Six-Day War

The Six-Day War was an armed struggle between Israel, under Levi Eshkol, and the Arab countries (Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq). It took place in the Middle East from June 5 to June 10, 1967. The main cause of the war was the prevailing geopolitical and military unease and antagonism that had arisen from the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, which had been triggered when Israel declared its independence on Palestinian territory. Although the United States and European countries recognized the creation and independence of the State of Israel in 1948, they had not supported the creation of a free, independent Palestinian State as the 1947 UN General Assembly Resolution 181 dictated. The geopolitical tension had also increased when the President of Egypt Gamal Abdel Nasser closed the Strait of Tiran, blocking Israeli ships from reaching its ports on the Red Sea northeastern arm.

Summary

The Six-Day War began with a surprise Israeli air raid on Egypt to wipe out military airbases on June 5, 1967. By late May 1967, Egypt had already deployed its Army all along the border with Israel in the Sinai Peninsula, with armored units poised for an invasion. However, the Israeli Air Force, under the military command of Moshe Dayan, forestalled the Egyptian move by launching a sudden and surprise attack on Egypt (Operation Focus), striking military airbases and destroying most of the Egyptian Air Force, whose aircraft were still on the ground as they had not been scrambled on time. To carry out this preemptive military operation, the Israelis used French-made Dassault Mirage III and Dassault Super Mystère combat aircraft. The Arab countries, on the other hand, employed Soviet-made MiG-19, MiG-21, and Ilyushin Il-28 fighter, interceptor, and bomber respectively.

Having gained the air superiority, Israel's ground forces immediately attacked the Egyptian Army in the Sinai and Gaza Strip, pushing them back. Although the Egyptians put up stiff resistance on the first day, they were ordered to fall back, ceding most of Sinai peninsula to the Israelis. Meanwhile, Syrian and Jordanian forces launched two offensives against Israeli positions in the northeast and in the West Bank. However, the Israeli Defense Force, under Yitzhak Rabin, launched a major  counter-offensive in all directions, routing the Syrians as they took the Golan Heights, also capturing East Jerusalem and the West Bank from the Jordanians. By June 10, the Israelis had successfully finished their military operations; they had taken the Sinai, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the Golan heights. On June 11, a ceasefire that put an end to the hostilities was signed.

Weapons used

For the ground operations, the Israelis used M48 Patton, Centurion, and AMX-13 heavy and light tanks, while the Arab forces employed Russian-made T-54, T-55, and German Panzer IV tanks, Su-100 tank destroyer as well as 122-mm and 130-mm towed howitzers.

Commanders

Israel: Moshe Dayan, Yitzhak Rabin, Ariel Sharon, Uzi Narkiss.

Arab countries: Zaid ibn Shaker, Salah Jadid, Abdul Munim Riad.

Above, a Russian-made, Syrian Army's T-54 tank spearhead a short-lived Syrian advance into Israel from the Golan Heights.

Israeli paratroopers waiting for the green light to advance on East Jerusalem.

Six Day War's Operation Focus, the air attack on Egypt (video)