The year 2001,
Israeli elections, Barak out, Sharon in,
Ariel Sharon starts out with hard-line view,
Palestinian government on verge of economic collapse,
Sharon and Israel perform retalitory attacks on Palestinians headquarters, the Bush adminsitration criticized the attack,
Israel attacks Syria's radar for aiding guerrillas,
Pope goes to Syria, whose president tries to get Christians and Muslim to join together against Israel,
22-member Arab League tries to flex muscle against Israel,
U.S. CIA-brokered 11-day cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinians is accepted,
U.S. blames Muslim extremists for terrorist attacks on World Trade Center and Pentagon,
U.N. envoy assist both sides in peace efforts, terrorist hunt begins, terrorist hide.

• 1/21/2001 - Barak, facing loss offers voters 'truth' - Leader says Israel must discard illusions - by The Associated Press.
      Jerusalem -- Barak now hopes the "painful truth" will get him re-elected, and he is telling Israelis that it's time to discard illusions - that for peace, Israel must give up more than 90% of the West Bank and parts of Jerusalem, dismantle settlements and negotiate with the Palestinians even under fire.    Barak believes the fighting was an inevitable endgame of tough negotiations.    Let's do not forget that the 1.2 million Israeli Arabs who helped propel him to victory in 1999 are now outraged, and may replace him with Shimon Peres.
      Israelis look set to turn hawkish again by electing the Likud Party's Ariel Sharon in their Feb. 6 vote.    Sharon claims he will bring peace and security to Israel.
• 1/21/2001 - Palestinians' offer for talks accepted by The Associated Press.
      Barak and his top ministers accepted Palestinian proposals to hold marathon peace negotiations in Egypt in an effort to reach a deal before Israel's Feb. 6 elections.    Israeli Shimon Peres and Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami also would be guiding the talks.    These talks focus on the outgoing Clinton peace proposals, which call for a Palestinian state in the Gaza Strip, 95% of the West Bank and Arab areas of Jerusalem.    The refugee issue, Jerusalem, security arrangements and division of water sources would be on the table in Egypt.
• 2/7/2001 - Sharon easily wins Israeli election - Barak gives up party leadership, parliament seat - by New York Times and AP.
      Jerusalem -- Ariel Sharon won a landslide victory over Ehud Barak, the prime minister whose peace hopes were dashed by some of the worst Israeli-Palestinian bloodletting in decades.    Sharon wants to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
      Palestinian negotiators said Sharon's hard-line program for talks is a "recipe for war."
• 2/8/2001 - Sharon says Jerusalem is Israel's forever; aides reassure Palestinians by Karin Laub, The Associated Press.
      Jerusalem -- Ariel Sharon pledged in a visit to Judaism's Western Wall that Jerusalem will remain in Israeli hands forever.    Sharon's promise, delivered the day after his decisive election victory of Barak, ran directly counter to a key Palestinian demand for control over Jerusalem's walled Old City and its holy shrines.    Sharon's aides portrayed him as a pragmatist the Palestinians will be able to deal with.    Sharon is willing to carry out territorial concessions in the West Bank and even dismantle some settlements.
      Palestinians said they would not contemplate any Israeli proposals short of Barak's most recent offer - a Palestinians state in virtually all of the West Bank and Gaza Strip and parts of Jerusalem.    Sharon has ruled out such concessions and said he won't begin talks until violence ends.
      Arafat called for negotiations to resume from the point at which they left off.    Arafat's Fatah movement demanded he not resume talks until Sharon is out of power.
      Sharon is serious about reaching a peace deal.
• 3/4/2001 - Powell joins critics of Israel's hold on Palestinian economy by The Associated Press.
      Washington -- It's nothing new for Israel to hear accusations that its siege of the Palestinian economy is a hinderance to peace.    Secretary of State Colin Powell's linkage of the recent unprecedented Palestinian economic devastation to the increase in Palestinian violence was a new voice echoing a long-standing claim: You can't nurture peace in fallow ground.    Because of Israeli tanks blocking roads into the West Bank, people become frustrated, not able to get to their jobs, this leads to anger, and then anger to violence.    Israel's economic warfare may limit violence, but may cause chaos later.    The Palestinian economy is on the brink of collapsing and is being engulfed by gang rule.    These persons may become recruits for Islamic militants.    The World Bank had to grant a loan to counter severe economic shock.    Israel is interested in economic success as a design for peace, but security is paramount.    Israel does not want 130,000 Palestinians to enter if they intend to attack innocent Israeli citizens.    Israel does not feel responsible for the collapse of an economy run by a Palestinian government that is profoundly corrupt.
• 3/8/2001 - Sharon sworn in as Israeli prime minister - Cabinet expanded to the point where a new table is built - by The Washington Post.
