March 28, 2002 — Saudi Prince Unveils Peace Plan
U.S. Defense Department
Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah presented a Palestinian-Israeli peace initiative at the 2002 Arab League summit in Beirut.
Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah presented a Palestinian-Israeli peace initiative at the 2002 Arab League summit in Beirut.
Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia presents what becomes known as the Arab Peace Initiative during an Arab League summit in Beirut. The plan includes an Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 lines, the application of U.N. Resolution 194 to the Palestinian refugee problem, the establishment of a Palestinian state on all of the West Bank and Gaza, and peace with normal relations between all Arab countries and Israel.
March 29, 2002 — Operation Defensive Shield Begins
An Israeli soldier prays near his tank outside Ramallah on the second day of Operation Defensive Shield on March 30, 2002. By Zvika Golan, Israeli Government Press Office, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Israel calls up 30,000 military reservists and announces Operation Defensive Shield in response to a brutal month of Second Intifada terrorism. In one attack two days earlier, a Hamas bombing killed 30 people at a Passover seder in Netanya. During the 19-day campaign, Israel controls most West Bank cities, kills or captures many terrorist leaders, and besieges Yasser Arafat at his Palestinian Authority compound in Ramallah.
March 30, 1135 — Maimonides Is Born
Maimonides is depicted in an 18th century portrait.
Moses Ben Maimon, known as Maimonides and the Rambam, is born in Cordoba, Spain. (Some sources say the year is 1138.) His family in 1160 moves to Fez, Morocco, where he begins writing commentaries on the Talmud. After a time in Palestine, the family settles in 1166 in Fustat, Egypt, where Maimonides becomes a prominent doctor, a rabbi, a philosopher, and one of the most influential writers ever on Jewish law and ethics.
March 31, 1979 — ‘Hallelujah’ Wins Eurovision
Gali Atari and Milk & Honey perform “Hallelujah” at the 1979 Eurovision Song Contest.
Israel wins the Eurovision Song Contest with Gali Atari and Milk & Honey’s “Hallelujah.” The contest is in Jerusalem because Israel’s entry in 1978 in Paris, “A-Ba-ni-bi” by Izhar Cohen and Alphabeta, won the event for the first time. “Hallelujah” becomes a huge hit on the European pop charts. Israel declines its right to host Eurovision in 1980 because the Israel Broadcasting Authority is focused on the expensive conversion to color television.
April 1, 1925 — Hebrew University Opens
Central Zionist Archives
Opening festivities are held at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem on April 1, 1925.
Opening festivities are held at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem on April 1, 1925.
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem officially opens on Mount Scopus, fulfilling a dream first expressed in a letter from Heidelberg University professor Herman Schapira to the newspaper HaMelitz in 1882. The 11th Zionist Congress in 1913 authorized the university, and Arthur Ruppin purchased the land the next year. With British approval, construction began in 1918. Classes in chemistry and Jewish studies began in 1924.
April 2, 1947 — Britain Seeks Special U.N. Panel on Palestine
The special U.N. commission requested by Britain produced this proposed partition of Palestine, which the U.N. General Assembly approved Nov. 29, 1947.
The British government notifies the United Nations that it plans to raise the question of Palestine’s future at the next session of the U.N. General Assembly and that it wants a special commission to study Mandatory Palestine and make recommendations. The British foreign minister had announced in February the intention to seek help resolving the violent situation. The resulting special commission recommends a partition into Jewish and Arab states.
April 3, 1970 — First Poet Laureate Dies
Avigdor Hameiri, shown in 1936, began writing Hebrew poetry in 1909. By Zoltan Kluger, National Photo Collection of Israel.
Avigdor Hameiri, Israel’s first poet laureate, dies at 79. Born in Hungary, he was on track to become a rabbi when he turned to socialism and Zionism. In 1909 he began publishing Hebrew poems. In 1913 he attended the 11th Zionist Congress in Vienna, where he befriended Chaim Nahman Bialik, who helped Hameiri move to Palestine in 1921. He wrote novels, children’s books, memoirs and more in addition to poetry and won the Bialik and Israel prizes.
Items are provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.