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This site was archived on Aug. 3, 2021. The two-state solution is no longer the most popular solution among the jurisdictions involved. A reconsideration of the topic is possible in the future.
(1929 – 2004)
| DATES | EVENT Chronological Order (oldest first) |
| 1929 | "Yasser Arafat was born in Jerusalem-Palestine in 1929." Yasser Arafat, "Curriculum Vita President Yasser Arafat," PNA website, retrieved 01/05/04 "Yasser Arafat is born, the fifth child of a prosperous Palestinian merchant. Arafat says he was born in Jerusalem, but independent researchers say his birthplace was either Gaza or Cairo, Egypt." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 "Born on August 4, 1929 in Cairo." <PASSIA, "Arafat, Yasser (Abu Amar)", 2003 |
| 1933 | "After his mother’s death, Arafat [age 4] and a younger brother were sent to their uncle in Jerusalem for several years, far from his father and his close family in Cairo. Information on these years is scanty and is primarily based on much later testimonies of his relatives." Dr. Shaul Kimhi, Dr. Shmuel Even, Prof. Jerrold Post, "Yasir ArafatPsychological Profile and Strategic Analysis," The International Policy Institute for Counterterrorism, 2003 |
| 1946 | "By 1946, he [Arafat] had become a Palestinian nationalist and was procuring weapons in Egypt to be smuggled into Palestine for the Arab cause." CNN.com, "Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat," 2004 |
| 1948 | "In the 1948 war, when he was a student in Cairo, he joined a small group of students who attempted to reach Israel to take part in the fighting. When they reached Gaza, a regular Egyptian army unit disarmed them and prevented them from joining in the hostilities." Dr. Shaul Kimhi, Dr. Shmuel Even, Prof. Jerrold Post, "Yasir ArafatPsychological Profile and Strategic Analysis," The International Policy Institute for Counterterrorism, 2003 |
| 1951 - 1957 | "Arafat studies engineering at Cairo University and becomes involved with the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood. He organizes and leads the Union of Palestinian Students." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 "In 1956, Arafat and a group of other middle-class Palestinians living in Kuwait decided to rededicate themselves to the liberation of Palestine and formed their own underground guerrilla organization called al-Fatah ('Victory')." Thomas Friedman, "From Beirut to Jerusalem," p. 110, Anchor Books, 1995 |
| 1964 | "In 1964 the Arab League did create...the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), but it was under Egyptian control and the armed forces connected with it formed part of the armies of Egypt, Syria, Jordan and Iraq." Albert Hourani, A History of the Arab Peoples, p. 412, Warner Books, 1991 |
| 1967 - 1969 | "The 1967 Arab-Israeli war, which brought humiliating defeat to the Arabs' convential armies, gave Mr Arafat's group [Fatah] a chance to become heroes to Arabs desperately in need of some." Judith Miller, "Arafat Was the Symbol of His People's Longing for Identity," New York Times, Obituary, 11/11/04 "Thanks to several courageous confrontations with Israeli troops, Arafat's al-Fatah group achieved the greatest legitimacy among the emerging guerrilla organizations, and this enabled Arafat, in 1969, to wrest control of the PLO away from the discredited Arab states and to turn it into an umbrella organization covering all the Palestinian guerrilla groups, from the far right to the far left...The PLO under Yasir Arafat was the first truly independent Palestinian national movement." Thomas L. Friedman, From Beirut to Jerusalem, p. 111, Anchor Books, 1995 |
| 1970 - 1971 | "Appointed Commander-in-Chief of the all-Palestinian/Arab guerilla forces in September 1970." PASSIA, "Arafat, Yasser (Abu Amar)", 2003 "In Jordan the Palestinian guerrilla organizations created a state within a state that posed a challenge to the rule of King Hussein. The king ordered his army to disarm and break the power of these organizations. In the ensuing civil war thousands of Palestinians were killed, and many more left the country." Avi Shlaim, The Iron Wall, p. 298-299, W.W. Norton & Company, 2001 "After the power of the Fatah and other [Palestinian] guerrilla organizations in Jordan was broken in 1970, their main efforts were concentrated in southern Lebanon." Albert Hourani, A History of the Arab Peoples, p. 430, Warner Book Edition, 1991 |
