. Indonesia
- On October 12, 2002, one bomb hit an Irish bar on the tourist strip and
the other exploded in a van outside the Sari nightclub at Kuta Beach, Bali,
Indonesia, killing at least 190 people, wounding more than 300 and with many
more unaccounted for. Most of the victims are foreign tourists, mainly Australians
but it is believed that about 33 were British. At the same time another smaller
bomb exploded near the local US honorary Consulate in Samur. It is probably
the work of a local terrorist group, the Islamic group "Jemaah Islamiyah"
led by Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, that is said to have some links with al-Qaida.
Abu Bakar Ba'asyir is suing the magazine for a trillion Indonesian rupia (about
£70m) for defamation.
- George Bush said immediately that al-Qaida was responsible and he asked
the world to be in alert for more attacks. He had to admit however that his
war on terror following September 11, 2001, and the war in Afghanistan, did
not destroy Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network.
- The Indonesian police arrested three men, one of whom an ex-air force officer
who apparently said that he made the bombs. Many FBI agents together with
British and Australian experts are helping the Indonesians in their inquiry.
It is now known that the terrorists used the military explosive C4 and this
is seen as meaning that the planning and organisation of the attack was made
by an outside powerful organisation such as al-Qaida as the local terrorists
do not have the knowledge and the resources to use this explosive. Abu Bakar
Ba'aysir, the leader of the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah, said that he
and his organisation had nothing to do with the bomb attack on Bali. He claimed
that the US, and not Islam, is responsible for the terror in the world today.
According to him they want to blame Muslims for attacks like the one in Bali
when in fact they are behind it.
- This time the CIA told Indonesia, Australia, ... well in advance that some
terrorists were preparing an attack in Bali. Nothing was done and now the
tourist industry in Bali fears that few tourists will come in the near future.
- Five suspected Jeemah Islamiyah or, why not, al-Qaida members have been
arrested in Malaysia. They are accused of plotting another attack somewhere
in the Fareast. At the present time 70 such presumed terrorists are in prison
in Malaysia.
- Abu Bakar Ba'aysir, the leader of the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah,
will be interrogated by the Indonesian police in relation to a series of church
bombings that killed 19 people on Christmas Eve 2000. An al-Qaida member,
Omar al-Farouq who is being held in Guantanamo Bay, accused him of these attacks.
He linked Abu Bakar Ba'aysir to himself and to al-Qaida, adding that he was
also responsible for the assassination attempt on the Indonesian president,
Megawati Sukarnoputri. Soon after Abu Bakar Ba'aysir was recovered in hospital
following a collapse where he was formally arrested.
- At the beginning of November 2002, Indonesia detained two possible suspects
for the Bali bombings.
- The Indonesian identified and arrested the owner of the van that was used
to carry the explosive to the nightclub in Bali. Amrozi apparently admitted
that he participated in the bombing. Amrozi is probably linked to al-Qaida.
Amrozi said that the aim of the attack was to kill as many Americans as possible.
He did not seem to know that few Americans go to Bali. Most victims were Australians,
and he said that he was sorry for the mistake.
- On November 21, 2002, the Indonesian police arrested the alleged organiser
of the October Bali bombing. The police said Imam Samudra had confessed. He
could also be responsible for the burning of Christian churches on Christmas
Eve 2,000 where 19 people were killed. He learned how to make bombs in Afghanistan.
Samudra also said that one of the two blasts came from a suicide bomber's
backpack. This was the first known suicide bombing in Indonesia.
- On January 14, 2003, the Indonesian police arrested two more suspects in
the Bali bombing including a man, Ali Imron, accused of driving the van loaded
with explosives that killed 192 people. The second man, Muburak Ali Imron,
has already confessed driving the van.
- On January 20, 2003, the Indonesian cleric known as Hambali was arrested
in connection with the October 12, 2002, Bali bombing. He is accused of helping
funding the attack with $35,000. He is also accused to have provided the money
for another bombing. Hambali -also known as Riduan Isamuddin- belong to al-Qaida
and assisted two September 11 hijackers before they went to the USA. A captured
terrorist said that the money came from al-Qaida.
- On April 23, 2003, the alleged spiritual leader and founder -while in exile
in Malaysia from 1985 to 1999- of Jemmaah Islamiyah, the Indonesian al-Qaida
main terrorist partner, Abu Bakar Ba'aysir, was sent to trial in Jakarta for
trying to overthrow the government and establish a region-wide Islamic state.
He is thought to be responsible for the bombing of dozens of Christian churches
over Indonesia killing 19 people and of trying to kill the Indonesian president,
Megawati Sukarnoputri. He is not accused of the Bali bombing which killed
202 people although he probably sanctioned the attack.
- On May 12, 2003, a poorly-educated Islamic car mechanic from rural East
Java was the first person to be tried over the October 12, 2002, triple bombing
in Bali that killed at least 202 people including 26 Britons. Amrozi bin Nurhasyim
faces the death penalty. He is accused of buying the chemicals used to make
the bombs, to transport them to Bali, and of buying the mini bus that exploded
outside the Sari Club in Kuta. Thirty-two other people are held in connection
with the bombing.
