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1967: 40 years of occupation

Al Jazeera marks the 40th anniversary of the 1967 war.

Israel 1967 war soldiers western wall
One of the most enduring images of the war - Israeli soldiers at the Western Wall
Published On 22 Nov 2007

But, for Arab nations, the shock and scale of the sudden defeat came as a huge blow.

The 1967 war – Timeline

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June 5: At 10:10 GMT Israel launches the first wave of attacks. Almost 400 Egypt-based military aircraft destroyed, leaving craters in the runway more than five metres wide and one point six metres deep

June 6: Israel captures the Gaza Strip, defeating part of the Egyptian army

June 7: Israeli paratroopers seize control of the old city of Jerusalem; 40,000 troops and 200 tanks are deployed against the Jordanian army – the West Bank and East Jerusalem is taken

June 8: Sinai is captured and Egyptian forces are defeated

June 9: Ground fighting between Israeli and Egyptian forces continues in the Golan region

June 10: Israel defeats the Syrian army in the Golan Heights. Fighting ends when Israel heeds UN warnings not to advance into Syria

The year 1967 established the newly formed state as a first class military power with Israel, backed by powerful Western countries, almost tripling its territory.
 
The war began on June 5 1967, when Israel launched an attack against Egypt, Syria and Jordan after Gamal Abd al-Nasser, then president of Egypt, declared his intention to strike the Jewish state.
 
After six days of fierce fighting, Israel had seized control of Jordan’s West Bank, Syria’s Golan Heights and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula.
 
The Sinai was later returned to Egypt, however the West Bank, home to 2.4 million Palestinians, and the Golan Heights, a key source of water and fertile land, remain under occupation.
 
Today, despite the dazzling military victory, many uncertainties remain.
 
The unresolved fate of millions of Palestinians, the ongoing violence in Gaza, the recent war in Lebanon with Hezbollah and continuing rocket attacks on Israeli territory have shown all too sharply how many problems from the 1967 war remain unresolved, and how a lasting peace in the region remains far out of reach.
Source: Al Jazeera