The emergence of Zionism among Jews in the late 19th and early 20th centuries led to an organized religious political movement that desired reestablishing a Jewish homeland. Many thousands immigrated, settling permanently or moving briefly before eventually returning home with their families.
During the Nazi reign, Zionists fleeing Europe during World War II found refuge in Palestine, and Arab resistance to Jewish settlement led many Jews on a journey that would define their future.
In 1947,the Arabs rejected the plan of the UN to partition Palestine into a Jewish and Arab state. In May 1948, Israel was officially declared an independent state with David Ben-Gurion as the prime minister, the head of the Jewish Agency.
With this historic victory for Jews it also Started of more violence with the Arabs. But five After this announcement, Arab nations immediately invaded, beginning what became known as The 1948 Arab-Israeli War, a civil war that would last until 1949 when an armistice agreement was signed by all sides involved with borders being established according to their desires at that time.
In the years following World War II, relations between Israel and Egypt were rocky. In 1956 Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser overtook British-French forces to nationalize what is now known as The Suez Canal, an important shipping waterway that connects the Red Sea with the Mediterranean sea. With help from the UK & France, Israeli army attacked the Sinai peninsula where they retook Suez Canal.
In 1967 Israel defeated Egypt, Jordan and Syria in six days In a surprise attack. After this, Israel took control of the Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank, and Golan Heights. Now these areas were considered “occupied” by Israel.
In 1973, Egypt and Syria hoped to catch the Israelis army off guard on Yom Kippur, but it didn’t work. They launched air attacks against Israel that went on for two weeks until UN peacekeepers stepped in to stop the war. Syria hoped to recapture the Golan Heights during this battle but was unsuccessful. In 1981, Israel acquired the Golan Heights, but Syria continued to claim it as territory.
In 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon and expelled the PLO. This organization started in 1964 with a goal to create an independent Palestinian state within its borders which Included all Arab citizens living there.
The occupation of Gaza and the West Bank lead to a 1987 Palestinian uprising that resulted in hundreds deaths.. The Oslo Peace Accords, which ended the Intifada and led to a peace process between Israel and its neighbors. After this, the Palestinian Authority took over some territories in Israel. In 1997, the Israeli army withdrew from parts of the West Bank.
In 2000, Palestinians also launched suicide bombs and other attacks on Israelis. This lasted for years, until it reached cease-fire. After that Israel announced a plan to remove all troops from the Gaza strip by the end of 2005.
The 2006 Lebanon War was an attack by Israel on its enemy, Hezbollah—a group of Shiites who gathers military strength in Lebanon. A UN-negotiated ceasefire ended the conflict a couple of months after it started.