- On June 16, 2003, three badly burned and emotionally scared Australian survivors
of last October's Bali bombings, gave testimony at the trial of one of the
main suspect, Amrozi bin Nurhasyim. It is believed that 34 people were involved
in the bombing.
- On August 5, 2003, the terrorists were again at work in Jakarta. A lorry
loaded with explosives exploded at the entrance of the American owned Marriott
Hotel killing about 14 people (12 Indonesians, one Dutchman and one yet unidentified)
and wounded more than 150. Until now nobody claimed responsibility for the
attack but, according to the Indonesian police, the same technique was used
as in Bali. It came two days before the first verdict is due in the trial
of the men accused of last October's Bali bombing.
- On August 7, 2003, the radical Islamic Indonesian mechanics, Amrozi bin
Nurhasyim, was condemned to death -by a shooting squad- for his participation
in the bomb attack in Bali last October. He admitted that he bought one of
the van used in the attack. Amrozi, also known as the smiling terrorist, greeting
the verdict by stretching his arms, clenching his fists, raising his thumbs
and smiling to the judges, and the public made mainly of friends and members
of the families of the victims. He also shouted: "Allahu Akbar (God is
great)".
- Many others are also accused of participating in the bombing but the six
main suspects, including the bomb maker, are still at large. Some people are
afraid that Amrozi will appear to be a martyr and this could call for more
bombing. His lawyer will appeal the sentence.
- On August 14, 2003, the CIA was interrogating an Indonesian militant, Riduan
Isamuddin but better known as Hambali, accused of planning the attacks of
September 11, 2001, and other attacks in Indonesia. Hambali is believed to
be one of the leader of Indonesia's militant Jemaah Islamiyah movement, al-Qaida's
most senior leader in Southeast Asia, and one of the world's worst terrorists.
He was captured in Thailand while probably organising a new attack. The Thailandese
authorities transferred him immediately to American custody. He is believed
to have organised last year Bali bombing as well as a string of church attacks.
He shaved his beard and had plastic surgery.
- On September 2, 2003, the Islamic cleric, Abu Bakar Ba'aysir was acquitted
in Jakarta of being the spiritual leader of the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah
and of taking part in terrorist attacks. However he was convicted of trying
to overthrow the Indonesian government and creating an Islamic state. He was
sentenced to four years in prison. He will appeal the judgment.
- On September 10, 2003, Imam Samudra, an Indonesian Islamic militant accused
to be the master mind of the Bali bombing was sentenced to death by a firing
squad. Samudra is a computer expert who fought with al-Qaida in Afghanistan
before bringing Jihad to Indonesia.
- On October 2, 2003, an Indonesian Muslim teacher, Ali Ghufron, known also
as Mukhlas, was sentenced to death by a firing squad for masterminding the
October 12, 2002, Bali bombing. This is the third person to be condemned to
death, the other two being Imam Samudra and Amrozi bin Nurhasyhim. Mukhlas
smiled most of the time and shouted "Allahu Akbar (God is most great)
several times after saying that he would appeal because, according to him,
the verdict does not follow Islamic teachings.
- A memorial service was held in Bali, Indonesia, on October 11, 2003, to
remember the 202 victims of the bomb blasts of one year ago. Survivors and
relatives of the victims -Australians, British and Indonesians- were present.
- On January 10, 2004, a bomb exploded in a cafe in Palopo, South Sulawesi,
central Indonesia killing four people and wounded three others.
- On July 23, 2004, the conviction of the 32 men condemned for the Bali bombing
was in doubt as an Indonesian court said that the anti-terrorist law used
to prosecute them was applied retroactively, and as such the convictions are
unconstitutional.
- On August 24, 2004, Indonesia urged its citizens in Iraq to leave the country
and no longer accept work contracts there after suspected insurgents killed
an Indonesian engineer last week. Fahmi was employed by a contractor working
for Germany's Siemens Company to install a cellular phone network. Indonesia,
the world's most populous Muslim nation, was a fierce critic of the US-led
invasion of Iraq, and has refused to contribute troops to the occupation army.
- Nine people have been killed and about 160 injured by a blast outside the
Australian embassy in Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, on September 8, 2004.
A suicide car bomb may have caused the blast. It bore the hallmark of militant
Islamists Jemaah Islamiah (JI).
- On October 28, 2004, the Indonesian Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir went
on trial accused of leading the al-Qaida linked Jemaah Islamiyah network thought
to be responsible for the Bali and Marriott hotel bombing. He is accused of
having planned or incited others to engage in terrorist actions. He could
face a death sentence if found guilty.
- On March 3, 2005, an Indonesian court found the radical cleric Abu Bakar
Ba'asyir guilty of conspiracy over the 2002 Bali bombings. He was cleared
of more serious charges over the bomb attack on the Marriott hotel in Jakarta
in 2003. Ba'asyir, who was jailed for two-and-a-half years, had denied the
charges and is expected to appeal. The five judges said Ba'asyir had not been
directly involved in carrying out the Bali blasts, but had given his approval
for the attacks.
