<Li> 1963--Ba'th Party comes to power in Iraq under the leadership of General Ahmad Hasan al - Bakr and Colonel Abdul Salam Arif </Li> <Li> 1964--Abdul Rahman Arif stages military coup in Iraq against the Ba'th Party and brings his brother, Abdul Salam Arif, to power </Li> <Li> 1967--Six - Day War, Israel occupies the Sinai Peninsula, Golan Heights, West Bank and Gaza Strip </Li> <Li> 1967--Kurds revolt in Western Iran, the revolt is crushed </Li>

The year 539 bce was a key date in middle eastern history