The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict #32: May The Peace Be With You
Looking back at the choices the Israeli leadership had to make, it seems like a mission impossible.
Within six days of fighting, Israel launched attacks and captured the Golan Heights and part of Mount Hermon from Syria, captured the West Bank territories from Jordan, including East Jerusalem and the Old City, and captured the Sinai Peninsula, the Straits of Tiran, and the Gaza Strip from Egypt. These were unprecedented achievements for a young country that had just celebrated its 19th birthday and could barely stand on its feet independently. The Israelis showed they knew how to fight when the neighborhood bullies abused them and threatened to destroy their economy. They fought well and won.
A day after the war broke out, on June 6, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution calling for a ceasefire. The ceasefire agreement was signed six days later, on June 11. At the end of the war, all countries agreed on a prisoner exchange deal that lasted several months. As part of the prisoner exchange, Israel released 4,338 Egyptian soldiers and 899 Egyptian citizens, 533 Jordanian soldiers and 366 Jordanian civilians, 367 Syrian soldiers and 205 Syrian civilians.
Those who bear the heavy price of the war are the families who lost their loved ones in the battles. About 780 IDF soldiers were killed, 2,590 were wounded, and 15 soldiers were captured.
The counterparts' armies suffered heavy losses. About 714 Syrian soldiers died, 1,254 were wounded, and 361 were taken as prisoners. Additionally, about one hundred thousand residents of the Golan Heights retreated with the Syrian army and became refugees. The Egyptian casualties were estimated at around 50,000. The Jordanian army lost about 780 soldiers, and about 3,000 were wounded.?
Compromise Tracker: Attempt #5 - Israel Want Peace, Arabs Reject, Again.
On June 19, 1967, nine days after the end of the war, the Israeli government offered to return most of the territory it had occupied from Egypt and Syria in exchange for a peace agreement. This proposal was passed through the Americans, but it was rejected by Syria and Egypt.
The Aftermath
The war changed Israel's security position and proved to the Arab countries the strength of the IDF. A military operation to open a maritime siege on Israel's economy ended in conquering more land than planned. This is how wars unfold. Countries know how to start a war, but no one can predict how wars will end.
After the 6-day war ended, the Arab League met and agreed that all Arab countries would not negotiate with Israel, would not recognize it, and would not make peace with it. The Egyptian leadership realized that in the foreseeable future, there is no chance of defeating Israel or canceling its existence in an all-out war. Therefore, they adopted a strategy of attrition through constant fighting - a spoiler for the next war in line.
Wake Up and Face the Music
The Six-Day War led to changes in the Middle East. The Arab armies suffered a significant defeat and the wide difference between what the Arab media promised and what actually happened at the war's end deeply shocked Arab society. This was especially felt in the nations directly engaged in the war. The Arab Muslim world found it difficult to cope with the results of the defeat; as a result, the leadership in all Arab countries developed tactics such as accusing the United States and the United Kingdom of conspiring with Israel and assisting it in attacking Arab countries.?
From an adult perspective, what is the value of diplomacy when the leadership decides on a childish response to a defeat in a war? Denial or ignoring will not turn a defeat into a victory. Denial or ignoring won't make a problem go away. Moreover, when the strategy is to exhaust your enemy instead of solving a problem with it, what does it say about the moral code, values, and education you are fostering in society for future generations?
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The Consequences of this Victory are Life-Threatening?
Over the years, this war changed Israel's status on the global political map. Following the military control of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's image changed from a small country struggling for its existence against hostile Arab neighboring countries to an occupying country. This fact led to a deterioration in the international status of the State of Israel, and its image in the world's public opinion was damaged. Even though Israel offered the territories back in return for a peace agreement, the neighboring countries didn’t want to talk or even listen.
The Six-Day War also led to ideological changes among different sectors of Israeli society. The extreme right-wing religious groups began to believe that the Messiah was going to stop by for a visit, and suddenly, a new idea of "a complete Land of Israel" emerged. On the other side of the political map, the left supported the return of the occupied territories in exchange for a peace agreement. This war opened a bitter political debate between the left and the right regarding the future of the occupied territories of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, the Golan Heights, and the Sinai Peninsula. Since then, the debate about "territories for peace" has been at the center of the political arena until this day.
Flash Forward to 2023
Similar to the maritime siege in 1967, attacking or blocking the shipping lanes is a focal point of pressure on Israel's economy. World trade has developed tremendously since 1967, and globalization processes have connected different regions of the world in a twisted way in the production of cheaper goods. The result is multiple supply chain layers that travel worldwide until the finished products reach the shelf. In 2023, we are all connected in such a way that the collateral damage caused by a terror organization on the other side of the world disrupts the entire global trade and, therefore, affects us all.
Economic pressure leads to domestic and foreign clashes that can easily escalate into global wars. Today, economic pressure on one side of the world rapidly affects the other. When the cycle of war begins with poverty, how easy is it to dominate the poor and ignorant, who cannot oppose, can be easily manipulated, or do not know how to doubt?
That's all for today, class. We'll continue tomorrow.
Take care.
Recommended reading: Follow the links in the text.