- Relatives of UK victims of the Bali bombings in 2002 have reacted angrily
after 18 people jailed over the attacks had their sentences cut on August
17, 2005. Indonesia has reduced prison terms as part of a tradition of remissions
for the country's Independence Day. Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, a 66-year-old cleric
who was convicted of conspiracy in the attacks and jailed for 30 months, was
told his sentence would be reduced by four months and 15 days. Seventeen other
people have had their jail terms cut by three months. Ringleaders of the attacks,
who were jailed for life or sentenced to death, are not eligible for remission.
- Suicide bombers carried out attacks on three Bali restaurants that killed
at least 19 people, on October 1, 2005. The remains of three bombers were
found at the scenes in the tourist areas of Jimbaran and Kuta. The attacks
appeared to have been carried out by regional militant group Jemaah Islamiah
(JI). More than 100 people were wounded, 17 of them seriously.
- Indonesian police have released photos of the severed heads of the suspected
Bali suicide attackers on October 3, 2005 as they seek the gang behind the
bombings. They hope it will help identifying the three men. Investigators
said the bombers were recruited, trained and equipped by a back-up team, and
hope that naming the bombers will unveil the masterminds. Police believe radical
group Jemaah Islamiah (JI) was behind the bombings at Jimbaran and Kuta.
- On April 21, 2008, two senior leaders of Indonesia's most notorious militant group, Jemaah Islamiah (JI), have received 15-year jail terms for terror-related offences. Abu Dujana and Zarkasih were each convicted of harbouring terrorists as well as possessing, storing and moving firearms and ammunition. Abu Dujana and Zarkasih were arrested within a week of each other last summer in what was seen as a huge victory for Indonesia's fight against Islamic militants. At the time of the arrests, police described Zarkasih as the "amir of Jemaah Islamiah" and claimed Abu Dujana had played a role in almost all bomb attacks in the country.
- On October 9, 2009, police have killed two Indonesian militants who were believed to have played a role in hotel bombings in Jakarta on 17 July. Saifuddin Zuhri bin Djaelani Irsyad and his brother Mohamad Syahrir were reportedly killed in a shoot-out in Ciputat in the south of the capital. Saifuddin was suspected of recruiting the suicide bombers who attacked the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott hotels. Two others were arrested alive after the raid, AFP news agency reported.
- DNA tests on the body of a man killed in Jakarta prove beyond doubt he is Dulmatin, the last main suspect of the Bali bombings, we were told on March 10, 2010. Bomb-making equipment had been found during the raid in the capital. Dulmatin was suspected of planning the 2002 attacks which killed 202 people.
. Israel
- On November 17, 2002, an Israeli of Palestinian origin tried to highjack
an El-Al Israeli plane flying from Israel to Istanbul, Turkey, although he
only had a penknife. Israeli security guards handcuffed him, and he was handed
to the Turkish police on arrival. He said that he wanted to oblige the pilot
to go back to Israel and fly into a high rise building in Tel Aviv like he
saw happening in New York City on September 11, 2001.
- On December 5, 2002, the Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, said that
some al-Qaida terrorists found refuge in the Gaza strip and Lebanon and are
now working with the Hezbolllah terrorists.
- On October 5, 2003, Israel bombed a military camp in Syria said to be used
to train Palestinian terrorists. The UN Security Council met immediately but
could not take any decision as the US appeared to be ready to use it veto
if the Council tried to blame Israel. France, Germany and the EU condemned
the attack. Britain does not say much, waiting to see what the US decides.
- On January 11, 2004, we were told that Israel and Syria held secret meetings
for several months in order to try to solve their differences. The talks broke
down when information about them leaked out. Israel Prime Minister, Ariel
Sharon, said that he is ready to start negotiation if Syria "stops helping
terror". It would help if Israel changed attitude too.
- On July 5, 2004, the head of the IAEA, Mohamed ELBaradei, went to Israel
where he will ask the government to eliminate their nuclear weapons so that
the Middle East can become a "nuclear free" zone. Israel has never
admitted having nuclear weapons although there is no doubt that they have
had some since the 1960/1970s. Israel will also refuse to let international
inspectors visit its nuclear reactors although it is under strong international
pressure to conform to international law.
- Israeli officials suspect al-Qaida involvement in bomb blasts at Egyptian
resorts popular with Israelis where at least 28 people died on October 7,
2004. A car bomb exploded after the vehicle rammed the Hilton hotel in Taba,
on Egypt's border with Israel, killing 26 people. The others hit a backpacker
camping area near the resort of Nuweiba, 60km further south, killing two.
More than 100 people have been injured. The dead are mainly Israeli, five
Egyptians and one Russian.
