Events in the year 1954 in Israel.

Incumbents

Prime Minister of Israel The prime minister of Israel (, Hebrew abbreviations, Hebrew abbreviation: ; , ''Ra'īs al-Ḥukūma'') is the head of government and chief executive of the Israel, State of Israel. Israel is a parliamentary republic with a President of Isra ...

–

David Ben-Gurion David Ben-Gurion ( ; ; born David Grün; 16 October 1886 – 1 December 1973) was the primary List of national founders, national founder and first Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister of the State of Israel. As head of the Jewish Agency ...

(

Mapai Mapai (, an abbreviation for , ''Mifleget Poalei Eretz Yisrael'', ) was a Labor Zionist and democratic socialist political party in Israel, and was the dominant force in Israeli politics until its merger into the Israeli Labor Party in January ...

) until 26 January,

Moshe Sharett Moshe Sharett (; born Moshe Chertok (); 15 October 1894 – 7 July 1965) was the second prime minister of Israel and the country’s first foreign minister. He signed the Israeli Declaration of Independence and was a principal negotiator in th ...

(

) *

President of Israel The president of the State of Israel (, or ) is the head of state of Israel. The president is mostly, though not entirely, ceremonial; actual executive power is vested in the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet led by the Prime Minister of Israel, pr ...

–

Yitzhak Ben-Zvi Yitzhak Ben-Zvi ( ''Yitshak Ben-Tsvi''; 24 November 188423 April 1963; born Izaak Shimshelevich) was a historian, ethnologist, Labor Zionism, Labor Zionist leader and the longest-serving president of Israel. He was 1952 Israeli presidential elec ...

* President of the Supreme Court – Moshe Smoira; Yitzhak Olshan * Chief of General Staff -

Moshe Dayan Moshe Dayan (; May 20, 1915 – October 16, 1981) was an Israeli military leader and politician. As commander of the Jerusalem front in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Chief of General Staff (Israel), Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defe ...

Government of Israel The Cabinet of Israel (; ) is the cabinet which exercises Executive (government), executive authority in the State of Israel. It consists of Minister (government), ministers who are chosen and led by the Prime Minister of Israel, prime ministe ...

- 4th Government of Israel until 26 January, 5th Government of Israel

Events

Yosef Saphir - Tel Aviv Merkaz Station opening1954

* 1 January – The Kastner trial starts. * 26 January –

presents his cabinet for a Knesset "Vote of Confidence". The 5th Government is approved that day and the members were sworn in. * 1 July – Jordanian soldiers stationed at the walls of the

old city of Jerusalem The Old City of Jerusalem (; ) is a walled area in Jerusalem. In a tradition that may have begun with an 1840s British map of the city, the Old City is divided into four uneven quarters: the Muslim Quarter, the Christian Quarter, the Arm ...

begin to snipe residents of the city. A 24-year-old Israeli woman is killed from the shootings near the

Jaffa Gate Jaffa Gate (; , "Hebron Gate") is one of the seven main open gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. The name Jaffa Gate is currently used for both the historical Ottoman gate from 1538, and for the wide gap in the city wall adjacent to it to the ...

. * 29 July – The Ma'agan disaster: a

Piper J-3 The Piper J-3 Cub is an American light aircraft that was built between 1938 and 1947 by Piper Aircraft. The aircraft has a simple, lightweight design which gives it good low-speed handling properties and short-field performance. The Cub is Pi ...

light aircraft falls into the crowd of people who are attending a memorial ceremony for the Kibbutz's fallen Parachutists at the village

Ma'agan Ma'agan () is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located on the southern shore of the Sea of Galilee, it falls under the jurisdiction of Emek HaYarden Regional Council. In it had a population of . History The village was founded in 1949 by immigrants ...

; 17 people are killed and 25 people are wounded. * 28 September – The Israeli government's attempt for the Israeli ship "Bat Galim" to traverse the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...

fails after the ship is arrested by the

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

ian authorities. This attempt is made after Egypt prevented other Israeli ships and foreign cargo ships headed towards Israeli ports, of passing through the Suez Canal, in violation with the terms of the

Convention of Constantinople The Convention of Constantinople is a treaty concerning the use of the Suez Canal in Egypt. It was signed on 29 October 1888 by the United Kingdom, the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, Spain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, the Russian Empire and ...

