1967 Arab–Israeli Six-Day War

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The Six-Day War also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War, or Third Arab–Israeli War

This article is for strategy study purpose, want to use text contents and military situation maps to increase the
understanding of this war.

Text contents are from Wikipedia   (chapter 3 fight fronts)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six-Day_War
The maps is adapted from Westpoint academy history department
https://westpoint.edu/academics/ ... nts/history/atlases


Fighting fronts

Air attack
The first and most critical move of the conflict was a surprise Israeli attack on the Egyptian Air Force. Initially, both Egypt
and Israel announced that they had been attacked by the other country.

On 5 June at 7:45 Israeli time, as civil defense sirens sounded all over Israel, the IAF launched Operation Focus (Moked).
All but 12 of its nearly 200 operational jets launched a mass attack against Egypt's airfields. The Egyptian
defensive infrastructure was extremely poor, and no airfields were yet equipped with hardened aircraft shelters capable
of protecting Egypt's warplanes. Most of the Israeli warplanes headed out over the Mediterranean Sea, flying low to avoid
radar detection, before turning toward Egypt. Others flew over the Red Sea.

Meanwhile, the Egyptians hindered their own defense by effectively shutting down their entire air defense system: they
were worried that rebel Egyptian forces would shoot down the plane carrying Field Marshal Abdel Hakim Amer and Lt-Gen.
Sidqi Mahmoud, who were en route from al Maza to Bir Tamada in the Sinai to meet the commanders of the troops
stationed there. In any event, it did not make a great deal of difference as the Israeli pilots came in below Egyptian radar
cover and well below the lowest point at which its SA-2 surface-to-air missile batteries could bring down an aircraft.

Although the powerful Jordanian radar facility at Ajloun detected waves of aircraft approaching Egypt and reported the
code word for "war" up the Egyptian command chain, Egyptian command and communications problems prevented
the warning from reaching the targeted airfields. The Israelis employed a mixed-attack strategy: bombing and strafing
runs against planes parked on the ground, and bombing to disable runways with special tarmac-shredding penetration
bombs developed jointly with France, leaving surviving aircraft unable to take off. The runway at the Arish airfield was
spared, as the Israelis expected to turn it into a military airport for their transports after the war. Surviving aircraft were
taken out by later attack waves. The operation was more successful than expected, catching the Egyptians by surprise
and destroying virtually all of the Egyptian Air Force on the ground, with few Israeli losses. Only four unarmed Egyptian
training flights were in the air when the strike began. A total of 338 Egyptian aircraft were destroyed and 100 pilots were
killed, although the number of aircraft lost by the Egyptians is disputed.

Among the Egyptian planes lost were all 30 Tu-16 bombers, 27 out of 40 Il-28 bombers, 12 Su-7 fighter-bombers, over
90 MiG-21s, 20 MiG-19s, 25 MiG-17 fighters, and around 32 assorted transport planes and helicopters. In addition, Egyptian
radars and SAM missiles were also attacked and destroyed. The Israelis lost 19 planes, including two destroyed in air-to-air
combat and 13 downed by anti-aircraft artillery. One Israeli plane, which was damaged and unable to break radio silence
, was shot down by Israeli Hawk missiles after it strayed over the Negev Nuclear Research Center. Another was destroyed
by an exploding Egyptian bomber.

The attack guaranteed Israeli air supremacy for the rest of the war. Attacks on other Arab air forces by Israel took place
later in the day as hostilities broke out on other fronts.

The large numbers of Arab aircraft claimed destroyed by Israel on that day were at first regarded as "greatly exaggerated"
by the Western press. However, the fact that the Egyptian Air Force, along with other Arab air forces attacked by Israel,
made practically no appearance for the remaining days of the conflict proved that the numbers were most likely authentic.
Throughout the war, Israeli aircraft continued strafing Arab airfield runways to prevent their return to usability. Meanwhile,
Egyptian state-run radio had reported an Egyptian victory, falsely claiming that 70 Israeli planes had been downed on the
first day of fighting.

Gaza Strip and Sinai Peninsula



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The Egyptian forces consisted of seven divisions: four armoured, two infantry, and one mechanized infantry. Overall,
Egypt had around 100,000 troops and 900–950 tanks in the Sinai, backed by 1,100 APCs and 1,000 artillery pieces.
This arrangement was thought to be based on the Soviet doctrine, where mobile armour units at strategic depth provide
a dynamic defense while infantry units engage in defensive battles.