- Hezbollah guerrillas based in Lebanon captured two Israeli soldiers on July 12, 2006, and killed eight when Israel sent troops into southern Lebanon on a rescue mission. Overnight Israeli jets hit targets across southern Lebanon and struck Beirut's international airport, forcing it to close.
- Israel is imposing an air and sea blockade on Lebanon on July 13, 2006, as part of a major offensive after two soldiers were seized by the militant group Hezbollah. Israeli warships have blocked Lebanese ports, and its international airport was closed after Israeli bombing. A Lebanese cabinet minister said the Israeli response was disproportionate, and called for a ceasefire. Raids on targets across south Lebanon have killed at least 35. Two have died in Hezbollah attacks on Israel. The operation comes as Israel continues a separate offensive in the Gaza Strip. An Israeli soldier was captured there last month.
- Israeli jets have attacked the Palestinian foreign ministry building in
Gaza on July 13, 2006, wounding at least 10 people living nearby. Israel said
the pre-dawn raid was aimed at Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahhar, who it accused
of complicity in the capture of an Israeli soldier two weeks ago. Earlier,
Mr Zahhar said negotiations were the only way to end the crisis.
- In Gaza, where militants have held Cpl Gilad Shalit captive for two weeks,
at least 23 civilians have died since Wednesday morning, including nine in
one family whose Gaza City home was bombed.
The leader of Hamas's military wing was among the injured in that attack.
On July 22, 2006, Israel has massed soldiers and tanks on the border with
Lebanon and called up thousands of reserve troops, in a possible prelude to
a ground offensive. Planes dropped leaflets on southern Lebanon warning any
civilians to leave.
- Israeli warplanes bombed suspected Hezbollah sites in Sidon and the capital Beirut on Sunday July 23, 2006. 14 people were injured and a mosque was destroyed in the first strikes on the southern port city.
- UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, at Middle East crisis talks in Rome on July 26, 2006, has called for an immediate ceasefire from both Hezbollah and Israel. He said Israel should halt all ground operations, bombardments and blockades, and Hezbollah stop deliberately targeting Israeli population centres. Fighting is continuing in south Lebanon though vital aid is now on the way. His comments come as outcry over the death of four UN observers in Lebanon, killed by an Israeli jet, grows. According to an initial UN investigation into the incident the observers were subjected to a six-hour bomb attack by Israeli forces during which they called Israel's military 10 times to tell them to stop.
- Israel says Wednesday July 26, 2006's decision by key world powers not to call for a halt to its Lebanon offensive has given it the green light to continue (!) Israeli bombardment of Lebanon has continued throughout the day, with air strikes in many parts of the country.
- Israel is continuing its bombardment of Lebanon on July 28, 2006, with dozens of air strikes leaving at least five people dead. Strikes hit the eastern Bekaa Valley and villages in the south, and some ground clashes are reported. About 420 Lebanese, mainly civilians, are confirmed to have died since the conflict began more than two weeks ago. Some 51 Israelis - 18 of them civilians - have been killed, mostly by rockets fired over the border by the Lebanese guerrilla group Hezbollah. The Israeli assault began after Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid on 12 July.
- Israeli aircraft have resumed attacks on the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on August 3, 2006, after a lull of several days, with early morning strikes on a southern suburb. About 70 Hezbollah rockets also hit northern Israel, killing five, while two Israeli troops died fighting Hezbollah militants along the border. More than 900 Lebanese people have been killed in the three-week conflict, Lebanese PM Fouad Siniora has said. A United Nations resolution calling for a truce appears near to completion.
- On August 4, 2006, the Israeli army has been told to prepare for a possible advance into Lebanon. The defence minister's order could see the army push up to the Litani river, about 30km north of the border, in pursuit of Hezbollah. Israeli jets have stepped up strikes on Beirut and north of the capital.
- Israeli commandos have clashed with Hezbollah fighters during a raid on the southern Lebanese city of Tyre on August 5, 2006. Israel said it carried out more than 70 air strikes across Lebanon overnight, while Hezbollah fired more rockets at the Israeli city of Haifa. Meanwhile, the US and France have agreed on a UN Security Council resolution to end the fighting.
- At least 15 people have been killed in a barrage of Hezbollah rocket strikes on northern Israel on Sunday August 6, 2006. Twelve reservist soldiers died in an attack on the town of Kfar Giladi. Meanwhile, the UN is debating a draft resolution on the crisis, demanding Hezbollah halt all attacks and Israel stop all offensive military operations. Lebanon has formally asked the UN Security Council to revise its proposed resolution and diplomats in New York say a vote might not now come until Tuesday. Israel has continued raids in Lebanon, killing at least 14 people.
- On Monday August 7, 2006, Israeli jets have launched fresh attacks on Lebanon as troops battled Hezbollah fighters in the south. At least 17 civilians have been killed in the latest raids, which hit southern Beirut and parts of the east and south, cutting off the city of Tyre. An Israeli soldier has been killed in the southern town of Bint Jbeil, while Hezbollah fired more rockets at Israel.