      Jerusalem -- At 73, Ariel Sharon, the nationalist former general who fought or led troops in all Israel's major wars, became the country's 11^th prime minister.    Sharon presented his government as a broad alliance of dovish, hawkish and religious forces from seven parties that he said will fortify the nation.
• 3/29/2001 - Israel attacks Palestinians headquarters in Gaza - Suicide bomber kills two Jewish seminary students - by Ibrahim Barzak, The Associated Press.
      Gaza City, Gaza Strip -- Israeli helicopters rocketed headquarters of Force 17, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's elite guard, in Gaza and the West Bank town of Ramallah, retaliating for a wave of bombings, including a suicide attack that killed two Israeli teens.
      Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has repeatedly accused Force 17 of attacks against Israeli civilians, and the Palestinian militant group Hamas claimed responsibility for both suicide bombings.    Israel claims Arafat has released hundreds of Islamic militants from prison in recent months to add to the issue.    Since the uprising, 443 people have been killed, including 362 Palestinians, 62 Israeli Jews and 19 others.
      The Bush administration criticized the attack and said the use of force cannot end the conflict.
• 3/30/2001 - Arafat: Israel raids won't stop uprising - 3 Palestinians die in renewed clashes after copter attack - by The Associated Press.
      Jerusalem -- Returning from a two-day Arab summit in Jordan, a defiant Yasser Arafat dismissed Israeli helicopter raids and warned that the Palestinian uprising would press ahead.    In renewed clashes, three Palestinians were killed.   
• 3/30/2001 - Bush tells Arafat, Palestinians to end the violence by The Associated Press.
      Washington -- President Bush pledged to help end the Mideast violence, by telling the Palestinians to stop their killing and urging restraint from the Israeli military.    But he said he won't try to force a peace settlement in the Middle East.    Bush was midly critical of Israel's retalitory strike, since they have the right to self-defense.    He stated there will be no talks until Arafat speaks out against the violence, and Israel exercises restraint.
• 4/17/2001 - Syria says Israel will pay for air strike by Dan Perry, The Associated Press.
      Jerusalem -- Israel signaled a new tougher policy in dealing with guerrilla attacks in Lebanon after sending warplanes to attack a Syrian radar position.    Syria warned that Israel would pay a "heavy price for escalating the violence.    This heightened tensions between Syria and Israel stoked fears that fighting could intensify on a new front.
      Israel rejected a Jordanian ministers Arab peace initiative to end fighting in the West Bank and Gaza.    The attack on a Syrian target was meant to show that Israel will now hold Syria directly responsible for reining in Lebanese guerrillas and ensuring quiet on Israel's northern border.    Syria's army is cash-strapped and technologically far behind Israel's, so confrontation is expected.    This is the first such challenge for Syrian President Bashar Assad.
• 5/6/2001 - Syria's president greets pope with call to unite against Israel - John Paul II urges peace and tolerance - by New York Times News Service.
      Damascus, Syria -- Arriving in the Arab world, John Paul II was met in Syria with a quick reminder of how far hopes for peace have been dashed.    The new Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, 35, greeted the pope at the airport with a speech accusing Israel of torturing and murdering Palestinians and suggested that Christians and Muslims make common cause against those "who try to kill the principles of all religions with the same mentality with which they betrayed Jesus Christ."    And he added, "in the same way they tried to commit treachery against Prophet Muhammad."
      The pope was on a six-day pilgrimage to Greece, Syria and Malta, to retrace the steps of St. Paul, who was converted to Christianity on his way to Damascus.    He is the first pope to visit Syria, and wants to use his visit to improve relations between religious faiths and make his own diplomatic efforts to restore peace.    The pope stressed religious tolerance and understanding.    His host did not, stating "The application of heavenly tenets requires taking a stand against those who oppose them."
      The pope planned to meet with Orthodox and Catholic leaders in Syria, whose two churches are a tiny Christian minority.
• 5/6/2001 - Pope to take historic step toward reconciliation by Cox News Service.
      Damascus, Syria -- Pope John Paul II plans to become the first pontiff to step through the doors of Omayyad Mosque, in a moment of unity between Christianity and Islam.    This mosque was the crowning glory of a Muslim political dynasty establlished in the 7^th century.    This is a fence-mending journey as a symbol of the reversing of the Crusades.
  Important Dates in Islam:
  
  • 570 A.D. Prophet Mohammed born in Mecca.
  • 622 A.D. Hijira Mohammed's migration from Mecca.
  • 632 A.D. Mohammed dies in Medina.
  • 635-670 Muslim armies advance through North Africa into Central Asia.
  • 711 A.D. Muslims conquer Spain.
  • 732 A.D. Muslim advance in Europe halted in France.
  • 1095-1291 The Crusades: Christian armies conquer Holy Land, are driven out by Muslims.
  • 1281-1924 The Ottoman Empire.
