2003 in the Palestinian territories
Encyclopedia
Events in the year 2003 in the Palestinian territories
.
(non-state administrative authority)
Notable Palestinian militant operations against Israeli targets
The most prominent Palestinian militant acts and operations
committed against Israeli targets during 2003 include:
Notable Israeli military operations against Palestinian militancy targets
The most prominent Israeli military counter-terrorism
operations (military campaign
s and military operations) carried out against Palestinian militants during 2003 include:
Palestinian territories
The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...
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Incumbents
Palestinian National AuthorityPalestinian National Authority
The Palestinian Authority is the administrative organization established to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip...
(non-state administrative authority)
- PresidentPresident of the Palestinian National AuthorityThe President of the Palestinian National Authority is the highest-ranking political position in the Palestinian National Authority ....
- Yasser ArafatYasser ArafatMohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini , popularly known as Yasser Arafat or by his kunya Abu Ammar , was a Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Prize. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority...
(FatahFatahFataḥ is a major Palestinian political party and the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization , a multi-party confederation. In Palestinian politics it is on the left-wing of the spectrum; it is mainly nationalist, although not predominantly socialist. Its official goals are found...
) - Prime Minister - Mahmoud AbbasMahmoud AbbasMahmoud Abbas , also known by the kunya Abu Mazen , has been the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation since 11 November 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on 15 January 2005 on the Fatah ticket.Elected to serve until 9 January 2009, he unilaterally...
(FatahFatahFataḥ is a major Palestinian political party and the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization , a multi-party confederation. In Palestinian politics it is on the left-wing of the spectrum; it is mainly nationalist, although not predominantly socialist. Its official goals are found...
) from March 19 until September 6, Ahmed QureiAhmed QureiAhmed Ali Mohammed Qurei , also known by his Arabic Kunya Abu Alaa is a former prime minister of the Palestinian Authority...
(FatahFatahFataḥ is a major Palestinian political party and the largest faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization , a multi-party confederation. In Palestinian politics it is on the left-wing of the spectrum; it is mainly nationalist, although not predominantly socialist. Its official goals are found...
)
Events
- March 19, Mahmoud AbbasMahmoud AbbasMahmoud Abbas , also known by the kunya Abu Mazen , has been the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation since 11 November 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on 15 January 2005 on the Fatah ticket.Elected to serve until 9 January 2009, he unilaterally...
is appointed as the first Prime Minister of the Palestinian AuthorityPalestinian National AuthorityThe Palestinian Authority is the administrative organization established to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip...
. - September 6, Ahmed QureiAhmed QureiAhmed Ali Mohammed Qurei , also known by his Arabic Kunya Abu Alaa is a former prime minister of the Palestinian Authority...
replaces Mahmoud AbbasMahmoud AbbasMahmoud Abbas , also known by the kunya Abu Mazen , has been the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation since 11 November 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on 15 January 2005 on the Fatah ticket.Elected to serve until 9 January 2009, he unilaterally...
as Prime Minister of the Palestinian AuthorityPalestinian National AuthorityThe Palestinian Authority is the administrative organization established to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip...
.
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
The most prominent events related to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict which occurred during 2003 include:- March 16 – Rachel CorrieRachel CorrieRachel Aliene Corrie was an American member of the International Solidarity Movement . She was killed in the Gaza Strip by an Israel Defence Forces bulldozer when she was standing or kneeling in front of a local Palestinian's home, thus acting as a human shield, attempting to prevent the IDF from...
, an American member of the International Solidarity MovementInternational Solidarity MovementThe International Solidarity Movement is an organization focused on assisting the Palestinian cause in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict using nonviolent protests. It was founded in 2001 by Ghassan Andoni, a Palestinian activist; Neta Golan, an Israeli activist; Huwaida Arraf, a...
in RafahRafahRafah , also known as Rafiah, is a Palestinian city in the southern Gaza Strip. Located south of Gaza, Rafah's population of 71,003 is overwhelmingly made up of Palestinian refugees. Rafah camp and Tall as-Sultan form separate localities. Rafah is the district capital of the Rafah Governorate...