| 1974 | "[Arafat] agreed to ‘liberate Palestine by stages’ at the PNC [Palestine National Council] conference of 1974; addressed the UN General Assembly in New York for the first time on 13 Nov. 1974, saying he bore an olive branch (for peace) in one hand, and a gun (for war) in the other." PASSIA, "Arafat, Yasser (Abu Amar)", 2003 "[U.N.] General Assembly recognizes 'the right of the Palestinian people to sovereignty and national independence' and gives the PLO observer status at the world organization." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 1975 | "Arafat stood fast to his refusal to acknowledge Israel’s right to exist, thus ignoring two specific U.N. Security Council resolutions. For this inflexibility, the U.S. began a ban on speaking to the PLO in 1975." A&E Television Networks, "Arafat, Yasser", 2000 |
| 1982 June 6 | "In June 1982, Israel retaliated for a series of PLO raids by launching an all-out counterattack that destroyed PLO headquarters in Beirut, Lebanon." CNN.com, "Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat," 2004 |
| 1983 | "After being expelled from Lebanon, Arafat established headquarters in Tunisia." CNN.com, "Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat," 2004 |
| 1986 | "Frustrated by Arafat's refusal to accept U.N. resolutions as a basis for peace talks, Jordan's King Hussein severs links with the PLO." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 1988 | "The United States refuses Arafat a visa to address the U.N. General Assembly in New York. The assembly later votes to move the meeting to Geneva." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 "Arafat addresses the General Assembly in Geneva, renouncing terrorism and calling for negotiations with Israel." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 "In 1988, Arafat proclaimed an independent Palestinian state on the West Bank and Gaza and told the United Nations that the PLO renounced terrorism. He said the PLO supported the right of all parties to live in peace -- Israel included." CNN.com, "Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat," 2004 "President Reagan ends a 13-year ban on talks with the PLO." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 1990 | "Mr. Arafat's support for President Hussein in the Persian Gulf war enraged his remaining wealthy Arab patrons. The Persian Gulf states and other backers cut off at least $100 million in annual support, and the PLO became even more isolated." Judith Miller, "Arafat was the Symbol of his People's Longing for Identity," New York Times, Obituary 2003 "His [Arafat's] support of Saddam Hussein during the Gulf War severely damaged the status of the Palestinians and led to the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of them [Palestinians] from the Persian Gulf states." Dr. Shaul Kimhi, Dr. Shmuel Even, Prof. Jerrold Post, "Yasir ArafatPsychological Profile and Strategic Analysis," The International Policy Institute for Counterterrorism, 2003 |
| 1991 November | "In 1990 he [Arafat] married 26-year-old Palestinian Suha Tawil, daughter of a wealthy Christian family. The marriage was kept secret for 15 months and Suha converted to Islam during that time. Suha gave birth to their daughter, Zahwa, in 1996." Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, "Yasser Arafat," 2001 |
| 1992 | "Following an airplane accident in the Libyan Desert (April 1992), he sustained a head injury and underwent an operation to drain blood clots." Dr. Shaul Kimhi, Dr. Shmuel Even, Prof. Jerrold Post, "Yasir ArafatPsychological Profile and Strategic Analysis," The International Policy Institute for Counterterrorism, 2003 |
| 1993 Sept. 9 | "As the world watched in wonder, on Thursday, September 9, Norwegian foreign minister Johan Joergan Holst carried a letter from Arafat to Rabin recognizing Israel, renouncing violence, and pledging support for repeal of clauses objectionable to Israel in the PLO charter." Ian J. Bickerton & Carla L. Klausner, A Concise History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict p. 263-264, fourth edition, Prentice Hall, 2002 |
| 1994 | "Arafat returns [July 1] to the Gaza Strip after a 25-year exile." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 "Received Laureate Nobel Peace Prize." Yasser Arafat, "Curriculum Vita President Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 1996 | "On January 20, 1996, Palestinians held their first elections. Yasser Arafat was elected president of the PA [Palestinian Authority] (the Palestinians refer to it as the Palestinian National Authority), and 88 others were elected to sit on a Palestinian Legislative Council. Arafat established a Cabinet for the Palestinian Authority that was approved by the legislative council." CNN.com, "The Palestinian Government," 2004 |
