerusalem. The deal would include a land swap in which some Israeli land would go to the Palestinians in compensation for the remaining 9 percent of the West Bank, which would go to Israel. Two weeks of intensive discussion, however, fails to produce an agreement. President Clinton blames Arafat for the failure. Before leaving office several months later, Clinton lays out proposals for both sides. Talks between them continue, but without success.

Sep 28, 2000

The Second Intifada

Israeli politicians, including Ariel Sharon, a controversial retired Israeli general, visit the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif. The Palestinians view the visit as an effort to change the status quo at the holy site. The ensuing demonstrations turn violent, marking the beginning of a second intifada. It will last until 2005 and be markedly more violent than the first intifada. Four thousand Palestinians and one thousand Israelis die.

Mar 27, 2002

The Passover Massacre

A terrorist attack kills thirty people at a Passover celebration at a hotel in the Israeli city of Netanya. As a result, the Israeli military reoccupies portions of the West Bank, including the city of Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority is located and where Arafat has his West Bank headquarters.

Jun 23, 2002

Israeli West Bank Barrier-Building Begins

Israel begins building a security barrier in the West Bank to protect Israeli cities and towns fromterroristattacks. The barrier, which is a wall in some stretches and a fence in others, is controversial because in places it cuts deep into West Bank territory to protect settlements. The Palestinians are cut off from Jerusalem, some Palestinian villages are sliced in half, and some Palestinians are unable to get to work or school as a result of the security barrier's path. Israel's Supreme Court forces changes in the barrier's route, but the barrier continues to impede Palestinian movement and commerce in certain areas.

Apr 30, 2003

Road Map for Peace

The Quartet, an informal group created to pursue Middle East peace comprising the United States, Russia, the United Nations, and theEuropean Union, puts forth a Road Map for Peace based on the outline President George W. Bush offered in his 2002 speech. The road map lays out a plan for peace based on Palestinian reforms and a cessation of terrorism in return for an end to Israeli settlements and a new Palestinian state.

Aug 15, 2005

Israeli Disengagement With Gaza

Israel begins aunilateralwithdrawal of settlers and military forces from the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military remains in control of Gaza's borders (except the Gaza-Egypt border, which is controlled by Egypt), airspace, and coastline. After Israel's withdrawal, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other smaller militant groups fire rockets from Gaza into southern Israel.

Jan 29, 2006

Hamas Expands Power in Gaza

Hamas defeats Fatah, a Palestinian political faction founded in 1950s which was a long-dominant faction within the PLO, in Palestinian elections. The United States and other countries suspend their aid to the Palestinian Authority because they consider Hamas to be aterroristorganization. Fatah and Hamas make a deal to govern the West Bank and Gaza Strip together. The deal quickly fails, and Hamas takes over the Gaza Strip in 2007.

Jun 25, 2006

Gilad Shalit Taken Hostage

Hamas operatives kidnap an Israeli soldier named Gilad Shalit on Israeli soil near the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military tries and fails to free him. He is held captive in Gaza until Israelwith the help of Egypt and the United Statesnegotiates his release in 2012.

Dec 27, 2008

Israel Attacks the Gaza Strip

Israel attacks the Gaza Strip following nearly eight hundred rocket attacks from Gaza on Israeli towns in the months of November and December. The war lasts less than a month but kills hundreds of civilians, in addition to hundreds of combatants, and sparks international criticism.

Jul 28, 2013

Negotiations Face Continued Hurdles

Secretary of State John Kerry seeks to restart final status negotiations. The process begins with the Israelis agreement to release 104 Palestinian prisoners and the Palestinians agreement not to use their new observer state status at the United Nations to advance the cause of statehood. Negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority collapsed in April 2014 over such issues as Israeli settlement growth, the status of a final round of prisoners, and Palestinian attempts to join several international organizations.

Apr 23, 2014

Tensions Between the PLO and Hamas

The PLO and Hamas sign an agreement to form a unity government. Tensions between the factions remain, however, and no unity government is formed. Gaza and the West Bank remain disconnected and under the control of rival Palestinian leaderships.

Jul 8, 2014 - Aug 26, 2014

Operation Protective Edge

After tit-for-tat attacks on Israeli and Palestinian civilians by extremists on both sides, Israel invades the Gaza Strip. The operation, code-named Protective Edge, lasts for fifty days, killing about two thousand Gazans, sixty-six Israeli soldiers, and five Israeli civilians. Unlike the conflicts from 2008 to 2009 and in 2012, Palestinian rocket fire targets major Israeli cities. The war ends after the United States, in consultation with Egypt, Israel, and other regional powers, brokers a ceasefire.

