So long, BBC Israel Log

Back in February, I started a "BBC Israel Log: Logging the Madness of 2002" as a way to track what was happening. The idea was to save the day's Israel news from the BBC news feed, to try to get a sense of the broader rhythm of the increasing madness.

Something was happening, I sensed an escalation, and I wanted the data points to take stock. I couldn't keep in my head the attacks, the reprisals, the talks.

Two months later, the situation has changed; the gathering storm has exploded. The rain is still falling, the wind is still knocking down the trees, the lightning is still setting fires. But there's no longer any need to keep reading the barometer.

Accordingly.... several weeks after stopping work on the Israel Log, I declare it on indefinite hiatus.

Peace, Shalom, Salaam.

 

    

Israel hit by new attacks. A gunman opens fire on passers-by near Tel Aviv, and a suicide bomber blows himself up in Jerusalem, setting back hopes of a ceasefire. [BBC News: world]
    

Mid-East ceasefire talks on hold. Israel pulls back on an earlier announcement of ceasefire talks, after Palestinian demands for a major military withdrawal. [BBC News: world]
    

Deaths overshadow Zinni mission. US envoy Anthony Zinni meets Israeli and Palestinian leaders as a Palestinian woman and four children die in an explosion in Gaza. [BBC News: world]
    

Israelis pull out of West Bank towns. Israeli forces say they have withdrawn from a number of Palestinian areas as US envoy Anthony Zinni begins efforts to broker a ceasefire. [BBC News: world]
    

Israelis pull out of Ramallah. Israeli forces are withdrawing from Yasser Arafat's West Bank base, as US peace envoy Anthony Zinni tries to broker a ceasefire. [BBC News: world]
    

Gaza bomb kills three Israelis. A roadside bomb kills three Israelis in the Gaza Strip as US special envoy Anthony Zinni heads for the region to push for a ceasefire. [BBC News: world]
    

US criticises Israeli actions. President Bush says Israel's military actions against the Palestinians are 'not helpful' as US envoy Anthony Zinni embarks on a new mission. [BBC News: world]
    

UN backs Palestinian state. The UN Security Council passes an historic resolution calling for a Palestinian state, as Israel's West Bank offensive continues. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel in massive new offensive. Up to 30 Palestinians and seven Israelis are killed as the Israeli army mounts its biggest ground offensive for 20 years. [BBC News: world]
    

Israeli maintains pressure on Arafat. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he favours easing restrictions on Yasser Arafat, as the Israeli army moves into Qalqilya in the West Bank. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel hits Gaza after suicide blast. Israeli missiles destroy Yasser Arafat's Gaza headquarters, after a suicide bomber kills 11 people at a cafe in Jerusalem. [BBC News: world]
    

Suicide attack hits Jerusalem cafe. At least 11 people die in a suicide bomb attack on a cafe in West Jerusalem, near the residence of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel renews assault on Palestinians. Israeli helicopters launch fresh strikes on Palestinian security targets after the bloodiest day in 17 months of violence. [BBC News: world]
    

Sharon ready to talk under fire. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says he will hold talks with the Palestinians even if hostilities continue, after at least 45 die in one day. [BBC News: world]
    

Mid-East sees bloodiest day. Violence between Palestinians and Israelis leaves 64 dead - the highest toll for a single day since the current Palestinian uprising began. [BBC News: world]
    

Suicide bomber blasts West Bank settlement. At least five Israelis are reported to have been injured after a suicide bomber blew himself up at a Jewish settlement in the West Bank. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel pounds Palestinian towns. Israel steps up air, sea and land attacks on Palestinian areas, despite unusually strong US criticism of Ariel Sharon's policy of attrition. [BBC News: world]
    

Israeli troops storm into Gaza. At least seven Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers die in one of the most intensive Israeli assaults on Gaza since the intifada began. [BBC News: world]
    

Bush vows Mid-East peace moves. President Bush says he will redouble efforts to end Middle East violence, as bloodshed in the region continues unabated. [BBC News: world]
    

Suicide attacks trigger Israeli raids. Israeli helicopters hit Palestinian targets in the West Bank and Gaza Strip after militants killed five Israelis in separate attacks. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel shooting leaves three dead. A gunman opens fire on a Tel Aviv restaurant, killing three and injuring about 25, after a day of Israeli raids on Palestinian targets. [BBC News: world]
    

Israeli strikes kill 16. Israel launches tank, aircraft and naval attacks against Palestinian targets, killing at least 16 people, as the latest violence spirals. [BBC News: world]
    

