Since its establishment in 1948, the modern State of Israel has been involved in a series of military operations (in addition to seven recognized wars) which all compose the military aspect of the complex Arab–Israeli conflict.
The following list centralizes the main and most notable military operations conducted by the Israeli Defense Forces sorted in chronological order and divided into the main time periods of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict for easier navigation.
1948–1967
1948 Arab–Israeli War
1956 Suez Crisis
Operation Kadesh (October 29 - November 6, 1956) – Israeli armored thrust into the Sinai Peninsula.
Additional Israeli military operations
Operation Magic Carpet (1949–50) – Air operation to rescue and transport the Yemeni Jewish Community to Israel. Operation Ezra and Nehemiah (1950–52) – Operation which airlifted almost all Iraqi Jews to Israel. Retribution operations (1950s–1960s) – Military operations carried out by the Israel Defense Forces during the 1950s and 1960s. These actions were in response to constant fedayeen terror attacks during which the Palestinian militants infiltrated from Syria, Egypt and Jordan into Israel to carry out guerrilla attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers. The policy of the retribution operations was exceptional due to Israel's declared aim of getting a high 'blood cost' among the enemy side which was believed to be necessary in order to deter them from committing future attacks. Operation Susannah (1954) – Failed Israeli covert operation conducted in Egypt in which Israeli military intelligence planted bombs in Egyptian, American and British-owned targets in Egypt so that it would seem that these actions were conducted by an Egyptian nationalist resistance and would eventually damage the relations between Egypt and Western countries. The incident became known as the Lavon Affair after Israeli defense minister Pinhas Lavon was forced to resign because of the incident. Operation Olive Leaves aka Operation Kinneret (10–11 December 1955), Israeli reprisal operation undertaken against Syrian emplacements near the north-eastern shores of the Sea of Galilee. Operation Yachin (1961–64) – Operation to secretly transport Moroccan Jews to Israel. War over Water (1964–67) – Several IDF military operations against Syrian-Lebanese Headwater Diversion Plan which had the purpose to block the flow of the water sources to the Jordan Valley River Basin and the Sea of Galilee.
1967–1993
1967 Six-Day War
Operation Focus (1967) – Israeli Air Force bombing of Egyptian airfields, expanded to include Syrian, Jordanian and Iraqi airfields as well (also known as Moked, its Hebrew name).
1967–1970 War of Attrition
Operation Inferno (Hebrew: Tofet) (1968) – Israeli raid against PLO militants in the Jordanian town of Karameh (on the east bank of the Jordan river). Operation Boxer (1969) – A series of attacks by the Israeli Air Force on Egyptian SAM installations Operation Bulmus 6 (1969) – Israeli special operations raid against the Egyptian fortress, early warning radar and ELINT station of Green Island in the Gulf of Suez. Operation Raviv (1969) – Israeli armoured raid across the Gulf of Suez into Egypt. Egyptian radar installation at Ras Abu-Daraj and Ras Za'arfrana were destroyed. Also known as the Ten-Hour War. Operation Escort (1969) – Shayetet 13 operation against Egyptian torpedo boats anchored at Ras Sadat, prelude to operation Raviv. Operation Rooster 53 (1969) – Israeli special operation to capture an Egyptian P-12 radar system. Operation Priha ("Blossom") (1970) – A concentrated series of Israeli strikes against military targets in the Egyptian heartland.
The 1973 Yom Kippur War
Operation Doogman 5 ("Model 5") (1973) – Attempted Israeli suppression of Syrian air defence array on the Golan Heights. Battle of the Chinese Farm - Israeli crossing of the Suez Canal with Operation Abirey-Halev Operation Abirey-Halev ("Stouthearted Men") (1973) – Israeli crossing of the Suez Canal
1982 Lebanon War
Operation Peace for Galilee (1982) – Second large-scale Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Operation Mole Cricket 19 ("Arzav 19") – Israeli suppression of Syrian SAM network in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley. Siege of Beirut – Israeli siege of Beirut in order to force a PLO withdrawal from Lebanon. Battle of the Beaufort – Israeli capture of a strategic castle used by PLO forces in Southern Lebanon. Battle of Jezzine – Israeli expulsion of Syrian forces from the town of Jezzine. Battle of Sultan Yacoub – Battle between Israel and Syria in the Lebanese village of Sultan Yacoub.