Nasser’s 1967 Disillusion

Israeli troops guard captured Egyptian troops and Palestinians at the start of the Six-Day War on June 5, 1967 in Rafah, Gaza Strip. [GALLO/GETTY]

By the late 1950s, Egypt’s president Gamal Abdel Nasser was the Arab world’s most powerful and influential leader. With his own brand of socialist ideology and political victories he impressed and inspired the Arabs, giving a new meaning to Arab nationalism. 

In the meantime, Nasser was also coming under increasing pressure to confront Israel. Arab leaders began doubting his sincerity in defending Palestine, the cause he claimed to support. 

Counting heavily on Arab support, Nasser’s stated his intention to attack Israel, although militarily stretched to breaking point with a large part of Egypt’s army fighting in Yemen. The Arab Defence Pact was put to the test in 1967, in what became known as the Six-Day War. 

In a pre-emptive strike on June 5, Israel destroyed most of Egypt’s air force on the ground.

Arabs refer to this as the Naksa – the Defeat. The Arab Defence Pact failed, and after six days of fierce fighting, Israel had seized control of Jordan’s West Bank, Syria’s Golan Heights and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. Nasser was humiliated.

The military defeat of 1967 showed lack of coordination among Arab states, Arab land was lost, the common enemy was victorious, it served a big blow to Arab self confidence.

Part six of Al Jazeera’s nine-part series, A Question of Arab Unity, look at what is left of Nasserism and discuss the implications of the defeat of 1967 which worked its way deep into the collective Arab psyche.

Divided Arab World

It has now been 41 years since the war that changed the shape of the Middle East and the region is as divided as ever.