Israeli forces concentrated on the border with Egypt included six armoured brigades, one infantry brigade, one
mechanized infantry brigade, three paratrooper brigades, giving a total of around 70,000 men and 700 tanks, who
were organized in three armoured divisions. They had massed on the border the night before the war, camouflaging
themselves and observing radio silence before being ordered to advance.

The Israeli plan was to surprise the Egyptian forces in both timing (the attack exactly coinciding with the IAF strike on
Egyptian airfields), location (attacking via northern and central Sinai routes, as opposed to the Egyptian expectations
of a repeat of the 1956 war, when the IDF attacked via the central and southern routes) and method (using a
combined-force flanking approach, rather than direct tank assaults).

Northern (El Arish) Israeli division


On 5 June, at 7:50 a.m., the northernmost Israeli division, consisting of three brigades and commanded by Major General
Israel Tal, one of Israel's most prominent armour commanders, crossed the border at two points, opposite Nahal Oz and
south of Khan Yunis. They advanced swiftly, holding fire to prolong the element of surprise. Tal's forces assaulted the
"Rafah Gap", a seven-mile stretch containing the shortest of three main routes through the Sinai towards El-Qantarah
el-Sharqiyya and the Suez Canal. The Egyptians had four divisions in the area, backed by minefields, pillboxes,
underground bunkers, hidden gun emplacements and trenches. The terrain on either side of the route was impassable.
The Israeli plan was to hit the Egyptians at selected key points with concentrated armour.

Tal's advance was led by the 7th Armored Brigade under Colonel Shmuel Gonen. The Israeli plan called for the 7th
Brigade to outflank Khan Yunis from the north and the 60th Armored Brigade under Colonel Menachem Aviram would
advance from the south. The two brigades would link up and surround Khan Yunis, while the paratroopers would
take Rafah. Gonen entrusted the breakthrough to a single battalion of his brigade.

Initially, the advance was met with light resistance, as Egyptian intelligence had concluded that it was a diversion for
the main attack. However, as Gonen's lead battalion advanced, it suddenly came under intense fire and took heavy
losses. A second battalion was brought up, but was also pinned down. Meanwhile, the 60th Brigade became bogged
down in the sand, while the paratroopers had trouble navigating through the dunes. The Israelis continued to press
their attack, and despite heavy losses, cleared the Egyptian positions and reached the Khan Yunis railway junction
in little over four hours.

Gonen's brigade then advanced nine miles to Rafah in twin columns. Rafah itself was circumvented, and the Israelis
attacked Sheikh Zuweid, eight miles to the southwest, which was defended by two brigades. Though inferior in
numbers and equipment, the Egyptians were deeply entrenched and camouflaged. The Israelis were pinned down
by fierce Egyptian resistance, and called in air and artillery support to enable their lead elements to advance. Many
Egyptians abandoned their positions after their commander and several of his staff were killed.

The Israelis broke through with tank-led assaults. However, Aviram's forces misjudged the Egyptians' flank, and were
pinned between strongholds before they were extracted after several hours. By nightfall, the Israelis had finished
mopping up resistance. Israeli forces had taken significant losses, with Colonel Gonen later telling reporters that "we
left many of our dead soldiers in Rafah, and many burnt-out tanks." The Egyptians suffered some 2,000 casualties
and lost 40 tanks.

Advance on Arish

On 5 June, with the road open, Israeli forces continued advancing towards Arish. Already by late afternoon, elements
of the 79th Armored Battalion had charged through the seven-mile long Jiradi defile, a narrow pass defended by
well-emplaced troops of the Egyptian 112th Infantry Brigade. In fierce fighting, which saw the pass change hands
several times, the Israelis charged through the position. The Egyptians suffered heavy casualties and tank losses,
while Israeli losses stood at 66 dead, 93 wounded and 28 tanks. Emerging at the western end, Israeli forces advanced
to the outskirts of Arish. As it reached the outskirts of Arish, Tal's division also consolidated its hold on Rafah and
Khan Yunis.

The following day, 6 June, the Israeli forces on the outskirts of Arish were reinforced by the 7th Brigade, which fought
its way through the Jiradi pass. After receiving supplies via an airdrop, the Israelis entered the city and captured the
airport at 7:50 am. The Israelis entered the city at 8:00 am. Company commander Yossi Peled recounted that "Al-Arish
was totally quiet, desolate. Suddenly, the city turned into a madhouse. Shots came at us from every alley, every corner
, every window and house." An IDF record stated that "clearing the city was hard fighting. The Egyptians fired from the
rooftops, from balconies and windows. They dropped grenades into our half-tracks and blocked the streets with trucks.
Our men threw the grenades back and crushed the trucks with their tanks." Gonen sent additional units to Arish,
and the city was eventually taken.

