Al-Aqsa Intifada: Encyclopedia II - Al-Aqsa Intifada - Timeline

Al-Aqsa Intifada - Timeline

Al-Aqsa Intifada - 2000

On September 27, Sgt. David Biri (Information from Israeli government) was killed; Israeli sources typically view this as the start of the Intifada.

On September 28, the Israeli opposition leader Ariel Sharon visited in the Temple Mount (called Har HaBayit in Hebrew, Al-Haram As-Sharif in Arabic) in the Old City of Jerusalem, the holiest site for Judaism, the third holiest site in Islam, and a place of special significance to Christianity. The pretext for Sharon's visit was to check complaints by archeologists that Muslim religious authorities had vandalized archeological remains beneath the surface of the mount during the conversion of Solomon's Stables into a mosque.

Sharon's impending visit was officially announced and approved in advance, though prior to it some moderates on both sides protested, because of his controversial political stance. He was warned that this could lead to riots but Sharon declared that he went to the site with a message of peace. His visit was condemned by the Palestinians as a provocation and an incursion, as was his over 1,000 strong armed bodyguard that arrived on the scene with him.

On September 29, 2000, the day after Sharon's visit, following Friday prayers, large riots broke out around Old Jerusalem during which several Palestinians were shot dead. Already in the same day, the September 29, 2000, demonstrations and riots broke out in the West Bank. In the days that followed, demonstrations erupted all over the West Bank and Gaza.

Also on September 29, 2000, in the West Bank city of Qalqilya, a Palestinian police officer working with Israeli police on a joint patrol opened fire and killed his Israeli counterpart Supt. Yosef Tabeja, a Israel Border Police officer.

On October 12, two Israeli reservists who entered Ramallah were arrested by the PA police (because the soldiers were dressed in civilian clothes and one was reportedly wearing a Palestinian headdress, they were suspected of belonging to an undercover Israeli assassination squad). An agitated Palestinian mob stormed the police station, beat the soldiers to death, and threw their mutilated bodies into the street. The killings were captured on video by an Italian TV crew and broadcast on TV; the famous picture of one member of the mob waving his blood-stained hands from the window shocked and outraged many around the world, and became another iconic image. [7]

In response, Israel launched a series of retaliatory air strikes against the Palestinian Authority. The violence quickly escalated and in the first six days of the Intifada, 61 Palestinians were killed and 2,657 were injured by the Israeli Military and Police.

In October, Israeli Arabs, citizens of Israel, started violent riots in which main roads (such as Wadi Ara road) were blocked while banks and stores were set on fire and Jewish civilians were assaulted by the Arab rioters. The Israeli Police reacted by sending crowd-control units to try to break up the riots. Jan Bechor, an Israeli civilian from Rishon LeZion was stoned to death by an Arab mob near Jisr Az-Zarqa. Policemen opened fire with rubber-coated bullets and later with live ammunition on the rioters, and snipers were deployed. Twelve Israeli-Arabs and one Palestinian were killed by police fire. Following the use of snipers, the riots were suppressed and order was restored.

Following the riots, there was a high degree of tension between Jewish and Arab citizens and distrust between the Arab citizens and police. An investigation committee, headed by Supreme Court Justice Theodor Or, reviewed the violent riots and found that the police were poorly prepared to handle such riots and charged major officers with bad conduct. The Or Commission reprimended Prime Minister Ehud Barak and recommended Shlomo Ben-Ami (then the Internal Security Minister) not serve again as Minister of Public Security. The committee also blamed Arab leaders and Knesset members for contributing to inflaming the atmosphere and making the violence more severe.

Al-Aqsa Intifada - 2001

Ariel Sharon from the Likud ran against Ehud Barak from the Labour party and Sharon was elected Israeli prime minister in February, 2001 in the 2001 special election to the prime ministership.

On May 7, 2001, the IDF naval commandos captured the vessel Santorini, which sailed in international waters towards Palestinian Authority-controlled Gaza. The ship was laden with weaponry. The Israeli investigation that followed alleged that the shipment had been purchased by Ahmed Jibril's Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command (PFLP-GC). The ship's value and that of its cargo was estimated at $10 million. The crew was reportedly planning to unload the cargo of weapons filled barrels — carefully sealed and waterproofed along with their contents — at a prearranged location off the Gaza coast, where the Palestinian Authority would recover them.

On June 1, 2001, a Hamas suicide bomber detonated himself in the Tel Aviv coastline Dolphinarium dancing club. 21 Israelis, most of them high school students, were killed. The attack significantly hampered American attempts to negotiate cease-fire.

