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$Title{Table D.: Chronology of Events: 1949-77}
January 25, 1949 ........ Country's first Knesset (parliament) election held.
February 16, 1949 ....... Chaim Weizmann elected first president by
Knesset.
March 10, 1949 .......... David Ben-Gurion formed first government as
country's first prime minister.
October 15, 1950 ........ Ben-Gurion and cabinet resigned on issue of
religious education.
November 1, 1950 ........ Ben-Gurion formed second government, which
resigned on same issue few months later.
July 30, 1951 ........... Election of Knesset members.
October 8, 1951 ......... Ben-Gurion formed third government.
October 9, 1952 ......... Death of Weizmann.
November 1952 ........... Itzhak Ben-Zvi elected president.
November 24, 1952 ....... Knesset passed World Zionist Organization-
Jewish Agency Status Law.
December 19, 1952 ....... Ben-Gurion and cabinet resigned for third time
because of religious education controversy.
December 23, 1952 ....... Ben-Gurion formed new government.
August 12, 1953 ......... Knesset passed State Education Law.
December 6, 1953 ........ Ben-Gurion resigned for personal reasons.
January 26, 1954 ........ Moshe Sharett formed government as new prime
minister.
June 29, 1955 ........... Sharett resigned in dispute with opposition on
issue of Nazi trials.
July 26, 1955 ........... General election of Third Knesset members.
Mapai (see Glossary) again won largest number of
seats but five below 1951 level and short of a
majority.
November 2, 1955 ........ Ben-Gurion formed new government.
November 3-8, 1955 ...... Israeli military invaded Al Auja neutral zone to
expel Egyptians. Egyptian and Israeli forces
fought briefly near Eilat (see fig. 1).
December 11-12, 1955 .... Major Israeli raid northeast of Sea of Galilee. UN
Security Council accepted Israeli contention
of continued Syrian provocation but condemned
Israel's retaliation.
January 2, 1956 ......... Ben-Gurion announced that period of compulsory
national service extended from two and one-half
to three and one-half years. Claimed 884 Israelis
killed or seriously wounded by Arab invaders in
1951-55 period.
July 26, 1956 ........... Egypt announced nationalization of Suez Canal.
October 1956 ............ Jordan joined Egyptian-Syrian pact; during summer
Egypt's forces in Sinai Peninsula significantly
increased.
October 29, 1956 ........ Israeli forces invaded Sinai Peninsula. Fifty-one
villagers killed by Israeli Border Police at Kafr
Qasim.
November 3, 1956 ........ Israeli soldiers panicked and killed 140 refugees and
135 local residents at Khan Yunis in the Gaza
Strip.
November 5, 1956 ........ British and French forces landed at Port Said.
November 6, 1956 ........ Cease-fire went into effect at midnight.
November 12, 1956 ....... Israeli soldiers killed 111 people at Rafah, in
UNRWA (see Glossary) camp in the Gaza Strip.
December 22, 1956 ....... Under strong pressure from the United States,
Soviet Union, and UN, British and French forces
withdrew.
March 6-7, 1957 ......... Israeli forces withdrew from Sharm ash Shaykh
and Gaza Strip.
October 28, 1957 ........ Ben-Zvi elected second five-year term as president.
December 1957 ........... Cabinet voted with one vote majority to buy arms
from West Germany. On December 31 Ben-
Gurion resigned as prime minister but asked by
President Ben-Zvi to form new government.
January 6, 1958 ......... Ben-Gurion formed new government with
membership identical to previous cabinet; minority
members of coalition agreed to principle of
collective cabinet responsibility.
October 15, 1958 ........ Knesset established Land Development Authority
to assume control of land owned by state and
Jewish National Fund, about 90 percent of total
land area.
August 14, 1959 ......... Restrictions on Israeli Arabs in the three areas
under military government and in other "security
zones" relaxed but not removed.
November 3, 1959 ........ General election of Fourth Knesset members.
Mapai increased number of seats it held but
lacked a majority.
December 16, 1959 ....... Ben-Gurion formed new government based on
coalition similar to preceding one.
May 23, 1960 ............ Ben-Gurion informed the Knesset that Adolf
Eichmann, one of the most infamous of Hitler's
aides, kidnapped from Argentina. After long trial,
Eichmann declared guilty and hanged on May 31,
1962.
