An unflinching view from a place called Israel
In the 1960s Europe made a fateful decision. In the ’50s, Europe and Israel were friends. Britain supplied main battle tanks and the French sold light tanks and fighter bombers. They saw in Israel an embattled outpost of Western ideals in a blighted, backward Middle East. Then, in the ’60s, before the Six Day War, … Read more
The Six Day War stunned the world. The tiny country of Israel had successfully fought off the most powerful armies of the Arab world and tripled its territory. The Soviet Union’s attempt to unite the Arab world under its leadership was given an embarrassing defeat. In response, a humiliated Arab world expelled their Jewish citizenry, … Read more
It’s the last day of the war. Pressure was building to finish the conflict, from the outside and from the inside. The Soviets were worried that a total collapse of the Syrian army would irreparably damage their influence in the region. The Arab countries were screaming bloody murder about Israeli aggression. The Europeans were disconcerted … Read more
As Day Five began, it was clear that the war for Israel’s survival was over. What was left were loose ends. Or, maybe I should say, one very important loose end. Syria. For years Syria had been shelling communities in the north, confident that her impregnable positions on the Golan would deter any counter attack … Read more
As the sun rose on Day Four, the war was essentially over. There was only a little more fighting and dying left to do. In the Sinai, some Egyptian units were still putting up a fight, and the Jordanians continued an organized retreat. But by 3:30 p.m., Egypt would accept a cease fire, and a … Read more