Al-Aqsa Intifada - 2002

In January 2002 the IDF Shayetet-13 naval commando captured the Karine A, a large boat carrying weapons from Iran presumably intended to be used by Palestine militants against Israel. It was discovered that top officials in the Palestinian Authority were involved in the smuggling. Israel claims that Yasser Arafat also was involved, a claim accepted by the Bush Administration.

A spate of suicide bombings launched against Israel elicited a military response. A suicide bombing dubbed the Passover Massacre (30 Israeli civilians were killed at Park hotel, Netanya) climaxed a bloody month of April 2002 (more than 130 Israelis, mostly civilians, killed in attacks). Israel launched Operation Defensive Shield. The operation led to the apprehension of many members of militant groups, as well as their weaponry and equipment.

The UN estimated that 497 Palestinians were killed and 1,447 wounded during the IDF reoccupation of Palestinian areas between 1 March through 7 May and in the immediate aftermath. An estimated 70-80 Palestinians, including approximately 50 civilians, were killed in Nablus. Four IDF soldiers were killed there. [8]

Especially fierce battles took place at the Jenin refugee camp: 32 Palestinian militants, 22 Palestinian civilians, and 23 Israeli soldiers were killed in the fighting. The battle remains a flashpoint for both sides, due to initial allegations of a massacre of hundreds of Palestinians that surfaced during the IDF's operations in the camp. These allegations were disproved by international agencies that placed the actual death toll at below 55.

In late April 2 to May 10, a stand-off developed between armed Fatah militants, who sought refuge at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, and the IDF. Despite the Code of Conduct demanding respect for holy sites, IDF snipers killed 7 people inside the church and wounded more than 40 people, the vast majority unarmed civilians. The stand-off was resolved by the deportation of 13 Palestinian militants to Europe and the IDF ended its 38 day siege of the church.

Al-Aqsa Intifada - 2003

Following an Israeli intelligence report claiming to prove that Arafat paid $20,000 to Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, the USA demanded democratic reforms in the Palestinian Authority, as well the appointment of a prime minister independent of Arafat. Following U.S. pressure, Arafat appointed on 13 March 2003 the moderate Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) as Palestinian prime minister.

Following the appointment of Abbas, the U.S. administration promoted the Road Map for Peace — the Quartet's plan to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by disbanding militant organizations, ending the Israeli occupation and establishing a democratic and peaceful Palestinian state. The first phase of the plan demanded that the PA suppress guerrilla and terrorist attacks and confiscate illegal weapons. Unable or unwilling to confront militant organizations and risk civil war, Abbas tried to reach a temporary cease-fire agreement with the militant factions and asked them to halt attacks on Israeli civilians.

On May 20, 2003, Israeli naval commandos intercepted another vessel, Abu Hassan, on course to the Gaza Strip from Lebanon. It was loaded with rockets, weapons, and ammunition. Eight crew members on board were arrested including a senior Hezbollah member.

In June 2003, a so-called Hudna (truce) was unilaterally declared by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which declared a ceasefire and halt to all attacks against Israel for a period of 45 days. The following month was relatively quiet on the Israeli side although several suicide bombings were committed against Israeli civilians. However, little changed in the everyday lives of Palestinians. Few roadblocks were removed (159 were left in the West Bank alone), and the IDF continued its policy of "targeted killings" (assassinations) in addition to crowd dispersal and demolitions.

One of the more provocative raids was when tanks and APCs invaded a refugee camp outside Nablus, killing four people, two of whom were militants. According to Palestinian witnesses, a squad of Israeli police disguised as Palestinian labourers opened fire on Abbedullah Qawasameh as he left a Hebron mosque [9]. YAMAM, the Israeli counter-terrorism police unit which performed the operation, claimed that Qawasemah opened fire on them as they attempted to arrest him.

On August 19, Hamas coordinated a suicide bombing attack on a crowded bus in Jerusalem killing 23 Israeli civilians, including 7 children. Hamas claimed it was a retaliation for the killing of 5 Palestinians (including Hamas leader Abbedullah Qawasameh) earlier in the week. U.S. and Israeli media outlets frequently refer to bus bombings shattering the quiet and bringing an end to the ceasefire but given the higher number of Palestinian deaths at the hands of Israeli forces, Palestinians perceive that these reports reflect a lack of concern for their peace and quiet.

