4 Wars

The 4 Wars

Last Pieces of info required for our DBQMr. Gibbs

Winter 2009

4 Wars• The War of 1948-49• The Suez War of 1956• The Six Day War• The War of Yom Kippur

The War of 1948-49

• Started the day after the state of Israel was created…The Arabs simply walked across the border and into Israel.

Egypt, Transjordan, Syria, Lebanon and Iraq vs.

Israel

BEFORE AFTER

War of 1948-49

• This is what the new independent state of Israel looked like after the war of 1948

• Treaties gave the following land to the following people….

The Gaza Strip

• Egypt was given control of The Gaza Strip and the Arabs living there

The West Bank

• The West Bank was now under the control of Transjordan

• Jerusalem was split between Transjordan and Israel

“Palestine”

• Where is it?• It no longer exists.• 77% of what was once

Palestine is now Israel • The other 23% is the

West Bank and the Gaza Strip (under control of other Arab governments)?

The Fleeing of the Palestinians

• Hundreds of thousands left “Israel” and became refugees

• Arabs: “We were forced out”

• Jews: “They left on their own”

LAW OF RETURN

• First Israeli census in 1948: pop is 900,000

• Law of Return…..

• By 1970 – that number is 2.5 million

The Israeli Dilemma

• The Arabs who didn’t flee after the war of 1948 make up about 15% of the population. The Israeli Government grants them the same social and political rights as the Jews.

“We want an all Jewish State”….but there is still these Arabs living here…..

We have a dilemma….• Do we kick them out? Or do we not have our

Jewish state?

Transjordan becomes Jordan

• British Mandate is over….

• They are now independent….

EGYPT

• In 1922 shortly after WWI – Egypt was given independence….

• Sort of…British still controlled the Suez Canal

Colonel Gamel Abdel Nasser

• A fighter in the war of 1948 – an Egyptian war hero

• He overthrew the king….and rose to power….

• The people loved him because he was angry for the same two reasons they were….– 1.) The pathetic loss in the war of 1948 (“Israel

should have been crushed”)– 2.) The British still in Egypt

Nasser’s Egypt

• Had a foreign policy of non-alignment – did not back the Americans or the Russians

• Egypt was in a neutral corner

The Suez War of 1956

• Nasser wanted to build the “High Dam at Aswan”• It would supply hydroelectric power and control the annual

flooding of the Nile River

The Aswan dam was an economic development project and the “jewel of Egypt”

It was to be paid for by the US and Britishdevelopment assistance

(grants, loans, credits)

However….• Nassar negotiated as well with the Russians….and

the US and British withdrew their $$$ for the dam….

• How did Nassar respond? He took back the Suez Canal…with force.

• What do you mean “took”? Who had the Suez Canal? Who is he taking it back from? (GB and France)

Suez Canal from Space

The Suez War of 1956

• Israel British and French invade and defeat the outnumbered Egyptian army

• But not so fast, The US and Soviets convince the Jews, Brits and French to withdraw….

• Kind of a lame way to end a “war”, but…

Nasser “WINS”

• British and French withdraw from the Canal – and it is firmly in Egypt’s hands.

• And he “won” it from non Arabs, he was a hero for Muslims in the Middle East

The Six Day War – aka the War of 1967

Causes:• Nasser demanded the removal of UN Peace-keeping

troops Sinai Border (to clear the way for war)• Closed the Gulf of Aqaba (Israel had previously

warned this would result in war)• Egypt signs a military pact with Jordan (Israel feels

surrounded)• Soviet Tanks began to move toward the Israeli

Border

Gulf of Aqaba

DAY 1

• JUNE 5 – Israel attacks Egypt…

• Israel turns the Arabs’ best military force (Egyptian war planes) in the world into a burning pile of metal…. How?

• Surprise attack – they simply bombed the planes while they were on the ground.

DAY 2, 3 and 4

• JUNE 6, 7 and 8 – ground troopsIsraelis push the Egyptian army – they flee all the

way back to the other side of the Suez Canal

Days 5 and 6

• JUNE 9 and 10 – The Israeli troops arrive at the Suez Canal

• The Sinai Peninsula is now occupied by Israel

And on the 7th day…..

• JUNE 11 – war over, US and Soviets convinced a cease fire

EFFECTS?Israel grew…..• Sinai Peninsula• Gaza Strip• West Bank• Golan Heights

All the light orange is now “occupied” by the Jews

More Effects….

• With Egypt beaten, Nasser resigned; the loss of the war was a personal defeat for him. The bold victory of Israel in the Six-Day War shocked the Middle East. (Anwar Sadat takes power)

• Jerusalem was annexed by the Jews – now they have full political control of the holy city… holy for Jews…holy for Muslims…

The War of Yom Kippur - 1974

• Surprise attack by Egypt and Syria on Israel – 1974

• Israel proves itself militarily - and Egypt is quickly saved by the bell…the US and Soviets once again save them from complete destruction at the hands of the Israeli army.

Egypt after the War of Yom Kippur

• They signed a peace treaty with Israel

• “Camp David Peace Accords”They had the Sinai Peninsula returned to them

• Peace with the Jews means one thing….no more cheap oil from the Arabs….

PHEW…..