Brigadier-General Avraham Yoffe's assignment was to penetrate Sinai south of Tal's forces and north of Sharon's. Yoffe's
attack allowed Tal to complete the capture of the Jiradi defile, Khan Yunis. All of them were taken after fierce fighting.
Gonen subsequently dispatched a force of tanks, infantry and engineers under Colonel Yisrael Granit to continue down
the Mediterranean coast towards the Suez Canal, while a second force led by Gonen himself turned south and captured
Bir Lahfan and Jabal Libni.

Mid-front (Abu-Ageila) Israeli division

Further south, on 6 June, the Israeli 38th Armored Division under Major-General Ariel Sharon assaulted Um-Katef, a heavily
fortified area defended by the Egyptian 2nd Infantry Division under Major-General Sa'adi Nagib, and consisting of some
16,000 troops. The Egyptians also had a battalion of tank destroyers and a tank regiment, formed of Soviet World War II
armour, which included 90 T-34-85 tanks, 22 SU-100 tank destroyers, and about 16,000 men. The Israelis had about
14,000 men and 150 post-World War II tanks including the AMX-13, Centurions, and M50 Super Shermans (modified
M-4 Sherman tanks).

Two armoured brigades in the meantime, under Avraham Yoffe, slipped across the border through sandy wastes that
Egypt had left undefended because they were considered impassable. Simultaneously, Sharon's tanks from the west
were to engage Egyptian forces on Um-Katef ridge and block any reinforcements. Israeli infantry would clear the three
trenches, while heliborne paratroopers would land behind Egyptian lines and silence their artillery. An armoured thrust
would be made at al-Qusmaya to unnerve and isolate its garrison.

As Sharon's division advanced into the Sinai, Egyptian forces staged successful delaying actions at Tarat Umm, Umm
Tarfa, and Hill 181. An Israeli jet was downed by anti-aircraft fire, and Sharon's forces came under heavy shelling as
they advanced from the north and west. The Israeli advance, which had to cope with extensive minefields, took a
large number of casualties. A column of Israeli tanks managed to penetrate the northern flank of Abu Ageila, and by
dusk, all units were in position. The Israelis then brought up ninety 105 mm and 155 mm artillery guns for a
preparatory barrage, while civilian buses brought reserve infantrymen under Colonel Yekutiel Adam and helicopters
arrived to ferry the paratroopers. These movements were unobserved by the Egyptians, who were preoccupied
with Israeli probes against their perimeter.

As night fell, the Israeli assault troops lit flashlights, each battalion a different color, to prevent friendly fire incidents. At
10:00 pm, Israeli artillery began a barrage on Um-Katef, firing some 6,000 shells in less than twenty minutes, the most
concentrated artillery barrage in Israel's history. Israeli tanks assaulted the northernmost Egyptian defenses
and were largely successful, though an entire armoured brigade was stalled by mines, and had only one mine-clearance
tank. Israeli infantrymen assaulted the triple line of trenches in the east. To the west, paratroopers commanded by
Colonel Danny Matt landed behind Egyptian lines, though half the helicopters got lost and never found the battlefield,
while others were unable to land due to mortar fire. Those that successfully landed on target destroyed
Egyptian artillery and ammunition dumps and separated gun crews from their batteries, sowing enough confusion
to significantly reduce Egyptian artillery fire. Egyptian reinforcements from Jabal Libni advanced towards Um-Katef
to counterattack, but failed to reach their objective, being subjected to heavy air attacks and encountering Israeli
lodgements on the roads. Egyptian commanders then called in artillery attacks on their own positions. The Israelis
accomplished and sometimes exceeded their overall plan, and had largely succeeded by the following day. The
Egyptians took heavy casualties, while the Israelis lost 40 dead and 140 wounded.

Yoffe's attack allowed Sharon to complete the capture of the Um-Katef, after fierce fighting. The main thrust at
Um-Katef was stalled due to mines and craters. After IDF engineers had cleared a path by 4:00 pm, Israeli and
Egyptian tanks engaged in fierce combat, often at ranges as close as ten yards. The battle ended in an Israeli
victory, with 40 Egyptian and 19 Israeli tanks destroyed. Meanwhile, Israeli infantry finished clearing out the Egyptian
trenches, with Israeli casualties standing at 14 dead and 41 wounded and Egyptian casualties at 300 dead and 100
taken prisoner.

