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In late 1947, the UN voted to establish the British-ruled territory of Palestine into a partitioned Jewish and Arab state. Clashes began and when the British withdrew from the country on May 15, 1948, Israel declared its independence. The next day, military forces from Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq attacked. By early 1949, Israel managed to capture most of the land and in July 1949 a cease fire agreement was signed between Israel and its neighbouring countries to put an end the war. -
By June 1967, tensions were at an all-time high in the Middle East after Israel captured the Suez Canal in 1956. Following a closing of the Straits of Tiran to Israel vessels and mobilization of the military by the Egyptian president, Israel attacked Egypt. Attacks followed from Syria and Jordan. After only six days, Israel had won the war and seized control of the Golan Heights, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and the Sinai Peninsula. -
On Yom Kippur (one of the holiest days on the Jewish calendar), Egyptian and Syrian forces attacked Israel leading to many casualties on both sides. The war lasted more than five years and over came to an end through several cease fire agreements. On March 26, 1979 Israel signed a peace treaty with Egypt. Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt and Egypt officially recognized Israel's right to exist. -
In June 1982, the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) attempted to assassinate an Israeli ambassador in London. Israel responded with bombing PLO strongholds in Lebanon. A series of back and forth attacks ensued, Syrian troops joined the fight, but Israel quickly surrounded Lebanon's capital. The fighting continued until 1985 with the gradual withdrawal of Israeli troops from Lebanon and Israel built a 9-mile security fence along their shared border. -
In July 2006, the terrorist group called Hezbollah launched on attack on Israel in hopes of releasing Lebanese prisoners. They captured two Israeli soldiers, sparking a war between Israel and Hezbollah. The war only lasted 34 days but over a thousand civilians were killed and over a million were displaced. Hezbollah is said to have fired nearly 4000 rockets into Israel during the war.