ISRAEL THE JEWISH HOMELAND What makes Israel

ISRAEL THE JEWISH HOMELAND

What makes Israel Jewish? Jerusalem Western Wall Jewish laws Temple Mount

What makes Israel Jewish? Jerusalem Western Wall Israeli army Israelis Jewish laws Temple Mount Ultra-Orthodox

What makes Israel Jewish? History Ben Yehuda Street Jerusalem Western Wall Israeli army Desert Israelis Tel Aviv Jewish laws Temple Mount Dead Sea Ultra-Orthodox

Palestine The Palestinian Homeland

What makes Palestine Palestinian? Jerusalem Dome of the Rock al-Aqsa Mosque al-Haram al-Shareef

What makes Palestine Palestinian? Palestinians Christians Jerusalem Dome of the Rock al-Aqsa Mosque al-Haram al-Shareef Arabs Muslims

What makes Palestine Palestinian? Palestinians Christians Jerusalem Ramallah Dome of the Rock Bethlehem Gaza al-Aqsa Mosque al-Haram al-Shareef Arabs Hebron Muslims

The Palestinian-Israeli Conflict The al-Aqsa Intifada

By the end of 2000 an agreement to end the Palestinian-Israeli conflict was nearly reached. Only a few sticking points concerning the division of Jerusalem and the Palestinian right of return were left to be discussed.

“We were not prepared to relinquish three things: the security of Israel, those things that are holy to Israel, and the unity of the our People. If we will be faced with the alternative between compromising one of these and a confrontation, the choice is clear to every Israeli. ” -Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak following the failure at Camp David

September 28, 2000: Ariel Sharon visits the Temple Mount, a site holy to both Jews and Muslims. The Palestinians interpret the visit as a sign of aggression and begin throwing rocks at Sharon’s entourage. The Israeli police accompanying Sharon respond by firing rubber bullets at the crowd.

The al-Aqsa intifada (uprising) begins. . .

October 3, 2000: Mohammed Jamal al-Durah, a 12 year-old Palestinian boy, is shot and killed. His death is caught on video and replayed throughout the world.

November 2, 2000: A powerful car bomb explodes near Mahane Yehuda, a crowded outdoor market in the heart of Jerusalem, kills two Israeli Jews. 11 people are injured.

February 13, 2001: Israel begins targeting and killing the terrorist leaders of Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Arafat’s security forces.

“There must be a total cessation of violence before negotiations begin again. ” -Prime Minister Ariel Sharon

May 21, 2001: The Mitchell Committee, established after the October Palestinian-Israeli. US summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, releases its findings. It calls for: An immediate cease-fire n Confidence-building measures n A freeze on building Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip n The Palestinian Authority to stop Palestinian attacks in Israel n

June 13, 2001: CIA chief George Tenet brings together senior Israeli and Palestinian security officials to begin implementing a U. S. brokered truce the two sides have accepted.

June 22, 2001: Two Israeli soldiers are killed in an explosion in the Gaza Strip when a group of Palestinians lure them toward a booby-trapped jeep by calling for help. Elsewhere in Gaza, two Palestinian teenagers are critically wounded by Israeli fire. The Tenet cease-fire fails.

August 9, 2001: Hamas and Islamic Jihad orchestrate a massive terrorist attack on Sbarro pizzeria in downtown Jerusalem. 15 people are killed, 7 of which are children. 130 people are injured.

October 17, 2001: Members of a Palestinian terrorist organization assassinate Israeli Minister of Tourism, Rehavim Ze'evi. Ariel Sharon promptly orders a freeze on all diplomatic contacts with the Palestinians, and places full responsibility for the murder on Palestinian President Yassir Arafat.

October 24, 2001: In attacks responding to the assassination, Israeli soldiers kill at least fifteen Palestinians in overnight and early morning fighting, in one of the bloodiest days of the Palestinian uprising.

“Both sides have to decide that there is a solution which meets their vital interests, that does not permit them, after it is over, to say, I won and they lost. ” -President Clinton

"The greatest danger of all is that the culture of peace, nurtured over the previous decade, is being shattered. In its place, there is a growing sense of futility and despair, and a growing resort to violence. ” -Mitchell Committee Report

December 1, 2001: A suicide bomber on Ben Yehuda Street in downtown Jerusalem kills 11 people, all of whom are between 14 and 21. 188 people are injured.

Another car bomb is successfully timed to explode exactly when rescue vehicles arrive at the scene.

December 2, 2001: The following day, another suicide bomber attacks a bus in Haifa, killing 15 and injuring 40.

"I saw the driver of the bus, his face and body covered in blood. I heard people screaming in the bus. I will never forget it. " -Manal Masri, 32, an Arab resident of the mixed Arab-Jewish neighborhood where the explosion went off.

"A lot of people were crying, falling, and there was the smell of burning hair. " -Eli Shetreet, 19

“We cannot afford to fail. We must move beyond blame. ” -President Clinton

January 2002 The Israeli military intercepts the Karine A, a ship heading towards the Gaza Strip. The ship is caught carrying over 50 tons in weapons, including Katyusha rockets, rifles, mortar shells, mines, and anti-tank missiles. The captain of the ship is a member of the Palestinian Authority, with ties to Iran.

March 27, 2002: 29 Israelis are killed in a massive suicide attack at a Passover seder in a Netanya hotel.

March 29, 2002: The Israeli army enters major West Bank cities, including refugee camps, to capture the terrorists and to destroy their infrastructure in “Operation Defensive Shield. ” More than 23 Israeli soldiers are killed in the operation, over than 50 Palestinians are killed. Claims of a “massacre” in Jenin are unfounded.

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March 29, 2002 A female suicide bomber blows herself up in a supermarket in Jerusalem, killing a young 17 year-old Israeli girl and a security guard. 28 others are injured. The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade claims responsibility.

“When an 18 year old Palestinian girl is induced to blow herself up, and in the process kills a 17 year old Israeli girl, the future, itself, is dying. ” President George W. Bush

June 5, 2002 A car driven by a suicide bomber slams into Egged bus #830 as it travels between Tel Aviv and Tiberias. Seventeen Israelis are killed instantly.

July 22, 2002: The Israeli army kills Salah Shehade in Gaza, a known Hamas terrorist, by dropping a bomb on his home in Gaza. 15 Palestinian civilians are killed at the same time.

July 31, 2002: A bomb goes off at the Hebrew University cafeteria in Jerusalem. 9 people are dead, five of them American. One of the arrested suspects is an Arab from East Jerusalem who worked at the school.

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“For the sake of all humanity, things must change in the Middle East. ” President George W. Bush