(Reuters) – Israeli air strikes hit Gaza and the militant Islamic Jihad group fired rockets into Israel on Sunday, the third day of violence that has killed about 30 Palestinians and sent Israelis in southern areas and cities including Tel Aviv into shelters.
It marks the most serious escalation between Palestinian militants in Gaza and Israel since an 11-day war in May 2021.
The following timeline, which begins with Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, includes the major flare-ups between Israel and Palestinian groups in the crowded coastal enclave, which is home to 2.3 million people:
August 2005 – Israeli forces unilaterally withdraw from Gaza 38 years after capturing it from Egypt in a Middle East war, abandoning settlements and leaving the densely populated enclave under the control of the Palestinian Authority.
Jan. 25, 2006 – The Islamist group Hamas wins a majority of seats in a Palestinian legislative election. Israel and the United States cut off aid to Palestinians because Hamas refuses to renounce violence and recognise Israel.
June 25, 2006 – Hamas militants capture Israeli army conscript Gilad Shalit in a cross-border raid from Gaza, prompting Israeli air strikes and incursions. Shalit is finally freed over five years later in a prisoner exchange.
June 14, 2007 – Hamas takes over Gaza in a brief civil war, ousting Fatah forces loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is based in the West Bank.
Dec. 27, 2008 – Israel launches a 22-day military offensive in Gaza after Palestinians fire rockets at the southern Israeli town of Sderot. About 1,400 Palestinians and 13 Israelis are reported killed before a ceasefire is agreed.
Nov. 14, 2012 – Israel kills Hamas’s military chief of staff, Ahmad Jabari, and eight days of Palestinian militant rocket fire and Israeli air strikes follow.
July-August 2014 – The kidnap and killing of three Israeli teenagers by Hamas leads to a seven-week war in which more than 2,100 Palestinians are reported killed in Gaza and 73 Israelis are reported killed, 67 of them military.
March 2018 – Palestinian protests begin at Gaza’s fenced border with Israel and Israeli troops open fire to keep them back. More than 170 Palestinians are reported killed in several months of protests, which also prompt fighting between Hamas and Israeli forces.
May 2021 – After weeks of tension during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, hundreds of Palestinians are injured in clashes with Israeli security forces at the Al Aqsa compound in Jerusalem, Islam’s third holiest site.
After demanding Israel withdraw security forces from the Al Aqsa compound, Hamas unleashes a barrage of rockets from Gaza into Israel. Israel hits back with air strikes on Gaza. Fighting goes on for 11 days, killing at least 250 people in Gaza and 13 in Israel.
Aug. 5, 2022 – Israel kills at least 10 people including a senior Islamic Jihad commander, hitting what it calls a series of military targets in Gaza. Islamic Jihad fires dozens of rockets into Israel in response.
Hamas stays out of the fighting.
Aug. 6 – Israeli air strikes continue to pound Gaza while Islamic Jihad fires hundreds more rockets. The death toll in Gaza climbs to 24, including six children, according to the Gaza health ministry. Egypt says it is in intensive talks to calm the situation.
Aug. 7 – Rockets fired from Gaza reach as far as 5 km (3 miles) west of Jerusalem, causing no casualties but signalling new range. The death toll in Gaza reaches around 30. There are tensions over Jewish visitors at the Al Aqsa mosque compound.
(Compiled by Tom Perry and Timothy Heritage; editing by Mark Heinrich)
