c 23000 BC		Stone Age peoples inhabit the area around the Sea of Galilee.
c 7000 BC		First towns and villages established by Canaanite migrants from the north.
c 3100 BC		Canaanite civilisation develops - collection of city states under Egyptian rule, including Jerusalem.
c 1100 BC		Former Egyptian slaves (Hebrews) conquer Canaanites and settle in the area.
c 1180 BC		Philistine invaders from Crete settle on the coastal plain of Palestine.
c 1020 BC		Hebrews conquer the Philistines and establish first Jewish Kingdom.
960 BC		Temple of Jerusalem first built.
930 BC		Kingdom split into Israel (Northern Kingdom) and Judah (or Judea).
722 BC		Israel crushed by Assyrian invasion.
606 BC		Jews exiled from Israel to Babylon (Iraq) - start of diaspora.
536 BC		Media-Persia Empire under Cyrus overthrows Babylonian Empire.
332 BC		Alexander the Great defeats Darius and conquers the region.
168 BC		Independent Jewish kingdom revived (Hasmonean Period).
63 BC		Jerusalem captured by the Roman Army - region becomes part of Roman Empire.
66 AD		Jewish revolt against the Romans.
73 AD		Last stand of the Jews at Masada.
132 AD		Uprising against Roman rule.
135 AD		Roman Army crushes Jewish revolt. Judea renamed Palestine. Many Jews forced into exile in other parts of the Empire.
313 AD		Area falls under the control of the Byzantine Empire.
614		Persian invasion, but recaptured by Byzantines in 629.
636		Arab invaders under Caliph Omar take control of the area, but Jewish minority remains.
691		Dome of the Rock built on site of Temple of Jerusalem.
800		Emperor Charlemagne allows Jews to settle in Germany - later known as Ashkenazi Jews.
1071		Seljuk Turks take control of Jerusalem.
1099		Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem established by Crusaders.
1291		Mamluk (Mameluke) Sultanate of Egypt defeats the last Crusader state.
1517		Mamluk Sultanate conquered by Ottoman Empire.
1785		Palestinian population reaches a low point of 350,000.
1882		First large scale immigration starts - mostly from Russia, (First Aliyah).
29 Aug 1897		First Zionist Congress held (in Switzerland) - sets up group to work for establishment of Jewish homeland.
1909		Tel Aviv founded - first modern all-Jewish city.
9 Dec 1917		British forces capture Jerusalem from Ottoman Army. Occupation of Palestine completed in 1918.
2 Nov 1919		Balfour Declaration - promising support in establishing a Jewish national home in Palestine.
April 1920		Conference of San Remo - began creation of mandate for British rule of Palestine.
1920		Haganah (Jewish defence organisation) set up.
1922		Transjordan detached from Palestine mandate territory
1923		Jewish Agency established to represent Jewish community. Officially recognised in 1929.
1932-35		Major Jewish and Arab immigration to Palestine (0.5 million).
1936-38		Arab revolt against British rule and Jewish immigration.
1937		British government proposes partition of Palestine. Opposed by Arabs.
1939		Limit on Jewish immigration imposed by British government to quell Arab unrest.
1939-45		Jewish personnnel serve in British and US armed forces during WW2.
15 May 1941		Palmach established by British military and Haganah to help defend Palestine. Later ordered to disband but went underground.
1945-47		Terrorist attacks on British security forces by Jewish extremist groups.
22 July 1946		Bomb attack on British security forces base in King David Hotel by Jewish terrorists.
April 1947		Britain refers Jewish immigration issue to the UN.
29 Nov 1947		United Nations approves plan for dividing Palestine into Arab and Jewish states.
14 May 1948		State of Israel established - Tel Aviv becomes capital city.
15 May 1948		Neighbouring Arab countries invade Israel - War of Independence starts.
July 1949		UN negotiated armistice begins. De facto borders established, giving Israel much more land than original UN plan.
1948-52		Mass immigration from Europe and Arab countries.
11 May 1949		Israel joins United Nations
23 Jan 1950		Jerusalem officially becomes capital of Israel.
29 October 1956		Start of Sinai Campaign alongside British & French assault on Suez Canal Zone.
6 Nov 1956		UN mediated ceasefire starts. USA forces Israeli withdrawal from all captured territory.
June 1964		Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) established with Egyptian support.
16 May 1967		UN truce monitoring force ordered out of Sinai by Egypt.
5 June 1967		Six Day War against Egypt, Syria and Jordan. Israel annexes Gaza Strip, Sinai Peninsula, Golan Heights and the West Bank of the Jordan river
1968-1970		War of Attrition pursued by Egypt.
6 Oct 1973		Yom Kippur War - surprise attack by Egypt and Syria on Yom Kippur day.
14 March 1978		Operation Litani - attack on PLO positions in southern Lebanon.
17 Sept 1978		Camp David Accords on Middle East peace
26 March 1979		Peace treaty with Egypt signed in Washington DC.
7 June 1981		Israeli Air Force destroys Iraq's nuclear reactor near Baghdad.
25 April 1982		Israel completes withdrawal from Sinai - returned to Egyptian control.
6 June 1982		Israel invades Lebanon - Operation Peace for Galilee. PLO forced to leave Lebanon.
June 1985		Phased Israeli army withdrawal from Lebanon completed.
5 Oct 1986		Media reports appear that Israel has had a nuclear weapons programme since the 1960s.
9 Dec 1987		Intifada (uprising) starts in Palestinian territories against Israeli rule. (Lasts until 1991). Hamas militant group established.
Nov 1988		PLO recognises existence of Israel.
1989		Start of mass immigration of Jews from former Soviet Union. Many new settlements built to house newcomers - including in West Bank and Gaza.
Jan 1991		First Gulf War - Israel attacked by Iraqi Scud missiles.
May 1991		Operation Solomon - airlift of Jews from Ethiopia.
13 Sept 1993		Oslo Accords endorse Palestinian automony.
13 May 1994		Palestinian self-government starts in Gaza Strip and Jericho. Fatah party takes all key positions.
Sept 1995		Palestinian autonomy extended to most of West Bank.
1996		Fundamentalist Arab terrorist attacks on Israel escalate.
11 Apr 1996		Operation Grapes of Wrath - retaliation for Hizbollah attacks on northern Israel.
23 Oct 1998		Wye River Memorandum between Israel and PLO.
May 2000		Israel withdraws from security zone in Southern Lebanon.
Sept 2000		Second Intifada begins.
April 2002		Operation Defensive Shield - anti-terrorist incursion by IDF units into the West Bank.
2003		Start of construction of 'Security Barrier' physically separating Israeli and Palestinian territory
Sept 2005		Completion of unilateral disengagement from Gaza Strip - Israeli settlements abandoned.
27 Oct 2005		Iranian president calls for Israel to be 'wiped out from the map'.
28 June 2006		Military operations against Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip.
12 July 2006		Second Lebanon War starts after two Israeli soldiers kidnapped by Hezbollah.
14 Aug 2006		Second Lebanon War ends with UN arranged ceasefire.
17 March 2007		Joint Fatah-Hamas Palestinian unity government formed.