1998, Feb. 24. 2001. The Encyclopedia of World History

The Encyclopedia of World History. 2001.


1998, Feb. 24

In a sharp setback for Jordanian-Israeli relations, Israel's central intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Danny Yatom resigned after admitting serious mistakes made during the Sept. 1997 mission to assassinate Palestinian Islamic leader Khaled Meshal while he was on Jordanian soil.	1

Oct. 23

Israel and the Palestinian National Authority signed the Wye River Accords as U.S. president Clinton, Netanyahu, King Hussein of Jordan, and Yasir Arafat met to discuss peace in the Middle East. Approved by the Israeli parliament (known as the Knesset) in a Nov. 17 vote, the accords established that Israel would free 750 Palestinian prisoners and that the PNA would remove clauses from the PLO charter that called for the destruction of Israel. Following the agreement, Israeli military forces withdrew from 13.1 percent of the West Bank. This was the first step in a year-long plan to gradually transfer control of the area to Palestinian leadership.	2

Dec. 21

Israel's parliament voted to dissolve itself and called for early elections in the spring of 1999. The collapse of Netanyahu's government had been impending throughout 1998.	3


The Encyclopedia of World History, Sixth edition. Peter N. Stearns, general editor. Copyright © 2001 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Maps by Mary Reilly, copyright © 2001 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.