1959
Secret foundation of “Palestinian Liberation
Committee,” soon renamed “Fatah” (meaning
“conquest,” a reverse acronym of “Harakat Al-Tahrir Al-Watani Al-Filastini” - “the Movement for the
National Liberation of Palestine”) by Yasser Arafat and others
1964
Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) founded
with aim of destroying Israel
1965
Left-wing political party “Ha-olam Hazeh - Koah
Hadash” founded
Uri Avnery elected to Israeli Parliament (the Knesset) to represent the recently founded party. Remains in parlia-mentfor two legislative periods until 1973
1967
June: Six Day War. Israeli Army conquers Sinai
Peninsula, Gaza Strip, Jordanian-controlled areas
West of Jordan River (West Bank), and Golan
Heights, after Egyptian government forces expel UN
observers from Israeli-Egyptian border and block
Israeli shipping through Red Sea
22 November: UN Security Resolution 242 calls for
Israeli withdrawal and peace settlement
1973
6 October: Start of “Yom Kippur War” (October
War). Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat launches
surprise attack on Israeli Army along Suez Canal on
Jewish Day of Atonement, and Syria attacks Golan
Heights. Israeli Army initially under threat but finally gains upper hand. Though a military defeat for Sadat,
the war is a political success, paving the way for the
first negotiations with Israel
1974
First secret contacts between Uri Avnery and official
representatives of the PLO in London
1975
Israeli Council for Israeli-Palestinian Peace founded
1977
19 November: Surprise visit to Israel by Egyptian
President Anwar al-Sadat, opens new stage in rela-
tions between Israel and its neighbor. Sadat receives
Nobel Peace Prize in 1978 together with Israeli Prime
Minister Menachem Begin
1979
26 March: Egypt and Israel sign a peace treaty