. * 3 November – The

Tel Aviv Savidor Central Railway Station TEL or Tel may refer to: Businesses and organisations * Tokyo Electron, a semiconductor equipment manufacturer * TE Connectivity, a technology company, NYSE stock ticker TEL * The European Library, an Internet service Place names * Tel, Azerba ...

opens. * 8 December – Five Israeli soldiers (including

Uri Ilan Uri Ilan (; 17 February 1935 – 13 January 1955) was an Israeli soldier captured by the Syrians during Operation Zarzar on the Golan Heights who took his own life in captivity, after being captured in a covert operation. He became a symbol ...

) are captured by Syrian soldiers near a Syrian post in the

Golan Heights The Golan Heights, or simply the Golan, is a basaltic plateau at the southwest corner of Syria. It is bordered by the Yarmouk River in the south, the Sea of Galilee and Hula Valley in the west, the Anti-Lebanon mountains with Mount Hermon in t ...

Syria returns the body of a soldier captured in Damascus
, IDF, 3 June 2007 * 11 December – A trial of 11 Jews begins in Cairo in what became known as the

Lavon affair The Lavon affair was a failed Israeli covert operation, codenamed Operation Susannah, conducted in Egypt in the summer of 1954. As part of a false flag operation, a group of Egyptian Jews were recruited by Israeli military intelligence to pla ...

* 12 December the IAF intercept a Syrian civilian plane and force it to land at Lod Airport where the passengers were held for two days.

Israeli–Palestinian conflict

The most prominent events related to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict which occurred during 1954 include: Notable Palestinian militant operations against Israeli militancy targets
Maale Akrabim Massacre

The most prominent Palestinian fedayeen terror attacks committed against Israelis during 1954 include: * 17 March –

Ma'ale Akrabim massacre The Ma'ale Akrabim massacre, known in English as the Scorpions Pass Massacre, was an attack on an Israeli passenger bus, carried out on 17 March 1954, in the middle of the day. Eleven passengers were shot dead by the attackers who ambushed and b ...

: Armed Palestinian Arab militants ambush and board an Israeli civilian passenger bus traveling from

Eilat Eilat ( , ; ; ) is Israel's southernmost city, with a population of , a busy port of Eilat, port and popular resort at the northern tip of the Red Sea, on what is known in Israel as the Gulf of Eilat and in Jordan as the Gulf of Aqaba. The c ...

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

. Eleven Israelis on the bus are killed by the militants. Four passengers survived, two of whom are wounded by the militants. * 27 June – Armed Palestinian Arab militants, who infiltrated to Israel from Jordan, kill an elderly Israeli farmer on the outskirts of

Ra'anana Ra'anana () is an affluent city in the southern Sharon, Israel, Sharon Plain of the Central District (Israel), Central District of Israel. It was founded in 1922 as an American-Jewish settlement, 1 km south of the village of Tabsur, where a ...

. Notable Israeli military operations against Palestinian militancy targets
The most prominent Israeli military

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...

operations (

military campaign A military campaign is large-scale long-duration significant military strategy plan incorporating a series of interrelated military operations or battles forming a distinct part of a larger conflict often called a war. The term derives from th ...

s and

military operations A military operation (op) is the coordinated military actions of a state, or a non-state actor, in response to a developing situation. These actions are designed as a military plan to resolve the situation in the state or actor's favor. Operatio ...

) carried out against

Palestinian militants Palestinian political violence refers to acts of violence or terrorism committed by Palestinians with the intent to accomplish political goals in the context of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Common objectives of political violence by Pal ...

during 1954 include: * 28 March – 60 members of 890th Paratroop Battalion, under command of

Ariel Sharon Ariel Sharon ( ; also known by his diminutive Arik, ; 26 February 192811 January 2014) was an Israeli general and politician who served as the prime minister of Israel from March 2001 until April 2006. Born in Kfar Malal in Mandatory Palestin ...