Dec 6, 2017

The U.S. Formally Recognizes Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel

Changing long-standing U.S. policy, U.S. President Donald Trump formally recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. He also pledges to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to that city, though the move is not set to occur immediately. Numerous foreign leaders, including those of Egypt, France, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the United Kingdom, along with UN Secretary-General Antnio Guterres, criticize the policy change. It also sparks protests and violence throughout East Jerusalem, Gaza, and the West Bank, as we'll as in Egypt, Iran, Iraq, and Jordan. In January 2018, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas declines to meet with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence during Pences trip to the region.

Mar 25, 2019

The U.S. Recognizes Israeli Sovereignty Over the Golan Heights

The Trump administration recognizes Israelisovereigntyover the Golan Heights, which Israel had formally annexed from Syria in 1981. The United States is the first country other than Israel to recognize Israel's sovereigntyover the territory.

Jan 28, 2020

Trump Administration Launches Proposed Peace Plan

Trump unveils his administrations proposed Israeli-Palestinian peace plan, crafted by U.S. and Israeli diplomats without Palestinian input. The plan calls for a two-state solution with significant economic aid to the Palestinians. Many analysts criticize the plan as being one sided, stipulating impossible requirements for Palestinian statehood and paving the way for Israeliannexationof the West Bank. Palestinian authorities reject the plan immediately. Following the plans announcement, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announces Israel's plan to annex portions of the West Bank as outlined in Trumps proposal.

Sep 15, 2020

Relations between Some Arab Countries and Israel Normalize

Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates agree to normalize diplomatic relations with Israel, becoming the first Arab countries to do so in over twenty-five years. In return, Israel announces the suspension of its plans to annex territory in the West Bank. Morocco and Sudan subsequently also sign on to the agreement and normalize relations with Israel.

2021 Israel-Hamas Crisis

Evictions of Palestinians in East Jerusalem and clashes at al-Aqsa Mosque spark conflict between Israel and Hamas. Over two hundred people in Gaza and at least ten in Israel die. The Joe Biden administration helps mediate a truce and restores some U.S. aid and diplomatic contact with the Palestinians.

2022

Deadly Year in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Israel launches acounterterrorismoperation in the West Bank in response to attacks by Palestinians against Jewish Israelis. The operation and resulting resurgence contribute to the deadliest year for both sides since 2005, an uptick in violence that only turned out to rise in 2023.

Oct 7, 2023

Hamas and Other Palestinian Armed Groups Launch a Surprise Attack on Israel

Hamas, supported by other Palestinian armed groups, launches an unprecedented surprise attack on Israel, leading to an explosion of violence. According to the Israeli government, the attack kills approximately 1,200 people, most of them civilians. Militants also take over two hundred hostages. It is the deadliest attack in Israel's history. Israel responds by launching a deadly counter offensive aiming to eradicate Hamas in Gaza. International bodies, including the International Criminal Court and International Court of Justice, have since launched investigations into both Israeli and Hamas officials for violations ofinternational law. Both parties reject those claims.

Sep 17, 2024 - Nov 27, 2024

Israel Expands Operations Into Lebanon

Nearly a year after the October 7 attacks, tensions escalate between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which has expressed support for Hamas in Gaza and has historically received support from Iran. Hezbollah had been exchanging aerial attacks with Israel since October 7. But the conflict escalates in September after Israel launches a coordinated attack against Hezbollah operatives using explosive pager devices. In the following weeks, Israel launches a series of aerial attacks that kill the groups longtime leader as we'll as other senior Hezbollah members. Then, in October, Israeli forces mount a ground invasion in Southern Lebanon aimed at dismantling the group. In support of Hezbollah, Iran launches over 150 ballistic missiles at Israel, raising fears of escalation into a wider regional war. Israel and Hezbollah agree to a ceasefire in late November, although sporadic attacks continue in its wake.

Jan 2025 - Mar 2025

Cease-fire agreement proves short-lived

The Israeli government and Hamas agree to acease-fire, which takes effect in January 2025. Under the terms of the ceasefire, Hamas begins releasing hostages, while Israel releases Palestinian prisoners in exchange. Israel also agrees to allow humanitarian aid through to address the dire humanitarian situation for residents in Gaza. The ceasefire initially lays out a path toward the full end of the war. However, within months, both sides begin accusing each other of violating the terms of the agreement. In March, Israel launches renewed airstrikes and blocks aid and energy going into Gaza, and in May, it renews full-scale ground operations. Meanwhile, ongoing attempts to mediate a new ceasefire agreement remain unsuccessful. After more than a year of fighting, Israel and Hamas remain in conflict. Nearly 60,000 Palestinians have been killed, many of them civilians. Over fifty Israeli hostages are still held by Hamas.