December 25, 1960 ....... Cabinet committee cleared Pinhas Lavon of charges
of complicity in an espionage operation in Egypt
that Egyptians had discovered.
January 31, 1961 ........ Ben-Gurion had criticized earlier committee
finding, but on January 22 the cabinet again
declared Lavon innocent of wrongdoing. Ben-
Gurion resigned, asking for a judicial inquiry into
Lavon affair, but agreed to head caretaker
government.
February 15, 1961 ....... President requested Ben-Gurion to form new
government.
March 13, 1961 .......... Ben-Gurion unable to form government; president
requested Knesset to make arrangements for
general election.
August 15, 1961 ......... Mapai emerged from general election as largest
party but continued to be short of majority.
November 2, 1961 ........ Ben-Gurion formed government with a coalition
that included the National Religious Party (see
Religious Parties, ch. 3).
October 30, 1962 ........ Ben-Zvi elected to third five-year presidential
term.
April 23, 1963 .......... Ben-Zvi died.
May 21, 1963 ............ Zalman Shazar elected president.
June 16, 1963 ........... Ben-Gurion resigned as prime minister, remained
in Knesset.
June 24, 1963 ........... Levi Eshkol formed new government and assumed
office as prime minister.
December 14, 1964 ....... Eshkol resigned because of bitter conflicts within
Mapai over the Lavon affair; Ben-Gurion
continued to press for a judicial inquiry.
December 22-27, 1964 .... Eshkol formed new government based on same
coalition of parties but some new ministers.
On December 27, new cabinet voted against
a judicial inquiry into the Lavon affair.
November 2, 1965 ........ General election for Knesset. Little change in
party alignments.
January 10, 1966 ........ Eshkol finally able to form a new government.
Abba Eban new foreign minister, Golda Meir
dropped.
February-April 1967 ..... Steady escalation of clashes on Israel-Syria and
Israel-Egypt borders.
May 16-17, 1967 ......... Egypt declared state of emergency; Syria
proclaimed full military alert.
May 18, 1967 ............ Egypt requested immediate withdrawal of
United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF)
units from Egypt-Israel border; units had
been in place since end of 1956 war; UN
Secretary General U Thant said request was
regrettable but would be met.
May 23-24, 1967 ......... Egypt placed blockade on Strait of Tiran and
Gulf of Aqaba, which most states theretofore
had considered international waterways.
May 28, 1967 ............ Egypt warned that it might close the Suez Canal
to some or all ships, ordered UNEF
contingent of Canadians to leave Egypt within
forty-eight hours.
June 1, 1967 ............ Moshe Dayan joined government as defense
minister.
June 4, 1967 ............ Iraq joined Egypt-Jordan Defense Pact
concluded earlier.
June 5, 1967 ............ Israeli aircraft launched attacks that within few
hours destroyed over 400 Arab aircraft,
mostly Egyptian and mostly on the ground,
and thus assured Israel victory in six-day
war.
June 8, 1967 ............ Israeli boats and planes attacked U.S.S. Liberty
in international waters.
June 11, 1967 ........... Israeli vessel sailed through Strait of Tiran and
Gulf of Aqaba. UN cease-fire went into effect
at midnight.
July 1967 ............... United States and other nations opposed and
refused to recognize Israel's annexation of
Old City part of Jerusalem, theretofore under
Jordanian suzerainty.
February 26, 1969 ....... Eshkol, prime minister since 1962, died.
March 17, 1969 .......... Meir, aged 71, became prime minister.
April 1969 .............. Israel paid US $3,566,477 as reparations for 164
men injured during Israeli attacks on U.S.S.
Liberty, June 8, 1967. Israel had earlier paid
US $3,323,500 as reparations for thirty-four
men killed in the attacks.
August 21, 1969 ......... Australian tourist, a Christian fanatic subsequently
judged insane, set fire to Al Aqsa Mosque in
Jerusalem, the third most holy of Islamic shrines
in the world. Many Islamic countries refused to
believe fire had not been set by Israeli
authorities.
October 28, 1969 ........ Election held for Seventh Knesset.
February 15, 1970 ....... Government announced the opening of 264-
kilometer oil pipeline from Eilat to Ashqelon on
Mediterranean Sea. Capacity nearly 20 million
tons annually, potential 60 million tons.
