A war that reshaped the region
Between 5 and 10 June 1967, Israel fought Egypt, Jordan and Syria and, in six days, changed the map of the Middle East. Israel ended the war in control of the Sinai Peninsula, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights. Many of the region’s later disputes trace back to that outcome, and the war is still among the most debated events of the twentieth century.
Background to the crisis
The roots lay in the unresolved state of affairs after the 1948 war and the 1956 Suez crisis. After 1956, a United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) had been stationed on the Egyptian side of the border in Sinai, and Israeli ships had in practice been able to use the Gulf of Aqaba. Egypt, under President Gamal Abdel Nasser, remained the leading voice of Arab nationalism, and relations between Israel and its neighbours stayed tense.
Border incidents with Syria were frequent through the mid-1960s, including disputes over farmland in demilitarised areas and over water diversion schemes. Raids by Palestinian armed groups into Israel, and Israeli retaliation, added to the tension. In April 1967 a clash on the Syrian frontier escalated into an air battle in which Israeli aircraft shot down several Syrian jets, reportedly six.
The May escalation
In mid-May 1967 Egypt moved large forces into Sinai, partly in response to reports, which Israel denied and which were reportedly passed on by Soviet sources, that Israel was massing troops against Syria. Nasser asked for the UN force to leave, and Secretary-General U Thant agreed to withdraw it. On 22 May Egypt announced that Israeli ships and strategic cargoes would be barred from the Straits of Tiran, which Israel had long said it would treat as grounds for war. The details of that confrontation have their own place in the history of the period.
Diplomacy was tried in the following days. Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban travelled to Western capitals, and the United States discussed ideas for an international naval effort that never took shape. On 30 May Jordan’s King Hussein flew to Cairo and signed a defence pact with Egypt. Iraqi forces were also sent towards Jordan. In Israel, public anxiety was high, and on 1 June Prime Minister Levi Eshkol widened his government, bringing in Moshe Dayan as defence minister.
Outside powers were involved as well. The Soviet Union backed Egypt and Syria, while the United States was already absorbed by the Vietnam War escalation and was reluctant to commit to another crisis. The Soviet side of the story is treated separately under Soviet Middle East policy.
The fighting
Day one: the air war
On the morning of 5 June, Israel launched a surprise air attack on Egyptian airfields, flying low and arriving from the Mediterranean. Most of Egypt’s air force was reportedly destroyed on the ground within hours, and strikes on Syrian and Jordanian airfields followed. Israel’s command of the air shaped everything that came after. Israeli ground forces advanced into Sinai and Gaza at the same time.
Israel had told Jordan through intermediaries that it would not attack if Jordan stayed out. Jordan nevertheless opened fire, including on Israeli-held parts of Jerusalem, and Israel responded.
Sinai
Israeli armoured and infantry units broke through Egyptian defences in northern and central Sinai. Egypt’s commanders ordered a general withdrawal, and the retreat turned chaotic under air attack. By about 8 to 9 June, Israeli forces had reached the Suez Canal. The Canal then remained closed to shipping for years.
Jerusalem and the West Bank
Israeli troops encircled East Jerusalem and entered the Old City on 7 June, reaching the Western Wall. Fighting across the West Bank continued, and Jordanian forces withdrew across the Jordan River. Israel’s control of the whole city and of the territory west of the river became one of the war’s most lasting consequences.
The Golan Heights
Syria had been shelling Israeli villages from the heights, and Israel held back at first. After the other fronts were largely settled, Israel attacked the Golan on 9 June and took it over the next day. A ceasefire took effect on 10 June. In between, the UN Security Council had passed a series of ceasefire calls from 6 June onward.
An incident outside the main fronts, the attack on the USS Liberty on 8 June, drew the United States into the story and remains disputed.
The territory gained
| Territory | Previously held by |
|---|---|
| Sinai Peninsula | Egypt |
| Gaza Strip | Egypt (administered) |
| West Bank, including East Jerusalem | Jordan |
| Golan Heights | Syria |
Israel later applied its law to East Jerusalem in June 1967, a step not accepted by most of the international community. Large numbers of Palestinians left or were displaced from the West Bank and Gaza during and after the war, and estimates of the total vary.
Human cost and aftermath
Israeli deaths are commonly put at under a thousand, while Arab losses were far larger, though figures differ between sources. Nasser offered to resign on 9 June, then stayed after large public demonstrations. At an Arab summit in Khartoum in late summer, the participants reportedly adopted a position often summarised as no peace, no recognition and no negotiation with Israel.
Diplomacy ended up centred on the November UN decision known as Resolution 242, with its formula of exchanging land for peace, though its wording was read differently by the parties. The war also altered Britain’s wider position: with its Aden withdrawal already underway later that year, it was one of several global events of 1967 marking the end of an older order in the region.
Why historians still argue
Several questions remain contested. Historians differ over how far Nasser meant to go to war when he moved troops and closed the Straits, and over whether Israel’s strike was pre-emptive self-defence or a war it chose. They also differ on whether the Soviet reports of an Israeli build-up were deliberate or mistaken. What is not in dispute is the speed of Israel’s victory and its scale: a conflict that lasted less than a week set the terms of the region’s politics for decades.