- Israel warned residents of southern Lebanon on Tuesday August 8, 2006, that it will escalate operations there as it continues its campaign against Hezbollah militants. In leaflets dropped by Israeli planes, it says its forces will destroy moving vehicles in an area south of the Litani river. Israel launched about 80 air strikes against Lebanon overnight. Hezbollah fired more than 140 rockets on Israel. Diplomats at the UN are discussing a draft resolution to end fighting. An Arab League delegation is expected to push amendments to the draft, including Lebanon's demand for an immediate Israeli withdrawal. The current text - drafted by the US and France - calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities and lays the groundwork for a second resolution that would install an international peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon. Russia's UN ambassador said Moscow would not agree to any resolution that did not have Lebanese approval.
- A ceasefire between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah will come into force at 0500 GMT on Monday August 14, 2006, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has said. But Israel's army will not leave southern Lebanon until regular Lebanese troops are deployed there, supported by an expanded UN force. Hezbollah says it has the right to continue attacks until the last Israeli soldier has left Lebanese soil. The UN says it could take 10 days to insert a peacekeeping force.
- The truce between Israel and Hezbollah remains held on August 15, 2006,
despite sporadic violence in southern Lebanon. Israel's army said Hezbollah
militants fired several mortars overnight but it did not respond as none landed
over the border and no-one was injured. Both sides have claimed they were
successful in the conflict. As thousands of Lebanese people return home after
the fighting, the presidents of US and Iran have blamed each other for fuelling
the crisis.
- Israel said on Friday August 18, 2006, it would be "difficult if not inconceivable" to accept nations that do not recognise its right to exist as part of a UN force in Lebanon. Israeli UN envoy Dan Gillerman was speaking after Indonesia and Malaysia, which do not recognise Israel, pledged troops for the UN deployment. Malaysia said Israel should have no say in the make-up of the force.
- Israel carried out an overnight raid inside Lebanon on August 19, 2006,
aimed at disrupting an arms transfer. One soldier died and two were injured
in the Bekaa Valley operation. Lebanese sources earlier told Reuters agency
that three militants also died.
- UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has expressed deep concern over Saturday
August 19, 2006's Israeli commando raid deep inside Lebanon, calling it a
truce violation. Lebanon has said it may halt its army deployment in the south
-a key element of the ceasefire plan. The Bekaa Valley raid early on Saturday
left one Israeli dead. Hezbollah denies reports it lost three militants. Israel
said it was trying to disrupt weapons supplies from Iran and Syria to Hezbollah,
and insisted the truce held.
- On August 23, 2006, Amnesty International accused Israel of committing war crimes by deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure in Lebanon. The human rights group says attacks on homes, bridges, roads and water and fuel plants were an "integral part" of Israel's strategy in the recent war. The group also calls for a UN investigation into whether both Israel and Hezbollah broke humanitarian law. Israel said it did not deliberately target Lebanon's civilian population.
- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has rebuffed calls for a swift end to
Israel's blockade of Lebanon on Wednesday August 30, 2006. Speaking after
talks with UN chief Kofi Annan, Mr Olmert said the seven-week siege would
only be lifted once the ceasefire terms were fully implemented and if the
two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah were released.
- Israel will lift its air and sea blockade of Lebanon on Thursday September7, 2006, at 1800 local time. The blockade dates back to the start of its conflict with Hezbollah guerrillas in July. Israel says it wants measures to ensure no more arms reach Hezbollah. International pressure has been building on Israel to lift the embargo, which has remained in place despite a three-week-old ceasefire.
- An Israeli bombing raid on a UN post in southern Lebanon in July that killed four peacekeepers was the result of a "tragic error", Israel has said on September 15, 2006. An official Israeli inquiry found the post was wrongly targeted because of flawed military maps of the area during the conflict with Hezbollah. Observers from China, Austria, Finland and Canada were killed in the raid. The UN said that, prior to the bombing, it had contacted Israel several times to ask it to stop firing in the area. At the time, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan described the raid as "apparently deliberate". Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed "deep regrets" over the deaths.
- Israeli prosecutors have filed criminal charges on September 18, 2006, against three Hezbollah fighters captured during the recent conflict in Lebanon. The men will be tried for murder and membership of a terrorist organisation. The charges reflect Israel's refusal to view Hezbollah as a legitimate fighting force, to be treated under established laws of war. The accused are Mohammed Srur, Maher Hourani and Hussein Suleiman.
- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert held an unprecedented meeting with a senior member of the Saudi royal family, Israeli officials said on September 25, 2006. The meeting 12 days ago has not been confirmed by Saudi Arabia, which has no official contacts with Israel. Israeli media say they discussed Iran's nuclear programme and a Saudi peace plan adopted by Arab states in 2002. Saudi denied they had any contact with Israel.
- The army chief has sacked a top Israeli general on Thursday October 5, 2006,
for criticising the way the military conducted the recent war in Lebanon in
media interviews. Lt Gen Dan Halutz fired Major General Yiftah Ron-Tal for
breaching the ban on Israeli troops making public comments on political and
diplomatic issues. He also criticised Israel's unilateral pullout from Gaza
last year. He was the commander of Israeli ground forces and had been due
to retire from the army in December.
