A Nation on the Brink: Israel’s Precarious Position in 1967
In May 1967, the air over Israel hung thick with existential dread. Two hundred seventy thousand citizens collectively held their breath as neighboring Arab states mobilized for war. Egypt’s President Nasser had ordered United Nations peacekeepers out of Sinai, massed troops along Israel’s southern border, and blockaded the Straits of Tiran – an act Israel had long declared would constitute grounds for war. Syria and Jordan signed mutual defense pacts with Egypt, while Iraqi tanks rolled westward to join the impending conflict.
The mood shifted dramatically when news broke that Moshe Dayan, the legendary one-eyed general, would become Defense Minister. Soldiers celebrated with champagne, not because their military capabilities had changed overnight, but because Dayan’s very name symbolized victory. His appointment on June 1 marked a turning point in Israel’s crisis response, replacing hesitation with decisive action.
The Architect of Deterrence: Dayan’s Strategic Vision
Dayan understood Israel’s fundamental dilemma with crystal clarity. While Israel might destroy Egypt’s entire Sinai force, the Arabs could replace losses indefinitely. The Soviet Union could rearm Egypt within months. Israel’s 2.7 million people faced over 120 million Arabs across hostile borders. Territorial conquest meant little; survival required psychological deterrence.
“The fear in our enemies’ hearts,” Dayan argued, “remains our most effective weapon.” His strategy focused not on holding ground but on delivering such devastating blows that Arab nations would abandon dreams of Israel’s destruction. This philosophy would shape his approach to the coming conflict.
The Cabinet Debates: Hesitation Versus Action
On June 3, Israel’s leadership descended into a sweltering underground command center. Military planners presented Operation Focus, an audacious plan to neutralize Egypt’s air force in three hours using Israel’s entire combat aircraft. Most cabinet members considered the scheme suicidal – how could 200 Israeli planes destroy 400 Egyptian aircraft?
As generals grew frustrated with political hesitation, Prime Minister Levi Eshkol erupted: “We need America! Even if not for fighting, then for the postwar negotiations!” The exhausted leader added prophetically: “Military victory solves nothing. The Arabs will still be there.”
Operation Focus: Precision Planning Meets Daring Execution
The Israeli Air Force had spent years perfecting every detail. Pilots memorized Egyptian airfields down to individual tower operators’ voices. Scale models in the Negev desert allowed precise bombing rehearsals. Planners determined optimal dive angles (30 degrees) and release altitudes (150 feet) for maximum runway destruction.
The operation’s success hinged on absolute surprise. On June 5 at 7:10 AM, 16 trainer planes simulated routine patrols while 183 combat aircraft took off under radio silence. Flying at 30-foot altitudes over the Mediterranean and Red Sea, they approached Egyptian bases from unexpected directions. Remarkably, all arrived simultaneously at 7:45 AM – chosen because Egyptian pilots would be eating breakfast while commanders commuted to work.
The Devastating First Strike
The results exceeded expectations. Israeli planes cratered runways at precise intervals, then strafed parked aircraft. Within minutes, 204 Egyptian planes became burning wrecks. Egypt’s defense minister and air chief became aerial refugees when all bases were attacked simultaneously. By 10:45 AM, Air Force commander Motti Hod reported: “The Egyptian air force has ceased to exist.”
Meanwhile, Cairo radio claimed 161 Israeli planes shot down – a fiction that sent celebrating crowds into streets chanting “To Tel Aviv!” Nasser, unaware of the disaster, urged Jordan’s King Hussein to attack quickly before UN intervention.
The Jordanian Front: A War Within a War
Dayan desperately wanted to avoid fighting Jordan. Israel’s narrow waist – just 9 miles wide – made it vulnerable to being cut in half. He ordered Jerusalem commander Uzi Narkiss: “Hold fire at all costs. If attacked, hold for a week until we finish Egypt.”
Despite secret Israeli assurances of non-aggression, Hussein joined the war after receiving false reports of Egyptian victories. At 11:15 AM, Jordan’s Arab Legion unleashed 6,000 artillery shells on West Jerusalem. Dayan’s two-front nightmare had become reality.
The Legacy of Lightning War
The Six-Day War’s opening hours reshaped the Middle East. Israel’s preemptive strike became a military textbook example, demonstrating how meticulous planning, intelligence, and daring could overcome numerical inferiority. Dayan’s strategy of psychological deterrence succeeded spectacularly – the shock of defeat deterred Arab states from major conventional attacks for years.
Yet Eshkol’s warning proved prescient. Military victory didn’t resolve the fundamental conflict. The occupied territories became both strategic buffers and political burdens. The war’s legacy continues shaping Israeli security policy and regional dynamics today, reminding us that while battles can be won quickly, lasting peace remains far more elusive.