The Six-Day War (1967)
On June 5, 1967, Israel launched a sudden preemptive air strike that destroyed most of the Egyptian air force on the ground — the opening move of a war that would last only six days yet fundamentally reshape the Middle East. By June 10, Israeli forces had captured the Sinai Peninsula, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights. The war's consequences are still being negotiated more than half a century later.
The Road to War
Tensions had been escalating since mid-May 1967. Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser ordered UN peacekeeping forces out of the Sinai Peninsula, moved Egyptian troops to the Israeli border, and on May 22 announced the closure of the Strait of Tiran to Israeli shipping — an act Israel had publicly declared it would treat as a casus belli. Jordan signed a mutual defense pact with Egypt on May 30; Syria, already allied with Egypt, mobilized forces on the Golan Heights. Arab radio broadcasts promised the imminent destruction of Israel. Within Israel, the crisis produced both panic and grim resolve. Prime Minister Levi Eshkol initially sought diplomatic solutions, but under military pressure brought General Moshe Dayan into the cabinet as defense minister and authorized a preemptive strike. Intelligence indicated that Egyptian forces planned to attack within days.
Did You Know?
The iconic photograph of Israeli paratroopers at the Western Wall — taken by David Rubinger on June 7, 1967 — became one of the most recognized images of the 20th century. The three soldiers depicted had only just heard that the Wall was within their reach; one said he had never seen it before in his life. The photo appeared on the cover of Time magazine and countless publications worldwide.
Six Days of War
At 7:45 AM on June 5, Israeli aircraft swept low across the Mediterranean and Egyptian delta in tight formations specifically designed to avoid radar. In less than three hours, Israeli planes destroyed roughly 300 Egyptian aircraft — the bulk of the Egyptian air force — while they sat on the tarmac. Deprived of air cover, Egyptian armored columns in the Sinai were devastated by Israeli ground forces and air attacks over the following days. On June 7, Israeli paratroopers fought through the narrow streets of East Jerusalem's Old City and reached the Western Wall — the holiest site accessible to Jewish prayer — for the first time since 1948. Defense Minister Dayan declared: "We have returned to our holiest places." Jordan and Syria also suffered catastrophic losses. By the time the UN-brokered ceasefire took hold on June 10, Israel had tripled the territory under its control.
Aftermath & Lasting Consequences
The Six-Day War's legacy is immense and contested. Israel's stunning victory gave it control of territories with a large Palestinian Arab population and redrew the boundaries of the conflict. The occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip became the central issues of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations for the next half century. East Jerusalem was annexed by Israel in 1980, a move not recognized by most of the international community. The war discredited pan-Arab nationalism and accelerated the rise of Palestinian national movements, including the PLO under Yasser Arafat. In the Arab world, the defeat was felt as a humiliation so profound it reshaped politics, religion, and culture. For Israel, the territorial gains provided strategic depth but introduced an occupation that became a moral and political burden. The Sinai was returned to Egypt in the Camp David Accords of 1978. The West Bank and Gaza remain under disputed status today.