February 28 – Israeli Prime MinisterSharon presents his cabinet for aKnesset "Vote of Confidence". The30th Government is approved that day and the members are sworn in.
May 29 – The Indian Ministry of Defence announces its purchase ofPhalcon early warningradar systems fromIsrael. The contract is worth1.2 billion US dollars.
August 8 – The Lebanese militant groupHezbollah firesartillery towardIsraeli border posts. It was the first such exchange in eight months.[2]
August 10 – A 16-year-old Israeli is killed and five people are wounded inHezbollah shelling of the northern Israeli town ofShlomi. Israeli planes attack Hezbollah targets inLebanon in response.[3]
October 5 – The Israeli Air Forceattacked an alleged Palestinian militant training camp in Ain es Saheb, Syria.
October 6 – In his first public comments since the Israeli attack in Syria, US PresidentGeorge W. Bush says that Israel has the right to defend its homeland; at the same time Mr. Bush asks Prime Minister Sharon to avoid any further actions that might destabilize the region.
May 25 – Israeli Prime MinisterAriel Sharon wins cabinet approval for a peace plan that includes the creation of aPalestinian Arab state by 2005.
May 27 – Israeli prime ministerAriel Sharon states that the "occupation" ofPalestinian territories is "a terrible thing for Israel and for thePalestinians" and "can't continue endlessly." Sharon's phraseology prompts shock from many in Israel, leading to a clarification that by "occupation," Sharon meant control of millions of Palestinian Arab lives rather than actual physical occupation of land.[6]
June 3 – Israel frees about 100Palestinian Arab prisoners before the Mideast peace summit with PresidentGeorge W. Bush in a sign of goodwill.
August 14 – Israel frees another 76 prisoners, a week after releasing more than 300 people. Israel argues that it is a gesture of goodwill and in accordance with agreements. ThePalestinian Authority disagrees and says that most were not arrested forterrorist activities, and that it was the people arrested for the latter that Israel originally agreed to release.[7]
September 7 –Israel's Prime MinisterAriel Sharon declares thatHamas leaders are "marked for death" and will not have a moment's rest, after Israel failed in an attempt to kill the top-ranking members of Hamas with a 550-pound bomb dropped on aGaza City apartment.
September 24 – A protest letter by a group of 27 Israelipilots of theIsraeli air force is publicized. In the letter, the pilots announce their refusal to fly further missions to bomb leaders of Palestinian terrorist groups in civilian areas. The pilots' letter calls the attacks "illegal and immoral". It draws quick condemnation from commentators, from politicians and from military leaders, with calls for severe punishment including jail, although a dismissal is considered the most likely result. The pilots' protest is a reaction to attacks like the one onHamas leaderSalah Shehade in July 2002, which killed Shehade, his bodyguard and 15 civilians, among them nine children.[8][9][10]
October 21 – TheUN General Assembly approves a resolution demanding thatIsrael remove a security fence in theWest Bank. The resolution passes by an overwhelming majority of 144 to 4 with the US voting against the motion.[11][12]
Palestinian militant operations against Israeli targets
April 24 – Kfar Sava train station bombing: A 23-year-old Israeli security guard is killed and 13 others are wounded in a suicide bombing outside of theKfar Saba – Nordau Railway Station. Groups related to theAl-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades and thePFLP claim joint responsibility for the attack.[15]
May 17 – Gross Square attack: An Israeli couple are killed by a Palestinian Arab suicide bomber inHebron.Hamas claims responsibility for the attack.[16]
June 21 – IDF executes Abdullah Qawasmeh, a senior Hamas commander in Hebron believed to be the responsible for the attack on the Goldstein family driving onRoute 60 that killed an American-Israeli and injured 3.
October 5 –Ain es Saheb airstrike: Israeli warplanes attack an allegedIslamic Jihad training base inSyria, 24 kilometres (15 mi) northwest of the Syrian capitalDamascus, in response for asuicide bombing at a Haifa restaurant that killed 21 people. The Israel Defense Forces claimed the camp was used to train recruits in bomb assembly and guerrilla warfare and has released footage of the camp taken from theAl-Arabia TV station showing hundreds of weapons and tunnels packed with arms and ammunition.
December 25 – An Israeli helicopter gunship attacks a car inGaza City, killingIslamic Jihad commander Mekled Hameid and two fellow militants, together with two bystanders.[29]
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