- Former Prime Minister Shimon Peres is to be formally inaugurated as the president of Israel on July 15, 2007. The 83-year-old, who was elected last month, will serve a seven-year term. His predecessor, Moshe Katsav, was forced to resign earlier this year after admitting charges of sexual harassment and abuse of authority. Polish-born Mr Peres has held almost every senior cabinet position, and in 1994 was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on the Oslo peace accord.
- Israel's attorney-general launched a third criminal inquiry into Ehud Olmert's conduct before he became PM we were told on October 15, 2007. The PM is already facing investigations into a bank privatisation deal and his purchase of a property in Jerusalem. In the latest case, he is suspected of granting political favours when he was industry and trade minister. Mr Olmert has denied any wrongdoing.
- On Sunday March 2, 2008, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas suspended contact with Israel in protest at an assault on Gaza which has killed about 100 peoples. The suspension came amid angry demonstrations in Gaza and clashes with Israeli troops in the West Bank. Israeli PM Ehud Olmert vowed to carry on the assault, which came in response to militant rocket attacks on Israel. The violence intensified on Saturday, when nearly 70 people were killed in one of Gaza's bloodiest days in years. Local doctors said at least 13 of the Palestinians were civilians, including eight children.
- Most Israeli troops pulled out of northern Gaza on March 3, 2008, after days of fighting that has left more than 100 people dead and drawn protest worldwide. The Palestinian militant group Hamas claimed victory over Israeli forces and mounted a rally in Gaza City. Israel said the operation was launched to defend itself against rocket attack.
- The Israeli government ordered its military to reduce its operations in
the Gaza Strip on March 10, 2008 after a sharp drop in rocket fire from militants
in the Palestinian territory. No formal ceasefire had been agreed but talks
were under way. The lull follows a violent period in which at least 120 Palestinians
and 4 Israeli were killed in military operations.
- Ex-US President Jimmy Carter said on May 27, 2008, Israel has at least 150
atomic weapons in its arsenal. The Israelis have never confirmed they have
nuclear weapons, but this has been widely assumed since a scientist leaked
details in the 1980s.
- An Israeli citizen convicted of spying for Hezbollah in 2002, Nissim Nasser, has been deported to Lebanon on June 1, 2008 amid rumours the release might be part of a prisoner swap. Lebanese group Hezbollah returned remains of Israeli soldiers killed in the 2006 war. Mr Nasser was born in Lebanon to a Jewish mother and a Shia Muslim father. He left the country in 1982 and became an Israeli citizen. Israel revoked his citizenship when his six-year sentence ended a month ago.
- Israel's military said on June 3, 2008, human remains handed over by Hezbollah were of five Israeli soldiers killed in the 2006 war with the Lebanese Shia movement. Four had died when their helicopter was shot down two days before the conflict ended. The fifth was killed by an anti-tank missile in a separate incident. The remains were delivered on Sunday after Israel released a Lebanese-born man who had served six years in prison for spying for Hezbollah.
- On June 4, 2008, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said drastic measures are needed to stop Iran obtaining nuclear weapons. He added Iran must be shown there will be devastating consequences if it did develop such weapons. The US and others have accused Iran of building nuclear arms capability. Tehran says its programme is peaceful. Mr Olmert's US visit comes as he faces pressure at home over corruption allegations, which he denies.
- On June 7, 2008, a top Israeli official said that if Iran continues with its alleged nuclear arms programme, Israel will attack it. Speaking to Yediot Ahronot newspaper, Deputy Prime Minister and the transport minister Shaul Mofaz, said sanctions on Iran were ineffective. Earlier this week, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Iran's nuclear programme must be stopped by what he termed all possible means.
- On June 8, 2008, Deputy Defence Minister Matan Vilnai accused one of Israel's
Deputy Prime Ministers, Shaul Mofaz, of threatening to attack Iran in order
to boost his own political standing. Mr Vilnai said Mr Mofaz's comments were
linked to a likely leadership contest in Mr Olmert's Kadima party, if the
prime minister is forced to step down over corruption allegations.
- Israel has approved a ceasefire to end months of bitter clashes with the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza on Tuesday June 17, 2008. The truce, which is set to begin on Thursday, Israel will ease its blockade on the Gaza Strip. At the same time, talks to release an Israeli soldier held by Hamas would intensify. Later, Israel said it was also interested in direct, bilateral talks with Lebanon.
- A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza began on June 19, 2008, despite a last-minute flurry of cross-border attacks. The truce is designed to halt Israeli incursions into the Gaza Strip, and to stop missiles being fired from Gaza into southern Israel. If it holds, Israel will ease its blockade on Gaza and there may be further talks on a prisoner exchange.
- Israel carried out an exercise that appears to have been a rehearsal for
an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities we were told on June 20, 2008. More
than 100 Israeli fighter jets took part in manoeuvres over the eastern Mediterranean
and over Greece in the first week of June.