Following the Hamas bus attack, Israeli Defence Forces were ordered to kill or capture all Hamas leaders in Hebron and the Gaza Strip. The plotters of the bus suicide bombing were all captured or killed and Hamas leadership in Hebron was badly damaged by the IDF. Strict curfews were enforced in Nablus, Jenin, and Tulkarem; the Nablus lockdown lasted for over 100 days. In Nazlet 'Issa, over 60 shops were destroyed by Israeli civil administration bulldozers, in what was described by locals as a scene that rivaled a natural disaster. The Israeli civil administration explained that the shops were demolished because they were built without a permit. Palestinians consider Israeli military curfews and property destruction to constitute collective punishment against innocent Palestinians. [10]

Unable to rule effectively under Arafat, Abbas resigned in September 2003. Ahmed Qurei (Abu Ala) was appointed to replace him. The Israeli government gave up hope for negotiated settlement to the conflict and pursued a unilateral policy of physically separating Israel from Palestinian communities by beginning construction on the Israeli West Bank barrier. Israel claims the barrier is necessary to prevent Palestinian attackers from entering Israeli cities. Palestinians claim the barrier separates Palestinian communities from each other and that the construction plan is a defacto annexation of Palestinian territory.

Following an October 4 suicide bombing in Maxim restaurant, Haifa, which claimed the lives of 21 Israelis, Israel claimed that Syria and Iran sponsor Islamic Jihad and Hizbullah and were responsible for the terrorist attack. Days after the Maxim massacre, IAF warplanes bombed a terrorist training base at Ein-Saheb, Syria.

Al-Aqsa Intifada - 2004

In response to a repeated shelling of Israeli communities with Qassam rockets and mortar shells from Gaza, the IDF operated mainly in Rafah — to search and destroy smuggling tunnels used by militants to obtain weapons, ammunition, fugitives, cigarettes, car parts, electrical goods, foreign currency, gold, drugs and cloth from Egypt. Between September 2000 and May 2004, ninety tunnels connecting Egypt and the Gaza Strip were found and destroyed. [11] Raids in Rafah left many families homeless. Israel's official stance is that their houses were captured by militants and were destroyed during battles with IDF forces. Many of these houses are abandoned due to Israeli incursions and later destroyed. According to Human Rights Watch, over 1500 houses were destroyed to create a large buffer zone in the city, many "in the absence of military necessity", displacing around sixteen thousand people. [12]

Some residents acknowledge the smuggling tunnels as the main factor in the unrest and destruction in Rafah, according to the Israeli newspaper Maariv:

Some accounts reflect a more common sentiment. [15] [16] [17].

"Mine is the last home in the street now and it's everything we have," said Abu Alouf, a resident who has watched her neighbors' houses destroyed one by one. "I have begged them not to destroy it. They know there are no tunnels here but I don't think it is about that at all. Do they really believe that every house in my street had a tunnel under the border?"

"It's not a matter of tunnels or terrorists," said Yusuf Ashair, a man made homeless in Block J. "They want us out of here, they want us to flee. They don't care if it's a school or a house they destroy. They know that if they destroy it all, people will leave."

On 2 February 2004, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced his plan to transfer all the Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip. The Israeli opposition dismissed his announcement as "media spin" but the Israeli Labour Party said it would support such a move. Sharon's right-wing coalition partners Mafdal and National Union rejected the plan and vowed to quit the government if it were implemented. Surprisingly, Yossi Beilin, peace advocate and architect of the Oslo Accords and the Geneva Initiative, also rejected the proposed withdrawal plan. He claimed that withdrawing from the Gaza Strip without a peace agreement would reward terror.

Following the declaration of the disengagement plan by Ariel Sharon and as a response to suicide attacks on Erez Crossing and Ashdod seaport (10 people were killed), the IDF launched a series of armored raids on the Gaza Strip (mainly Rafah and refugee camps around Gaza), killing about 70 Hamas militants. On March 22, 2004, an Israeli helicopter gunship killed Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin and on April 17, after several failed attempts by Hamas to avenge Yassin's death, his successor, Abed al-Aziz Rantissi was killed by IDF helicopter gunship strike.

The fighting in Gaza Strip escalated severely in May 2004 after several failed attempts to attack Israeli checkpoints such as Erez crossing and Karni crossing. However, on May 11 and May 12, Palestinian militants destroyed two IDF M-113 APCs, killing 13 soldiers and mutilating their bodies. The IDF launched two raids to recover the bodies in which about 20-40 Palestinians were killed and great damage was caused to structures in the Zaitoun neigbourhood in Gaza and in south-west Rafah.