| 1998 Oct. 23 | "Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agree on an interim land-for-peace deal on the West Bank at Wye River, Maryland." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 1999 | An agreement [which set out a timetable for a permanent peace settlement] was signed [by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian Chairman Yasser Arafat] on September 4, 1999, at Sharm al-Sheikh." Ian J. Bickerton & Carla L. Klausner, A Concise History of the Arab-Israeli Conflict p. 324, fourth edition, Prentice Hall, 2002 [November 28] "twenty Palestinian intellectuals, political leaders and lawmakers sign a petition calling Arafat's government 'corrupt, unjust and manipulative.' Arafat cracks down harshly on the signatories, arresting 11 of them. The nine lawmakers who signed are immune from arrest, but two say they were attacked by Palestinian police." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 2000 July 11 | "President Clinton convenes talks with [Israeli Prime Minister] Barak and Arafat at Camp David. The summit ends with no agreement. Barak concedes more than his predecessors -- including a stake in Jerusalem -- but Arafat balks at giving up the right of return of Palestinian refugees." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 2001 Oct. 17 | "Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Zeevi is shot dead in a Jerusalem hotel by members of a radical Palestinian group. Israel's Cabinet meets in emergency session and demands that Arafat hand over those responsible." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 2001 Dec. 3 | "In the wake of three suicide bombings Israel destroys Arafat's three helicopters in Gaza City, grounding him and effectively confining him to Ramallah." USA Today, "Chronology Arafat's confinement by Israel," 2003 |
| 2002 January 17 | "The military wing of the radical Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) threaten to assassinate Yasser Arafat and his aides if they do not release PFLP leader Ahmed Saadat, who Mr Arafat had arrested. Israel accuses Mr Saadat of being behind the killing in October of the Israeli tourism minister, Rehavam Zeevi." Guardian, "Middle East timeline 2002: January to March," 2002 |
| 2002 Jan. 18 | "A day after a Palestinian gunman kills six Israelis at a banquet hall, two Israeli tanks and an armored personnel carrier park outside Arafat's Ramallah headquarters, confining him to his office complex." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 2002 March 29 | "Israeli tanks and bulldozers attack Yasser Arafat's Ramallah compound, the Palestinian leader is confined to the basement and vows that he would rather die than surrender. It is first stage of what the Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, says would be a "long and complicated war that knows no borders." Guardian, "Middle East timeline 2002: January to March," 2002 |
| 2002 April 2 | "Arafat, responding to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's offer of permanent exile, says he will rather die than leave the West Bank." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 2002 April 14 | "Secretary of State Colin Powell holds more than three hours of talks with Arafat in his Ramallah compound." Associated Press, "Key Dates in the Life of Yasser Arafat," 2003 |
| 2002 April 25 | "Yasser Arafat moves to end his month-long incarceration within his Ramallah headquarters by putting on trial and sentencing four Palestinian militants wanted by Israel for assassinating a cabinet minister last year." Guardian, "Middle East timeline 2002: April to June," 2002 |
| 2002 May 1 | "Yasser Arafat's five-month imprisonment in his Ramallah headquarters draws to an end as the Palestinians hand over six high-profile prisoners to Anglo-American custody." Guardian, "Middle East timeline 2002: April to June," 2002 |
| 2003 February | "Arafat proposed changes to the PA's [Palestinian Authority's] basic law [1968 Charter], which functions like a constitution, in February 2003 under pressure from the so-called international 'quartet' - the United States, Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations." CNN.com, "The Palestinian Government," 2004 |
| 2004 November 11 | "Underwent medical checks and treatment at the Percy Military Teaching Hospital in Clamart, outside Paris, from 29 October 2004 but failed to recover and was pronounced dead on 11 November 2004." PASSIA, "Arafat, Yasser (Abu Amar)", 2003 |