, attack Nahhalin killing 4 national Guardsmen, 3

Arab Legion The Arab Legion () was the police force, then regular army, of the Emirate of Transjordan, a British protectorate, in the early part of the 20th century, and then of the Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, an independent state, with a final Ar ...

naires, the village

mukhtar A mukhtar (; ) is a village chief in the Levant: "an old institution that goes back to the time of the Ottoman rule". According to Amir S. Cheshin, Bill Hutman and Avi Melamed, the mukhtar "for centuries were the central figures". They "were ...

and a woman. * 27 June – A seven-man raiding party, including

Meir Har-Zion Meir Har-Zion (; February 25, 1934 – March 14, 2014) was an Israeli military Commando (military), commando. As a key member of Unit 101, he was highly praised by Chief of Staff Moshe Dayan who described him as "the finest of our commando soldie ...

, attack an

camp at '

Azzun Azzun (also spelled Azzoun) (, from the root word عز ''′izz'' which means honor or esteem) is a Palestinian town in Qalqilya Governorate in the northern West Bank, located 9 kilometers east of Qalqilya and 24 kilometers south of Tulkarm. ...

killing three Jordanian soldiers in their beds. A shepherd was also killed as they approached the camp. One of the attackers was wounded and taken prisoner. * 1 September – 890th Paratroop Battalion attack

Beit Liqya Beit Liqya () is a Palestinian town located in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the northern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, it had a population of approximately 9,304 in 2017. Beit Liqya is located ...

killing three Arab Legionnaires and taking three prisoner. Two paratroopers are killed in the attack.Morris. Page 310.

Unknown dates

* The founding of the

kibbutz A kibbutz ( / , ; : kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1910, was Degania Alef, Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economi ...

Bahan. * The founding of the city

Kiryat Gat Kiryat Gat () also spelled Qiryat Gat, is a city in the Southern District of Israel. It lies south of Tel Aviv, north of Beersheba, and west southwest of Jerusalem. In it had a population of . The city hosts one of the most advanced semicondu ...

Notable births

* 25 January –

David Grossman David Grossman (; born January 25, 1954) is an Israeli author. His books have been translated into more than 30 languages. In 2018, he was awarded the Israel Prize for literature. Biography David Grossman was born in Jerusalem. He is the eld ...

, Israeli author. * 17 February –

Miki Berkovich Moshe "Miki" Berkovich (or Mickey Berkowitz; ; born 17 February 1954) is an Israeli former professional basketball player. A 193 cm shooting guard, he is considered to be one of the greatest Israeli basketball players of all time. Berkov ...

, former Israeli basketball player. * 25 February –

Gabi Ashkenazi Gabriel "Gabi" Ashkenazi (; born 25 February 1954) is an Israeli politician and former military leader. He previously served as the minister of foreign affairs. He was the Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces from 2007 to 2011. ...

, 19th Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces * 26 February – Yuli Tamir, Israeli academic and former politician. * 20 June –

Ilan Ramon Ilan Ramon (; , born Ilan Wolfferman (); June 20, 1954 – February 1, 2003) was an Israeli fighter pilot and later the first Israeli astronaut. He served as a Space Shuttle payload specialist on STS-107, the fatal mission of '' Columbia ...

, Israeli Air Force pilot, Israel's first astronaut (died 2003) * 16 September –

Rifaat Turk Rifaat "Jimmy" Turk (; , nicknamed Jimmy the Rocket,"Rifaat Turk,"
Olympedia/ born 16 September 1954) is ...

, Arab-Israeli former football player and manager. * 30 December – Pnina Rosenblum, Israeli businesswoman, model and media personality.

Notable deaths

* 18 May –

Selig Brodetsky Selig Brodetsky (; 10 February 1888 – 18 May 1954) was an English mathematician, a member of the World Zionist Executive, the president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, and the second president of the Hebrew University of Jerusal ...

, Russian-born Israeli mathematician, politician and president of the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

(born 1888) * 17 November –

Yitzhak Lamdan Yitzhak Lamdan (; ‎ 7 November 1897 – 17 November 1954) was a Russian-born Israeli Hebrew-language poet, translator, editor and columnist. Biography Itzi-Yehuda Lubes or Lobes (later Yitzhak Lamdan) was born in 1897 in Mlynov, Russia (n ...

, Russian (Ukraine)-born Israeli poet and columnist (born 1899)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:1954 In Israel