Since after May 1948 the Arab-Israeli has dominated the Middle East because both sides feel that Israel/Palestine belongs to them, it influenced the Israel's government to use military force against them.. With that, four major Arab-Israeli wars and numerous sporadic battles have occurred since the United Nations partition of Palestine in 1947 and the establishment of the modern state of Israel in 1948. Unfortunately, in today modern, these issues still have fueled many armed conflicts and suicide bombs between the two developing nations. However, at the time of the Six Day War, the issues with the Middle East countries influenced the Israel's government decision to fight with military force.
The breakup of the U.A.R. And the resulting political instability only made Syria more hostile toward Israel. Another major cause of conflict was Syria's resistance to Israel's creation of a National Water Carrier to take water from the Jordan River to supply the country. The Syrian army used the Golan Heights, which tower 3,000 feet above the Galilee, to shell Israeli farms and villages. Syria's attacks grew more frequent in 1965 and 1966, forcing children living on kibbutzim in the Huleh Valley to sleep in bomb shelters. Israel repeatedly protested the Syrian bombardments to the UN Mixed Armistice Commission, which was charged with policing the cease-fire, but the UN did nothing to stop Syria's aggression -- even a mild Security Council resolution expressing "regret" for such incidents was vetoed by the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, Israel was condemned by the United Nations when it retaliated (the 1967 Six-Day War).
Arab nationalists did not agree with the Balfour declaration, the mandate and the Jewish National Home. This unfortunately caused fights against Jews in Jerusalem, Hebron, Jaffa and Haifa, which led to the Haganah Jewish self-defense organization in 1920 while the riots contributed to the fears that the Arabs of Palestine would be dispossessed. This was most likely attempts to show the British that Palestine as a Jewish National home would be ungovernable. The major instigators were Hajj Amin El Husseini, later Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and eventually a Nazi collaborator, and Arif -El Arif, a prominent Palestinian journalist (Israel and Palestine: A Brief History).
The main effort of Israeli armor was directed toward the Egyptian forces deployed in fortifications in the eastern parts of the Sinai and in the Gaza Strip, which consisted of 7 divisions with a total of about 100,000 soldiers, approximately 1,000 tanks and hundreds of artillery pieces. The Israel Defense Forces went against this disposition with a force of three divisions composed of armored, infantry and paratrooper brigades, as well as an independent mechanized brigade and an independent infantry brigade reinforced with paratroopers and armor. The fighting lasted four days, in a single, continuous momentum. Aware of the fact that the war could well last only a few days and that it was imperative to achieve a rapid victory, the IDF concentrated all of its armored strength in order to break through the Egyptian disposition. This was a fast attack forward, without securing the flanks and transportation axes. Very quickly, the Egyptian dispositions were broken through despite their initial resolute resistance (Six Day War).
Arab standard of living increased faster in Palestine than other areas, and population grew prodigiously throughout the Mandate years. The riots were also fueled by false rumors that the Jews intended to build a synagogue at the wailing...
The pogroms led to evacuation of most of the Jewish community of Hebron.. The British responded with the Passfield White Paper. The white paper attempted to stop immigration to Palestine based on the recommendations of the Hope Simpson report. That report stated that in the best case, following extensive economic development, the land could support immigration of another 20,000 families in total (Israel and Palestine: A Brief History).
The Decision Makers
In 1967, President Attassi of Syria: "it is the duty of all of us now to move from defensive positions to offensive positions and enter the battle to liberate the usurped land. Everyone must face the test and enter the battle to the end.
The division under the command of General Avraham Yoffe penetrated between the sectors covered by these two divisions, through Wadi Haroudin, a sand dune area considered impassable to mechanized units. Its aim was to reach the rear of the Egyptian forces. On the first night of the war, the force captured the Bir- Lahfan junction, cut-off of the Egyptian army forces between the two other combat sectors and prevented the approach of reinforcements from the heart of Sinai (Six Day War).
From there, on the second day of the war, General Tal's division made its way through northern Sinai. This was proceeding towards the Suez Canal in two axes while engaging Egyptian forces in combat (Six Day War).
The Egyptian disposition at Bir-Lahfan was defeated, and a coordinated attack with General Yoffe's division blocked the western retreat lines of the Egyptian army in this sector. General Yoffe's division, composed of reserve soldiers, captured the Jebel-Libneh camps and destroyed the Egyptian reinforcements sent to the Umm-Kateif Abu Awegerila camp, where General Sharon's division completed the cleaning-up operation and continued south in the direction of Quseima. On the same day, complete control of the Gaza Strip was achieved, and on the afternoon of the following day Khan Yunis was captured (Six Day War).
Along with that, by the fourth day the Egyptian forces were defeated by Israel's military forces, however this was not over yet. It was only one conquered battle for the country, which showed that they have forces that are strong.
On the fourth day of the war, 8 June, 1967, the Egyptian forces were defeated. General Tal's division conquered Qantara on the banks of the Suez Canal and continued south along the canal in order to join up with the main force of the division which continued from Bir-Gafgafa to the Suez Canal in the Ismailiya sector. South of them, General Yaffe's division also continued towards the canal along two axes in the Suez sector, while another force of his division continued on another route to Ras-Sudar on the Gulf of Suez, south of the Canal. From there, the force continued south along the Gulf of Suez and reached Abu- Zenima, where it met up with the paratroopers coming from E-Tur. General Sharon's division continued its advance south-west to the heart of Sinai and conquered Nakhl. In a more southern sector, Colonel Albert's independent tank brigade fought and defeated the Egyptian armored force which threatened to cut-off Eilat.
References
The 1967 Six-Day War. 30 March 2008. http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/67_War.html
Six Day War. 30 March 2008. http://www.israeli-weapons.com/history/six_day_war/SixDayWar.html