August 19, 1970 ......... After nearly two years of undeclared war of
attrition, Egypt, Israel, and Jordan
accepted a United States-proposed
ninety-day cease-fire. Political group led by
Menachem Begin withdrew from cabinet.
May 17, 1971 ............ Knesset enacted new citizenship law, which
enabled Jews living abroad and intending to
immigrate to Israel to claim Israeli citizenship
while still in country of residence.
September 5-6, 1972 ..... Palestinian terrorists entered living quarters of
athletes at XXth Olympic Games held in Munich,
killed two Israeli athletes, seized nine others
as hostages; terrorists demanded transportation
to airport, flight from country. At airport, West
German security forces attacked, killing five of
eight terrorists, but by that time nine Israelis
had been executed.
September 8, 1972 ....... Israel retaliated with air strikes against Palestine
Liberation Organization (PLO) bases in Lebanon
and Syria.
March 6, 1973 ........... Labor formed coalition government with Meir as
prime minister.
April 10, 1973 .......... Knesset elected Ephraim Katchalski as fourth
president. After election he adopted last name of
Katzir, conforming to policy that Israeli officials
should have Hebrew names.
October 6-24, 1973 ...... Egyptian and Syrian forces launched attacks
across 1967 cease-fire lines. Using giant water
cannon to demolish sand dune barriers on east
side of Suez Canal, Egyptian forces crossed
canal and drove east into Sinai, breaching Bar-
Lev line of fortifications. By October 17 Israelis
had crushed Syrian attacks and driven Syrian
forces back to within artillery range of Damascus,
and Israelis then counterattacked Egyptian
forces. By time cease-fire went into effect on
October 24, an Israeli division had cut between
two major Egyptian armies and crossed the canal,
seemingly isolating and encircling the Egyptian
Third Army.
November 18, 1973 ....... Israeli government established commission to study
state of military intelligence and general state
of military preparedness on the eve of the
Egyptian and Syrian attacks.
December 1, 1973 ........ Ben-Gurion died at age eighty-seven.
December 31, 1973 ....... Eighth general election of Knesset members. Labor
Party, fifty-one seats, Likud, under leadership of
Begin, thirty-nine.
January 17, 1974 ........ Egyptian-Israeli disengagement agreement
concluded.
April 2, 1974 ........... Israeli army chief of staff resigned, other senior
military officers relieved of their commands.
April 11, 1974 .......... Meir, aged seventy-six, resigned as prime minister.
Yitzhak Rabin formed new government, replacing
ministers from National Religious Party with
ministers from Civil Rights Movement. Rabin first
Sabra (see Glossary) and first former professional
soldier to serve as chief of government.
May 1974 ................ Syrians and Israelis concluded disengagement
agreement.
October 29, 1974 ........ National Religious Party rejoined coalition
government, Civil Rights Movement out. Issue of "Who
is a Jew?"-which Orthodox groups wanted
answered in narrow, orthodox, legalistic terms-
referred to a cabinet committee.
December 2, 1974 ........ In speech President Katzir stated, "It has always
been our intention to provide the potential for
nuclear weapons development. We now have that
potential. We will defend this country with all
possible means."
September 4-5, 1975 ..... Egypt and Israel signed disengagement agreement
and each concluded separate agreements with the
United States, all providing for buffer zones east
of the Suez Canal (see Appendix B).
January 27, 1976 ........ Supreme Court ruled that Jews could pray at Al
Aqsa Mosque.
March 21, 1976 .......... Supreme Court reviewed and reversed its January
decision, reaffirming its 1970 ruling that
prohibited use of mosque by Jews.
July 4, 1976 ............ After a seven-day ordeal, Israeli commandos freed
110 hostages held at Entebbe Airport in Uganda
by terrorists allied with the Popular Front for the
Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).
April 8, 1977 ........... Rabin withdrew as Labor candidate as a result of
disclosure that he and wife had maintained illegal
bank accounts abroad.
May 17, 1977 ............ In ninth general election, Likud group under
leadership of Begin emerged as largest party with
forty-three seats. Begin formed new government
in coalition with National Religious Party and
other minor parties. Democratic Movement
for Change (DMC) joined government; its
leader, retired general and famed archaeologist
Yigael Yadin, designated as deputy prime
minister.