, in the Gaza StripGaza Stripthumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
, is killed in a residential area of RafahRafahRafah , also known as Rafiah, is a Palestinian city in the southern Gaza Strip. Located south of Gaza, Rafah's population of 71,003 is overwhelmingly made up of Palestinian refugees. Rafah camp and Tall as-Sultan form separate localities. Rafah is the district capital of the Rafah Governorate...
by an Israel Defense ForcesIsrael Defense ForcesThe Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
(IDF) bulldozer while she was kneeling in front of the home of a local Palestinian ArabPalestinian peopleThe Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
, acting as a human shieldHuman shieldHuman shield is a military and political term describing the deliberate placement of civilians in or around combat targets to deter an enemy from attacking those targets. It may also refer to the use of civilians to literally shield combatants during attacks, by forcing the civilians to march in...
and attempting to prevent IDF forces from demolishing the home. The IDF has claimed that the death was due to the restricted angle of view of the IDF Caterpillar D9IDF Caterpillar D9The Israeli Armored CAT D9 — nicknamed Doobi — is a Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozer that was modified by the Israel Defence Forces, Israeli Military Industries and Israel Aerospace Industries to increase the survivability of the armored bulldozer in hostile environments and enable it...
bulldozer driver, while ISM eyewitnesses said "there was nothing to obscure the driver's view." - March 24 – Hilltop 26Hilltop 26Hilltop, outpost or lot 26 was an Israeli outpost founded by Netanel Ozeri. It was founded near the city of Hebron in the Judean Hills of the West Bank. It lay approximately 100 metres from the Kiryat Arba settlement. At the time of its destruction, it had a population of around ten.The settlement...
, an illegal Israeli settlement near the city of HebronHebronHebron , is located in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judean Mountains, it lies 930 meters above sea level. It is the largest city in the West Bank and home to around 165,000 Palestinians, and over 500 Jewish settlers concentrated in and around the old quarter...
, is peacefully dismantled by the IDF. - April 30 – A road map for peaceRoad map for peaceThe roadmap for peace or "road map" for peace is a plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict proposed by a "quartet" of international entities: the United States, the European Union, Russia, and the United Nations. The principles of the plan, originally drafted by U.S. Foreign Service...
sponsored by the US, UN, EU, and Russia is delivered to the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority. - May 25 – Israeli Prime Minister Ariel SharonAriel SharonAriel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
wins cabinet approval for a peace plan that includes the creation of a Palestinian Arab state by 2005. - May 27 – Israeli prime minister Ariel SharonAriel SharonAriel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
states that the "occupation" of Palestinian territoriesPalestinian territoriesThe Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...
is "a terrible thing for Israel and for the Palestinians" 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. - June 3 – Israel frees about 100 Palestinian ArabPalestinian peopleThe Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
prisoners before the Mideast peace summit with President George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
in a sign of goodwill. - June 4 – "Road map" for peaceRoad map for peaceThe roadmap for peace or "road map" for peace is a plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict proposed by a "quartet" of international entities: the United States, the European Union, Russia, and the United Nations. The principles of the plan, originally drafted by U.S. Foreign Service...
: IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i Prime Minister SharonAriel SharonAriel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
promises to dismantle illegal settlements in the West BankWest BankThe West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
, while new Palestinian AuthorityPalestinian National AuthorityThe Palestinian Authority is the administrative organization established to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip...
Prime Minister Mahmoud AbbasMahmoud AbbasMahmoud Abbas , also known by the kunya Abu Mazen , has been the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation since 11 November 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on 15 January 2005 on the Fatah ticket.Elected to serve until 9 January 2009, he unilaterally...
renounces all terrorism against Israel. - 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. The Palestinian Authority disagrees and says that most were not arrested for terroristTerrorismTerrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
activities, and that it was the people arrested for the latter that Israel originally agreed to release. - September 7 – Israel's Prime Minister Ariel SharonAriel SharonAriel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
declares that HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
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 a Gaza City apartment. - September 24 – A protest letter by a group of 27 Israeli pilotsAviatorAn aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...
to the Israeli air forceIsraeli Air ForceThe Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
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 on HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
leader Salah Shehade in July 2002, which killed Shehade, his bodyguard and 15 civilians, among them nine children. - October 21 – The UN General Assembly approves a resolution demanding that IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
remove a security fence in the West BankWest BankThe West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
. The resolution passes by an overwhelming majority of 144 to 4 with the US voting against the motion.
Notable Palestinian militant operations against Israeli targets
Palestinian political violence
Palestinian political violence refers to acts of violence undertaken to further the Palestinian cause. These political objectives include self-determination in and sovereignty over Palestine, the liberation of Palestine and establishment of a Palestinian state, either in place of both Israel and...
committed against Israeli targets during 2003 include:
- January 5 – Tel Aviv central bus station massacre: Two Palestinian Arab suicide bombers blow themselves up about two minutes apart at a crowded neighborhood near the Old Tel Aviv Central Bus StationOld Tel Aviv Central Bus StationThe Old Tel Aviv Central Bus Station was the main bus station of Tel Aviv between the years 1941 until 1993. The station served intercity bus routes as well as local city and suburban buses...
, killing 23 Israelis and wounding 80 others. Both the Islamic Jihad and HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
claim responsibility for the double bombing. - January 13 – Tel Aviv suicide bombing
- March 5 – Haifa bus 37 suicide bombingHaifa bus 37 massacreThe Haifa bus 37 suicide bombing was a terrorist attack on a civilian bus in Haifa by a member of the militant organization Hamas.-The attack:...
: A HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
suicide bomber kills 17 people and wounds 53 when he detonates a bomb hidden under his clothing on an Egged bus No. 37 in HaifaHaifaHaifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
. - March 30 – London Cafe bombing
- 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 the Kfar Saba – Nordau Railway Station. Groups related to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' BrigadesAl-Aqsa Martyrs' BrigadesThe al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades is a coalition of Palestinian nationalist militias in the West Bank. The group's name refers to the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem...
and the PFLP claim joint responsibility for the attack. - April 30 – Mike's Place bombing: A MuslimMuslimA Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
British citizen suicide bomber blows himself up at "Mike's Place", a Tel AvivTel AvivTel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
restaurant, killing four Israelis and injuring 50 others. HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
and Al-Aqsa Martyrs' BrigadesAl-Aqsa Martyrs' BrigadesThe al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades is a coalition of Palestinian nationalist militias in the West Bank. The group's name refers to the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem...
claim joint responsibility for the attack. - May 17 – Gross Square attack: An Israeli couple are killed by a Palestinian Arab suicide bomber in HebronHebronHebron , is located in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judean Mountains, it lies 930 meters above sea level. It is the largest city in the West Bank and home to around 165,000 Palestinians, and over 500 Jewish settlers concentrated in and around the old quarter...
. HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
claims responsibility for the attack. - May 18 – Jerusalem bus 6 bombing: A Palestinian Arab suicide bomber kills seven Israelis and wounds 20 on a bus in Jerusalem's French HillFrench HillFrench Hill , also Giv'at Shapira is a neighborhood in northeastern Jerusalem. It is located on territory occupied during the Six-Day War in 1967, later annexed to Israel under the Jerusalem Law in 1980...
district. HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
claims responsibility for the attack. - May 19 – Kfar DaromKfar DaromKfar Darom was a kibbutz and an Israeli settlement within the Gush Katif bloc in the Gaza Strip.-Original kibbutz:Kfar Darom was founded on 250 dunams of land purchased in 1930 by Tuvia Miller for a fruit orchard on the site of an ancient Jewish settlement of the same name mentioned in the Talmud...
bombing attack - May 19 – Kenyon Afula bombing: A suicide bomber blows herself up at the entrance to a mall in the northern Israeli town of AfulaAfulaAfula is a city in the North District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley", referring to the Jezreel Valley. The city had a population of 40,500 at the end of 2009.-History:...
. Three people are killed and about 60 wounded. Islamic JihadIslamic Jihad Movement in PalestineThe Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine known in the West as simply Palestinian Islamic Jihad , is a small Palestinian militant organization. The group has been labelled as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia and Israel...
and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' BrigadesAl-Aqsa Martyrs' BrigadesThe al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades is a coalition of Palestinian nationalist militias in the West Bank. The group's name refers to the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem...
both claim responsibility for the attack. - May 22 – NetzarimNetzarim (settlement)Netzarim was formerly an Israeli settlement established in Gaza in 1972. It began as a secular Nahal outpost of the Hashomer Hatzair movement; in 1984 it became an orthodox kibbutz. A few years later, the residents decided to change from a kibbutz to a village...
bus bombing - June 11 – Jerusalem bus 14A attack: Disguised as an Orthodox JewOrthodox JudaismOrthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
, a Palestinian Arab suicide bomber blows up a bus in Jerusalem, Israel, killing at least sixteen Israelis. - June 19 – Sdei-Trumot bombing: An Israeli shopkeeper is killed in the moshavMoshavMoshav is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists during the second aliyah...
of Sdei Trumot when a Palestinian Arab suicide bomber blows himself up inside the shop. Islamic JihadIslamic Jihad Movement in PalestineThe Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine known in the West as simply Palestinian Islamic Jihad , is a small Palestinian militant organization. The group has been labelled as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia and Israel...
claimed responsibility for the attack. - July 7 – Kfar Yavetz bombing: A Palestinian Arab suicide bomber blows himself up inside a residential home in Moshav Kfar Yavetz, killing a 65-year-old Israeli woman and lightly wounding three of her grandchildren. Islamic JihadIslamic Jihad Movement in PalestineThe Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine known in the West as simply Palestinian Islamic Jihad , is a small Palestinian militant organization. The group has been labelled as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia and Israel...
claims responsibility for the attack. - August 12 – Bus station Ariel bombing: Two Israelis are killed and about a dozen are wounded in two separate suicide bombings by Palestinian Arab terrorists in the towns of Rosh Ha'ayin and ArielAriel (city)Ariel is an Israeli settlement and a city in the West Bank. Ariel was established in 1978. Its population at the end of 2009 was 17,600, including 7,000 immigrants who came to Israel after 1990. It is the fourth largest Jewish settlement city in the West Bank., after Modi'in Illit, Beitar Illit,...
. HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' BrigadesAl-Aqsa Martyrs' BrigadesThe al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades is a coalition of Palestinian nationalist militias in the West Bank. The group's name refers to the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem...
claim responsibility for the attacks. - August 12 – Rosh Ha'ayin bombing: A 43-year-old Israeli is killed by a teenage Palestinian suicide bomber who detonated himself in a Rosh Ha'ayin supermarket.
- August 19 – Jerusalem bus 2 suicide bombingJerusalem bus 2 massacreThe Shmuel HaNavi bus bombing was the suicide bombing of a crowded public bus in the Shmuel HaNavi quarter in Jerusalem, Israel, on August 19, 2003. Twenty-three people were killed and over 130 wounded. Many of the victims were children...
: A Hamas-affiliated Palestinian Arab, disguised as a Haredi Jew, blows himself up with a bomb spiked with ball-bearings on an Egged bus No. 2 in Jerusalem, crowded with children. 23 Israelis are killed and over 130 are wounded, all civilians. - September 9 – Tzrifin attack: A Palestinian Arab suicide bomber kills at least eight Israelis and seriously wounds 15 others at a bus stop near TzrifinTzrifinTzrifin is an area in Gush Dan in central Israel, located on the eastern side of Rishon LeZion and including parts of Be'er Ya'akov. The area proper is defined as an 'area without jurisdiction' between the two cities....
, close to Rishon LeZion. Several hours later this is followed by a second suicide bombing at a Jerusalem café, in which seven more people are killed and dozens are wounded. - September 9 – Café Hillel bombing: Seven people are killed and over 50 wounded when a Palestinian Arab suicide bomber blows himself up at the Café HillelCafé HillelCafé Hillel is a cafe, espresso bar, and sandwich bar chain in Israel.-History:The first branch opened on Hillel Street in Jerusalem in 1998, which became the source of its name. The chain now has 24 branches all over the country...
in Jerusalem. HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
claims responsibility. - September 26 – A Palestinian Arab gunman enters a home in NegohotNegohotNegohot is an communal settlement and Israeli settlement in the southern Hebron Hills of the West Bank. It is located on a hill 700 metres above sea level to the west of the Hebron area, and is administered by the Har Hebron Regional Council. The nearest Israeli locality is Shekef, a moshav a few...
, an Israeli settlementIsraeli settlementAn Israeli settlement is a Jewish civilian community built on land that was captured by Israel from Jordan, Egypt, and Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War and is considered occupied territory by the international community. Such settlements currently exist in the West Bank...
in the West BankWest BankThe West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
near HebronHebronHebron , is located in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judean Mountains, it lies 930 meters above sea level. It is the largest city in the West Bank and home to around 165,000 Palestinians, and over 500 Jewish settlers concentrated in and around the old quarter...
, and murders seven-month-old Shaked Avraham and 27-year-old Eyal Yeberbaum, and wounds both of the baby girl's parents as they are celebrating the Jewish New YearRosh HashanahRosh Hashanah , , is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora'im which occur in the autumn...
. The gunman is later killed by Israeli security forces. Islamic JihadIslamic Jihad Movement in PalestineThe Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine known in the West as simply Palestinian Islamic Jihad , is a small Palestinian militant organization. The group has been labelled as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia and Israel...
claims responsibility for the attack. - October 4 – Maxim restaurant suicide bombingMaxim restaurant suicide bombingThe Maxim restaurant suicide bombing was a suicide bombing which occurred on October 4, 2003 in the beachfront "Maxim" restaurant in Haifa, Israel. 21 people were killed in the attack and 51 were injured...
: A 28-year-old Palestinian Arab female suicide bomberFemale suicide bomberThough the majority of suicide bombers have been male, female suicide bombers have carried out a number of attacks.-History:Female suicide bombers have been employed in several conflicts, by a variety of organizations, against both military and civilian targets.*In Lebanon on April 9, 1985, Sana'a...
, Hanadi Jaradat, blows herself up inside the Maxim restaurant in HaifaHaifaHaifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
. 21 Israelis, Jews and Arabs, are killed, and 51 others are wounded. The restaurant is co-owned by Christian Arab and Jewish Israelis, and was a symbol of co-existence. - October 9 – Tulkarem bombing
- October 15 – Beit HanounBeit HanounBeit Hanoun is a city on the north-east edge of the Gaza Strip. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the town had a population of 32,187 in mid-year 2006. It is administered by the Palestinian Authority...
Junction bombing - November 3 – Azun bombing
- December 25 – Geha Junction bus stop bombing: A Palestinian Arab suicide bomber blows himself up at a bus stop near Tel AvivTel AvivTel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
, killing four Israeli civilians and himself.
Notable Israeli military operations against Palestinian militancy targets
The most prominent Israeli military counter-terrorism
Counter-terrorism
Counter-terrorism is the practices, tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, militaries, police departments and corporations adopt to prevent or in response to terrorist threats and/or acts, both real and imputed.The tactic of terrorism is available to insurgents and governments...
operations (military campaign
Military campaign
In the military sciences, the term military campaign applies to large scale, long duration, significant military strategy plan incorporating a series of inter-related military operations or battles forming a distinct part of a larger conflict often called a war...
s and military operations) carried out against Palestinian militants during 2003 include:
- August 21 – Israel kills senior HamasHamasHamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
official, Ismail Abu Shanab, by a missileMissileThough a missile may be any thrown or launched object, it colloquially almost always refers to a self-propelled guided weapon system.-Etymology:The word missile comes from the Latin verb mittere, meaning "to send"...
strike in the Gaza StripGaza Stripthumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
. - October 5 – Ain es Saheb airstrikeAin es Saheb airstrikeThe Ain es Saheb airstrike occurred on October 5, 2003 and was the first overt Israeli military operation in Syria since the 1973 Yom Kippur War.- Operation :...
: Israeli warplanes attack an alleged Islamic JihadIslamic Jihad Movement in PalestineThe Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine known in the West as simply Palestinian Islamic Jihad , is a small Palestinian militant organization. The group has been labelled as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia and Israel...
training base in SyriaSyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, 15 miles northwest of the Syrian capital DamascusDamascusDamascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, in response for a suicide bombing at a Haifa restaurant that killed 19 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 the Al-Arabia TV station showing hundreds of weapons and underground tunnels packed with arms and ammunition. - December 25 – An Israeli helicopter gunship attacks a car in Gaza City, killing Islamic JihadIslamic Jihad Movement in PalestineThe Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine known in the West as simply Palestinian Islamic Jihad , is a small Palestinian militant organization. The group has been labelled as a terrorist group by the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia and Israel...
commander Mekled HameidMekled HameidMekled Hamied was a top Islamic Jihad commander who was killed during an Israeli air strike on his car in the last week of 2003.-References:...
and two fellow militants, together with two bystanders.
Notable deaths
- September 25 - Edward SaidEdward SaidEdward Wadie Saïd was a Palestinian-American literary theorist and advocate for Palestinian rights. He was University Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University and a founding figure in postcolonialism...
, 67, Palestinian-American literary theorist.
See also
- 2003 in Israel2003 in Israel-Incumbents:* Prime Minister of Israel – Ariel Sharon * President of Israel – Moshe Katsav* Chief of General Staff - Moshe Ya'alon* Government of Israel - 29th Government of Israel until February 28, 30th Government of Israel-Events:...