Subsequently, on May 18 the IDF launched Operation Rainbow with a stated aim of striking the terror infrastructure of Rafah, destroying smuggling tunnels, and stopping a shipment of SA-7 missiles and improved anti-tank weapons. The operation ended after the IDF killed 40 alleged Palestinian militants and 12 civilians and demolished about 45-56 structures. The great destruction and killing of 10 peaceful protestors led to a worldwide outcry against the operation. See further discussion in Operation Rainbow.

On September 29, after a Qassam rocket hit the Israeli town of Sderot and killed two Israeli children, the IDF launched Operation Days of Penitence in the north of the Gaza Strip. The operation's stated aim was to remove the threat of Qassam rockets from Sderot and kill the Hamas militants launching them. The operation ended on October 16 after Israeli forces killed an estimated 104-133 Palestinians, including 62-87 militants and 18-31 children. The operation brought footage of an Israeli commander killing Iman_Darweesh_Al_Hams at close range, which led to sharp criticism of the IDF. [18] [19] [20] (See Media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.) According to Palestinian medics, Israeli forces killed at least 62 militants and 42 other Palestinians believed to be civilians.[21] According to a count performed by Haaretz, 87 combatants and 42 non-combatants were killed. Palestinian refugee camps were heavily damaged by the Israeli assault. The IDF announched that at least 12 Qassam launchings had been thwarted and many terrorists hit during the operation. Three Israelis also were killed (1 civilian).

On October 21, the Israeli Air Force killed Adnan al-Ghoul, a senior Hamas bombmaker and the inventor of the Qassam rocket.

On November 11, Yasser Arafat died in Paris.

Escalation in Gaza began amid the visit of Mahmoud Abbas to Syria in order to achieve a Hudna between Palestinian factions and convince Hamas leadership to halt attacks against Israelis. Hamas vowed to continue the armed struggle, while numerous Qassam rockets hit open fields near Nahal Oz and an anti-tank missile hit a kindergarten in Kfar Darom.

On December 9 five weapon smugglers were killed and two were arrested in the border between Rafah and Egypt. Later that day, Jamal Abu Samhadana and two of his bodyguards were injured by a missile strike. In the first Israeli airstrike against militants in weeks, an unmanned Israeli drone plane launched one missile at Abu Samahdna's car as it traveled between Rafah and Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. It was the fourth attempt on Samhadana's life by Israel. AP. Samhadana is one of two leaders of the Popular Resistance Committees and one of the main forces behind the smuggling tunnels. Samhadana is believed to be responsible for the blast against an American diplomatic convoy in Gaza that killed three Americans.

On December 10, in response to Hamas firing mortar rounds into the Neveh Dekalim settlement in the Gaza Strip and wounding four Israelis (including an 8 year old boy), Israeli soldiers fired at the Khan Younis refugee camp (the origin of the mortars) killing a 7-year-old girl. An IDF source confirmed troops opened fire at Khan Younis, but said they aimed at Hamas mortar crews. The IDF insisted that it does its utmost to avoid civilian casualties. AP Haaretz.

The largest attack since the death of Yasser Arafat claimed the lives of five Israeli soldiers on December 12, wounding ten others. Approximately 1.5 tons of explosives were detonated in a tunnel under an Israeli military-controlled border crossing on the Egyptian border with Gaza near Rafah, collapsing several structures and damaging others. The explosion destroyed part of the outpost and killed three soldiers. Two Palestinian militants then penetrated the outpost and killed two other Israeli soldiers with gunfire. It is believed that Hamas and a new Fatah faction, the "Fatah Hawks," conducted the highly organized and coordinated attack. A spokesman, "Abu Majad," claimed responsibility for the attack in the name of the Fatah Hawks claiming it was in retaliation for "the assassination" of Yasser Arafat, charging he was poisoned by Israel. [22]

Al-Aqsa Intifada - 2005

Palestinian presidential elections were held on January 9, and Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) was elected as the president of the PA. Although Abbas called militants to halt attacks against Israel, he promised them he'll protect them from Israeli incursions and will not force them to disarm. Colin Powell and Israeli officials expressed concern over Abbas's election rhetoric and pictures taken of him with armed al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades activists.