  • 1453 A.D. Muslim Ottoman Turks conquer Christian Constantinople.
  • 1930 A.D. Nation of Islam founded in Detroit.
  • 1932 A.D. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia founded on alliance of military and politics based on Islamic law.
  • 1946 A.D. Muslim colonies begin winning freedom from European rule.
  • 1965 A.D. Malcom X assassinated.
  • 1967 A.D. Israeli-Arab war.
  • 1979 A.D. Iranian revolution; shah of Iran is forced out; and Soviet Union invades Afghanistan.
  • 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war.
  • 1990-1991 Persian Gulf war.
  • 1992-1995 Bosnian war.
      Total Muslim population in the world is 1.2 billion.
• 5/9/2001 - Vile Words Greet The Pope by The Washington Post.
      Syrian President Bashar Assad demonstrated why he and his government are unworthy of respect or good relations with the United States or any democratic country.    Greeting Pope John Paul II in Damascus, Assad launched an attack on Jews that may rank as the most ignorant and crude speech delivered before the Pope in his two decades of travel around the world.    Assad is headed in a dangerous direction, and has little knowledge of the world outside of Damascus.    He has taken steps of supporting the Hezbollah militia in southern Lebanon to illegal export of hundreds of millions of dollars of Iraqi oil through a Syrian pipeline.    Now he has tried to use the Pope and the Catholic Church for his war against the Jews.    The Pope conceded that he was a guest of the president, and he expressed his opinion.
• 5/14/2001 - Palestinian protest to mark anniversary of 1948 'catastrophe' by Greg Myre, The Associated Press.
      Ramallah, West Bank -- Palestinian refugees have been in a harsh existence in squalid camps since the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.    The 1948 war, which helped define the modern Middle East, and the latest conflict, now in its eighth month, and Palestinians will merge to take part in protest rallies to mark the most important day on their political calendar.
      "Al Naqba," Arabic for "the catastrophe," is how the Palestinians describe their displacement, which they date to May 15, 1948, the day Israel was founded.    Neighboring Arab states declared war on Israel at its founding, resulting in an estimated 700,000 Palestinians being displaced at this time.
• 5/14/2001 - Israelis fire on sites near Arafat's office by The Associated press.
      Gaza City -- Israeli helicopters rocketed Palestinian police compounds near Yasser Arafat's office and several other points in the Gaza Strip.    Israeli navy ships also shot toward another Palestinian police offices in the refugee camp of Nusseirat.
      Israeli military officials said the strikes came in retaliation for recent mortar attacks on Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip.
• 5/20/2001 - Arab League calls for end to political contacts with Israel by The Los Angeles Times.
      Cairo, Egypt -- Frustrated by the escalating violence and angry with the United States' reluctance to step in, Arab leaders in a meeting called for an end to all political contacts with Israel - a move that threatens to derail the one regional effort aimed at promoting peace.    In other words, until Israel stops retaliating against the Palestinians.
      The 10 foreign ministers of the Arab League did not stop diplomatic ties, just halting any direct talks between Arab countries and Israel.    Israel replied that the decision or propaganda was self-defeating because it did not urge Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafast to stop the violence.
      The 22-member Arab League, headed by the former Egyptian foreign minister, Amr Moussa, has never lived up to its promise as a vehicle to unify the Arab world into one voice.    So their credibility is at stake here, and they do desire that an international monitoring force enter the West Bank and Gaza Strip, both rejected by Israel.    The Arabs expected the Bush administration to get involved since Israel would negotiate better if the U.S. is pushing the issues.
• 6/13/2001 - Palestinians said to accept U.S. terms for cease-fire in Middle East - Israel earlier agreed to plan aimed at eventual peace talks - by Barry Schweid, The Associated Press.
      Washington -- The Palestinians have accepted U.S. terms for a cease-fire agreement with Israel, a Bush administration official said.
      CIA Director George Tenet reached the accord in talks with Palestinian officials in Ramallah on the West Bank.    Earlier, Israel had agreed to Tenet's proposal to make an 11-day cease-fire a lasting one.    This was a shift in Bush administration policy, to talk about security arrangements.    The cease-fire has no pre-conditions, but intends to move toward new peace talks.
• 6/14/2001 - Mideast cease-fire off to rocky start by Larry Kaplow, Cox News Service.
      Ramallah, West Bank -- A CIA-brokered cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinians appeared shaky even as it took effect.    Mortar fire erupted in the Gaza Strip at Israel troops only hours after it was in place.    The next 48 hours will be a critical test period, to see if Arafat can control militant Palestinian factions that have carried out suicide bombing attacks against Israelis.    After two days, Israel is to end its blockade of Palestinian cities.
      In the last eight months, fighting between the two sides has left nearly 600 people dead.
• 6/17/2001 - Palestinian gunmen open fire on Israeli army - 12-year-old Arab boy killed by random shots - by Susan Sevareid, The Associated Press.
      Jerusalem -- A shaky cease-fire held through violence and mutual complaints, while U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan urged both sides to build on the truce.    Still Palestinian gunmen began firing on Israeli troops near the border with Egypt, resulting in a boy's death.
• 6/17/2001 - Is Arafat really in control? by Kieth B. Richburg, The Washington Post.
      As an uneasy truce takes hold, Israel insist that Yasser Arafat is in control of events in Gaza and the West Bank and could end the uprising with a direct order.    But many Palestinians, including top officials of Arafat's administration, describe a leader as much carried along by the violence as orchestrating it.
  Key dates in Arafat's life:
  
  • Aug. 4, 1929 - Born in Cairo, father a Palestinian merchant.
  • 1933 - Mother dies and he is sent to Jerusalem to live with an uncle.
  • 1949 - He moves back to Cairo, forms Palestinian Students' League.
  • Aug. 1956 - Attends international student congress in Prague, secures membership for Palestine.    Starts wearing Palestinian headdress (keffiyeh).
  • Jan. 1, 1965 - Forms Fatah guerrilla movement, and carries out first attack on Israel, abortive bombing of water canal in Galilee.
  • Mar. 21, 1968 - After 1967 war Israeli forces cross Jordan River, attack PLO base at Karameh who suffered heavy losses.    Thousands join PLO.
  • Feb. 4, 1969 - He takes over PLO chairmanship and it becomes known worldwide.
  • Nov. 13, 1974 - He addressed U.N. General Assembly.
  • June 6, 1982 - Israel invades Lebanon to crush PLO, forcing him to evacuate Beirut.
  • Oct. 1, 1985 - He narrowly escapes during Israeli air raid on PLO headquarters in Tunis.
  • Apr. 16, 1988 - His military commander was assassinated in Tunis, Israel blamed.
  • Dec. 12, 1988 - Arafat accepts Israel's right to exist, renounces terrorism.
  • Aug. 2, 1990 - Iraq invades Kuwait, he supports Saddam Hussein, resulting in PLO's isolation.
  • Sept. 13, 1993 - Israel and PLO sign Oslo accord on Palestinian autonomy, giving Arafat control of most of Gaza Strip and 27% of West Bank.    He shakes hands with Rabin on White House lawn.
  • July 1, 1994 - Sets foot on Palestinian soil for the first time in 26 years.
  • Dec. 10, 1995 - Makes first visit to Israel in secret trip to offer condolences to Rabin's widow.
  • Jan. 20, 1996 - Elected president of the Palestinian Authority in first Palestinian elections.
      Has anything changed about Arafat's nature?
      His adversary the WarHorse - Ariel Sharon:
  
  • 1928 - Born in Kfar Malal, British Palestine.
  • 1948 - Commanded infantry company in Israeli war of independence.
  • 1956 - Paratroop commander in Suez War.
  • 1967 - Commanded armored division in Six-Day War.
  • 1973 - Led armored division over Suez Canal in Yom Kippur War.
  • Late 1970s - Leading advocate of building Jewish settlements in occupied territories.
  • 1981-1983 - Minister of defense during Israeli invasion of Lebanon and massacres at two refugee camps.
  • 1984-1990 - Industry and trade minister, Knesset member.
  • 1990-1999 - Housing, infrastructure, foreign minister, representing right wing of Likud party.
  • Sept. 2000 - After Oslo agreement stalled, visited Muslim holy sites on Temple Mount, Jerusalem, triggering Arab uprising.
  • 2001 - Elected prime minister; ordered military attacks on Palestinians, Arafat's offices.
• 9/11/2001 - Terrorist attack United States.
      U.S. blames Muslim extremists for terrorist attacks on World Trade Center and Pentagon.
• 12/21/2001 - Hamas backers block Palestinian attempt to arrest leader by Ibrahim Barzak, The Associated Press.
      Gaza City, Gaza Strip -- In a test of Yasser Arafat's ability to crack down on militants, hundreds of Palestinian police surrounded the hideout of the fugitive leader (Abdel Aziz Rantisi) of the Hamas terrorist group but failed to arrest him when his supporters opened fire.
      In the West Bank, Israel eased restrictions that had been tightened last week after a Hamas attack on a bus left 10 Israelis dead.    Troops withdrew from the Palestinan town of Nablus, and tanks pulled out of two neighborhoods in the town of Ramallah, but remained in position near Arafat's headquarters.    This occurred after Palestinian and Israeli security commanders resumed coordination meetings.    The U.N. envoy to the region, hopes these actions are a turning point.
      Palestinian police have shut down more than two dozen offices linked to Hamas and its smaller sister group, Islamic Jihad.
  
  

Last updated January 24, 2004.