A crude rocket has been fired by an Israeli student at a Palestinian village
in the West Bank on June 20, 2008. No-one was injured by the rocket, which
was fired from a Jewish theological seminary in Yitzhar settlement.
- Israel carried out an exercise that appears to have been a rehearsal for
an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities we were told on June 21, 2008. More
than 100 Israeli fighter jets took part in manoeuvres over the eastern Mediterranean
and over Greece in the first week of June.
- A Palestinian drove a bulldozer into a bus and several cars in Jerusalem, killing four people before being shot dead on July 2, 2008. Dozens of people were hurt, at least seven critically, in the incident on Jaffa Road, in the city centre. Police officer shot the driver dead after a struggle in the vehicle's cab.
- A planned prisoner exchange between Israel and Hezbollah will take place on Wednesday July 16, 2008. Israel will release five Lebanese prisoners in exchange for two Israeli soldiers seized in a cross-border raid that triggered a 33-day war in 2006. The condition of the two Israeli soldiers is not known, but it is widely believed that they are dead. The Lebanese prisoners due to be freed include Samir Qantar, in jail since 1979 for a deadly guerrilla raid.
- On July 17 2008, Israel is holding military funerals for two soldiers returned
from Lebanon by the militant Hezbollah movement as part of a prisoner exchange.
The soldiers -Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser- are believed to have died when
they were ambushed in 2006. The incident sparked a month-long war between
Israel and Hezbollah. In exchange for the return of their bodies, Israel has
released five Lebanese prisoners and the remains of 200 Lebanese and Palestinian
fighters.
- On Thursday July 31, 2008, Israeli right-wing opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu called for snap elections, after Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced he would stand down. Mr Netanyahu said the government had "finished its mission" and was responsible for a "string of failures". Mr Olmert announced on Wednesday that he would not stand in a leadership race for his Kadima Party set for September. He was under increasing pressure to quit over mounting corruption allegations, which he denies. Allies and opponents of Mr Olmert alike have backed his decision to quit.
- Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz warned on August 2, 2008, that
Iran is near a breakthrough in its nuclear programme. Mr Mofaz accused Iran
of pursuing a strategy of buying time in talks aimed at limiting its nuclear
ambitions.
- The Israeli cabinet voted on August 19, 2008, to release some 200 Palestinian
prisoners as a goodwill gesture to Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas.
The actual release would take place around 25 August, but the list of inmates
is yet to be finalised.
- Israel said on May 30, 2010, that it will not take part in a conference aimed at achieving a nuclear-arms free Middle East as proposed at a UN meeting in New York. Nearly 200 nations, signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), backed plans for the meeting in 2012. In a document agreed at the talks, Israel was singled out for criticism. Israel, which has not signed the NPT, dismissed the document as "deeply flawed" and "hypocritical".
- At least nine people have been killed on May 31, 2010, after Israeli commandos stormed a convoy of ships carrying aid to the Gaza Strip. Armed forces boarded the largest vessel overnight, clashing with some of the 500 people on board. It happened about 40 miles out to sea, in international waters. Israel says its soldiers were shot at and attacked with weapons; the activists say Israeli troops came on board shooting. The activists were attempting to defy a blockade imposed by Israel after the Islamist movement Hamas took power in Gaza in 2007. There has been widespread condemnation of the violence, with several countries summoning the Israeli ambassadors serving there. UN chief Ban Ki-moon said he was "shocked by reports of killings and injuries" and called for a "full investigation" into what happened. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is in Canada, has cancelled a scheduled visit to Washington on Tuesday to return to Israel. Earlier, he expressed his "full backing" for the military involved in the raid. The White House said the US "deeply regrets the loss of life and injuries sustained" in the storming of the aid ship.
- A trove of ancient manuscripts in Hebrew characters rescued from caves in a Taliban stronghold in northern Afghanistan is providing the first physical evidence of a Jewish community that thrived there a thousand years ago. On Thursday January 3, 2013, Israel's National Library unveiled the cache of recently purchased documents that run the gamut of life experiences, including biblical commentaries, personal letters and financial records. Researchers say the "Afghan Genizah" marks the greatest such archive found since the "Cairo Genizah" was discovered in an Egyptian synagogue more than 100 years ago, a vast depository of medieval manuscripts considered to be among the most valuable collections of historical documents ever found. Genizah, a Hebrew term that loosely translates as "storage," refers to a storeroom adjacent to a synagogue or Jewish cemetery where Hebrew-language books and papers are kept. Under Jewish law, it is forbidden to throw away writings containing the formal names of God, so they are either buried or stashed away. The Afghan collection gives an unprecedented look into the lives of Jews in ancient Persia in the 11th century. The paper manuscripts, preserved over the centuries by the dry, shady conditions of the caves, include writings in Hebrew, Aramaic, Judea-Arabic and the unique Judeo-Persian language from that era, which was written in Hebrew letters.---
Israel warned Lebanon and Syria on Friday January 23, 2015, not to allow any attacks on Israel from their soil, hoping to avoid reprisals for an Israeli air strike in Syria that killed an Iranian general and senior Hezbollah fighters. Israel will see the governments, regimes and organizations beyond its northern border as responsible for what emanates from their territory. Israel will exact a price for any harm inflicted on Israeli sovereignty, civilians and soldiers. Fears of retaliation by Lebanon's Hezbollah or other groups have risen since Sunday's attack, prompting Israel to move troops and equipments towards its northern borders with Lebanon and Syria.
Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu defended on Sunday January 25, 2015, a planned speech to the US Congress about Iran, saying he had a moral obligation to take every opportunity to speak out on an issue that poses a mortal threat to his country. His visit to Washington in March has opened up a political rift in the US and has drawn accusations in Israel that Netanyahu is undermining a strategic alliance in order to win an election due two weeks after the trip. Netanyahu said his priority was to urge the US and other powers not to negotiate an Iranian nuclear deal that might endanger Israel. In coming weeks, the powers are liable to reach a framework agreement with Iran, an agreement liable to leave Iran as a nuclear threshold state, he said. “As prime minister of Israel, I am obligated to make every effort to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weaponry that will be aimed at the state of Israel. This effort is global and I will go anywhere I am invited to make the state of Israel’s case and defend its future and existence.” John Boehner, the Republican speaker of the House of Representatives, invited Netanyahu without informing the Obama administration, in what the White House deemed a breach of protocol.
A survey —taken in August 2014 and published Thursday January 29, 2015, by Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs— showed a massive surge in negative attitudes toward Israel since the previous such study, two years earlier. Thirty-five percent of Britons said they “feel especially unfavorable towards” Israel in the 2014 survey, compared to 17% in 2012. That figure meant that Israel is regarded more unfavorably by Britons than Iran —33% in the 2014 survey, compared to 45% in 2012. Only North Korea fares worse —regarded as especially unfavorable by 47% in 2014, compared to 40% in 2012.
Israel launched an airstrike on its border with Syria after spotting militants carrying a bomb in the Israeli-held Golan Heights. It carried out the strike after troops saw "a group of armed terrorists" approach the border with an explosive intended to target Israeli troops. Israeli aircraft targeted the squad, preventing the attack. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said four Syrian soldiers were killed by a missile fired from Israeli-occupied territory in the Golan. ---
On March 27, 2016, former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams expressed his concern at rising levels of anti-Semitism on British university campuses. There are reminiscent of Germany in the 1930s. Two days later The Times warned that the political left was increasingly questioning the right of the state of Israel to exist, a view he called a “not too subtle form of anti-Semitism.” Across Europe, Jews are leaving. A survey in 2013 by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights showed that almost a third of Europe’s Jews have considered emigrating because of anti-Semitism, with numbers as high as 46 percent in France and 48 percent in Hungary. Nor is this a problem in Europe alone. A 2015 survey of North American Jewish college students by Brandeis University found that three-quarters of respondents had been exposed to anti-Semitic rhetoric. One third had reported incidents of harassment because they were Jewish
On Thursday September 8, 2016, the Israeli aircraft struck targets in Syria after a projectile hit the Israeli-controlled part of the Golan Heights; it caused no injuries. They hit Syrian Armed Forces mortar launchers overnight.
The Israeli military said on Tuesday September 13, 2016, that Syrian forces had fired two surface-to-air missiles at Israeli aircraft that were targeting artillery positions in the Syrian Golan Heights overnight, but it categorically denied a claim by the Syrians that they had shot down an Israeli warplane and a drone.
On Thursday September 15, 2016, we were told that former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell alleged that Israel has a nuclear arsenal of 200 warheads, a thorny subject that Israel never comments on. Israel is not a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and maintains a policy of nuclear ambiguity, refusing to speak about its rumoured nuclear arsenal and never even going as far as to admit that it has possession of nuclear weapons.
Shimon Peres, who served twice as Israel's prime minister and once as president, has died Wednesday September 28, 2016, at the age of 93. Mr Peres suffered a stroke two weeks ago. His condition had improved before a sudden deterioration. World figures are expected to attend his funeral in Jerusalem on Friday, including US President Barack Obama, Prince Charles and Pope Francis. Mr Peres was one of the last of a generation of Israeli politicians present at the new nation's birth in 1948. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 for his role negotiating the Oslo peace accords with the Palestinians a year earlier, a prize he shared with Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was later assassinated, and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
An Israeli soldier filmed shooting dead a wounded Palestinian attacker after he had been disarmed of a knife has been convicted of manslaughter on Wednesday January 4, 2017. Sgt Elor Azaria, 20, shot Abdul Fatah al-Sharif, 21, in the head while he was lying immobile on a road. The incident happened in Hebron in the occupied West Bank last March, after another soldier was stabbed. Sgt Azaria said he thought Sharif might have an explosive vest, but prosecutors said his motive was revenge. ---
Israel Wednesday July 11, 2018:
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