However, hopes sharply decreased after violence continued in the Gaza Strip, reaching its height on Thursday the 13th, as six Israelis were killed by suicide bombers at the Karni crossing on the edge of the Gaza Strip. In reaction to the bombing, Ariel Sharon froze all diplomatic and security contacts with the Palestinian Authority. Spokesman Assaf Shariv declared that "Israel informed international leaders today that there will be no meetings with Abbas until he makes a real effort to stop the terror". The freezing of contacts came less than one week after Mahmoud Abbas was elected, and the day before his inauguration . Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, confirming the news, declared "You cannot hold Mahmoud Abbas accountable when he hasn't even been inaugurated yet". [23][24]

Following international pressure and Israeli threat of wide military operation in the Gaza Strip, Abbas ordered Palestinian police to deploy in the Northern Gaza to prevent Qassam and mortar shelling over Israeli settlement. Although attacks on Israeli have not stopped completely they have decreased sharply. Notable violent events were the killing of a Palestinian in Rafah (by Palestinian fire) which followed with Hamas shelling Israeli settlements as a "revenge"; serveral infilitration attempts by Palestinian terrorists; and the arrest of a 15-year-old Palestinian with explosive belt in Nablus checkpoint. Palestinian policemen started to act against the smuggling tunnels in Rafah.

After Sharon was convinced that Abbas was determined to stop terrorism, he agreed to meet him at a peace summit at Sharm al-Sheikh. Israel said it would release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners as a goodwill gesture, but not prisoners with "blood on their hands". However, Palestinians demanded that at least three pre-Oslo convicted murderers be released. Israel should also start moving cities in the West Bank to Palestinian responsibility, provided they will stop attacks from them.

On February 8, 2005, at the Sharm el-Sheikh Summit of 2005, Sharon and Abbas declared a mutual truce between Israel and the Palestinian National Authority. They shook hands at a four-way summit which also included Jordan and Egypt at Sharm al-Sheikh. However, Hamas and Islamic Jihad said the truce is not binding for their members. Israel has not withdrawn its demand to dismantle terrorist infrastructure before moving ahead in the Road Map for Peace. [25]

Many warned that truce is a fragile, and progress must be done slowly while observing that the truce and quiet are kept. On February 9-February 10 night, a barrage of 25-50 Qassam rockets and mortar shells hit Neve Dekalim settlement, and another barrage hit at noon. Hamas said it was in retaliation for an attack in which one Palestinian was killed near an Israeli settlement. [26]. As a response to the mortar attack, Abbas ordered the Palestinian security forces to stop such attacks in the future. He also fired senior commanders in the Palestinian security apparatus. [27] On February 10 afternoon Israeli security forces arrested Maharan Omar Shucat Abu Hamis, a Palestinian resident of Nablus, who was about to launch a bus suicide bombing in the French Hill in Jerusalem. [28]

A major shift occurred on February 13, 2005, as Abbas entered talks with the leaders of the Islamic Jihad and the Hamas, for them to rally behind him and respect the truce. Ismail Haniyah, a senior leader of the group Hamas said that "its position regarding calm will continue unchanged and Israel will bear responsibility for any new violation or aggression". Abbas so far been able to make things quiet and it could very well be a new hope for a lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace.

May and June saw a sharp increase in Palestinian attacks. In Nablus and Jenin, many Palestinian youth were caught carrying explosives - either as suicide bombers or as couriers. In the Gaza Strip, Palestinian factions such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Popular Resistance Committees commited attacks on IDF outposts and Israeli settlements almost daily. On the middle of June, Palestinian factions intensified bombardment over the city of Sderot (outside the Gaza Strip) with improvised Qassam rockets. Palestinian attacks in May through June 20 resulted in 2 Palestinians and a Chinese killed by a Qassam and 2 Israelis killed by anti-tank missile and car ambush. The wave of terror attacks lessen support for the disengagement plan among the Israeli public. Attacks on Israel by the Islamic Jihad and the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades increased on July, and reached the peak on July 12, when a suicide bombing hit the coastal city of Netanya, killing 5 people. On July 14, Hamas started to shell Israeli settlements inside and outside the Gaza Strip with dozen of Qassam rockets, killing an Israeli woman. This was too much for the Israeli restraint policy. There was also fear that the terror would render the disengagement plan impossible. On July 15 Israel resumed its "targeted killing" policy, killing 7 Hamas militants and bombing about 4 Hamas facilities. The continuation of shelling rockets over Israeli settlements, and fatal street battles between Hamas militants and Palestinian policemen, threaten to shatter the truce agreed in the Sharm el-Sheikh Summit of 2005. The Israeli Defence Force also started to build-up armored forces around the Gaza Strip in response to the shelling.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Timeline", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki