After Israel completely withdrew from Gaza in 2005, Hamas and other militants unleashed a barrage of daily rocket attacks into Israel. The city of Sderot, for example, one mile away from Gaza, was hit by over 360 Qassam rockets within a six-month period after Israel's withdrawal. In June 2006, militants from Gaza tunneled into Israel, killing two soldiers and capturing one. Two weeks later, Hezbollah, supported by Iran and Syria, attacked Israel across the internationally recognized Israeli–Lebanese border, killing eight soldiers and kidnapping two, simultaneously launching a barrage of rockets against civilian towns in northern Israel. Israel responded with a military operation that lasted 34 days. After Hamas fired thousands of rockets at Israeli communities and refused to renew a six-month truce, Israel responded with a military operation against Hamas to protect Israeli citizens. The 22-day operation ended on January 18, 2009. In May 2010, Turkish activists with the Free Gaza flotilla tried to break Israel's naval blockade of Hamas-controlled Gaza. In August 2010, Lebanese soldiers shot and killed an Israeli soldier during routine IDF maintenance on the border. Three Lebanese soldiers and one Lebanese journalist were killed in the exchange of gunfire.
2023–present In 2023, heavy warfare between Palestinians (dominated by
Hamas) and Israel again erupted, which has been described as the deadliest war in the history of the conflict.
Death timelines Data is from the
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. == See also ==