West Bank car blast kills four. At least four people, including two children, die in a car explosion apparently aimed at a Hamas activist in the town of Ramallah. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel storms refugee camps. Three Palestinians are killed as Israeli troops force their way into two refugee camps in the West Bank and Gaza hoping to end a tide of militant attacks. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel to step up military operations. Israel says it will put the Palestinians under "continuous military pressure" following a series of militant attacks that leave at least 20 Israelis dead. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel hits back over Palestinian attacks. The Israelis launch strikes against Palestinian targets after a series of devastating attacks leave 20 soldiers and civilians dead. [BBC News: world]
    

Seven Israelis die in shooting. A Palestinian gun attack in the West Bank leaves seven Israelis dead and several others wounded. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel hits back after suicide bombing. Israel sends attack helicopters to bomb Palestinian targets in Bethlehem after a suicide bomber kills nine Israelis in a crowded Jerusalem street. [BBC News: world]
    

Suicide bomber hits Jerusalem. A suicide bomber strikes in west Jerusalem, killing at least nine, including a baby girl, as residents were on the streets at the end of the Sabbath. [BBC News: world]

Saturday, March 2, 2002

    

Israel pulls back from Jenin. Israel withdraws its forces from one of two Palestinian refugee camps in the West Bank, after two days and nights of heavy fighting. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel presses on with camps assault. Israel resists international pressure to withdraw its forces from two refugee camps where two days of fighting have left at least 22 people dead. [BBC News: world]

Friday, March 1, 2002

    

Israel intensifies refugee camp raids. The Israeli army has entered the heart of a Palestinian refugee camp in one of the biggest offensives against militants since fighting began. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel cautioned over raid. The US and the UN urge Israel to avoid harming civilians after at least 13 die in a major raid on West Bank refugee camps. [BBC News: world]
    

Woman bomber attacks Israelis. A Palestinian woman blows herself up at a West Bank checkpoint, wounding at least three Israelis and two men accompanying her. [BBC News: world]
    

Three gunmen killed near Gaza Strip. Israeli troops kill three Palestinian gunmen on the Israel-Egypt border, as the EU seeks to build on a Saudi peace plan. [BBC News: world]
    

Middle East diplomacy stepped up. The UN Security Council looks at ways of calming Israeli-Palestinian violence as Saudi Arabia's peace iniative gathers momentum. [BBC News: world]
    

Mid-East peace plan gathers momentum. Intensive diplomatic efforts are under way to try persuade the Israelis and Palestinians to end violence and return to negotiations. [BBC News: world]
    

Arafat backs new security talks. The Palestinian leader bows to European pressure to reopen security talks with Israel as violence threatens to escalate after fresh militant attacks. [BBC News: world]

 

Tuesday, February 24

    

Arafat backs new security talks. The Palestinian leader bows to European pressure to reopen security talks with Israel as violence threatens to escalate after fresh militant attacks. [BBC News: world]

 

Monday, February 24

    

Ten injured by Jerusalem gunman. A Palestinian gunman opens fire on a group of people at a bus stop north of Jerusalem, injuring 10 before he is shot dead. [BBC News: world]
    

Two Israelis killed in West Bank. Palestinian gunmen shoot dead two Israeli civilians, only hours after a pregnant Palestinian woman is injured by Israeli troops. [BBC News: world]
    

 

Israeli tanks leave Arafat compound. Israel partially lifts a blockade on Yasser Arafat, a move condemned as an insult, as troops open fire on the Palestinian speaker's car. [BBC News: world]

Sunday, February 24

    

Israeli tanks leave Arafat compound. Israel partially lifts a blockade on Yasser Arafat, a move condemned as an insult, as troops open fire on the Palestinian speaker's car. [BBC News: world]
    

Shooting fuels Mid-East tensions. Israeli troops fire at a car carrying the Palestinian speaker, fueling anger after restrictions were only partially lifted on Yasser Arafat. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel steps up reprisal raids. Israel pounds Palestinian targets after Prime Minister Ariel Sharon approves intensified attacks following the killing of six Israeli soldiers. [BBC News: world]
    

Israel pounds Gaza targets. Israeli aircraft and navy vessels attack Palestinian targets in Gaza after militants kill six Israelis at an army checkpoint. [BBC News: world]
    

West Bank gunmen kill six Israelis. Palestinian gunmen kill six Israelis in an ambush near Ramallah in the West Bank, Israeli military officials say. [BBC News: world]