Other Israeli forces
Further south, on 5 June, the 8th Armored Brigade under Colonel Albert Mandler, initially positioned as a ruse to draw
off Egyptian forces from the real invasion routes, attacked the fortified bunkers at Kuntilla, a strategically valuable position
whose capture would enable Mandler to block reinforcements from reaching Um-Katef and to join Sharon's upcoming
attack on Nakhl. The defending Egyptian battalion, outnumbered and outgunned, fiercely resisted the attack, hitting a
number of Israeli tanks. However, most of the defenders were killed, and only three Egyptian tanks, one of them
damaged, survived. By nightfall, Mendler's forces had taken Kuntilla.

With the exceptions of Rafah and Khan Yunis, Israeli forces had initially avoided entering the Gaza Strip. Israeli Defense
Minister Moshe Dayan had expressly forbidden entry into the area. After Palestinian positions in Gaza opened fire on the
Negev settlements of Nirim and Kissufim, IDF Chief of Staff Yitzhak Rabin overrode Dayan's instructions and ordered
the 11th Mechanized Brigade under Colonel Yehuda Reshef to enter the Strip. The force was immediately met with
heavy artillery fire and fierce resistance from Palestinian forces and remnants of the Egyptian forces from Rafah.

By sunset, the Israelis had taken the strategically vital Ali Muntar ridge, overlooking Gaza City, but were beaten back
from the city itself. Some 70 Israelis were killed, along with Israeli journalist Ben Oyserman and American journalist
Paul Schutzer. Twelve members of UNEF were also killed. On the war's second day, 6 June, the Israelis were bolstered
by the 35th Paratroopers Brigade under Colonel Rafael Eitan, and took Gaza City along with the entire Strip. The
fighting was fierce, and accounted for nearly half of all Israeli casualties on the southern front. However, Gaza rapidly
fell to the Israelis.

Meanwhile, on 6 June, two Israeli reserve brigades under Yoffe, each equipped with 100 tanks, penetrated the Sinai
south of Tal's division and north of Sharon's, capturing the road junctions of Abu Ageila, Bir Lahfan, and Arish, taking
all of them before midnight. Two Egyptian armoured brigades counterattacked, and a fierce battle took place until
the following morning. The Egyptians were beaten back by fierce resistance coupled with airstrikes, sustaining heavy
tank losses. They fled west towards Jabal Libni.

The Egyptian Army

During the ground fighting, remnants of the Egyptian Air Force attacked Israeli ground forces, but took losses from the
Israeli Air Force and from Israeli anti-aircraft units. Throughout the last four days, Egyptian aircraft flew 150 sorties
against Israeli units in the Sinai.

Many of the Egyptian units remained intact and could have tried to prevent the Israelis from reaching the Suez Canal,
or engaged in combat in the attempt to reach the canal. However, when the Egyptian Field Marshal Abdel Hakim Amer
heard about the fall of Abu-Ageila, he panicked and ordered all units in the Sinai to retreat. This order effectively meant
the defeat of Egypt.

Meanwhile, President Nasser, having learned of the results of the Israeli air strikes, decided together with Field Marshal
Amer to order a general retreat from the Sinai within 24 hours. No detailed instructions were given concerning the
manner and sequence of withdrawal.

Next fighting days

As Egyptian columns retreated, Israeli aircraft and artillery attacked them. Israeli jets used napalm bombs during their
sorties. The attacks destroyed hundreds of vehicles and caused heavy casualties. At Jabal Libni, retreating Egyptian
soldiers were fired upon by their own artillery. At Bir Gafgafa, the Egyptians fiercely resisted advancing Israeli forces,
knocking out three tanks and eight half-tracks, and killing 20 soldiers. Due to the Egyptians' retreat, the Israeli High
Command decided not to pursue the Egyptian units but rather to bypass and destroy them in the mountainous
passes of West Sinai.

Therefore, in the following two days ( 6 and 7 June), all three Israeli divisions (Sharon and Tal were reinforced by
an armoured brigade each) rushed westwards and reached the passes. Sharon's division first went southward then
westward, via An-Nakhl, to Mitla Pass with air support. It was joined there by parts of Yoffe's division, while its other
units blocked the Gidi Pass. These passes became killing grounds for the Egyptians, who ran right into waiting Israeli
positions and suffered heavy losses. According to Egyptian diplomat Mahmoud Riad, 10,000 men were killed in one
day alone, and many others died from hunger and thirst. Tal's units stopped at various points to the length of the
Suez Canal.

Israel's blocking action was partially successful. Only the Gidi pass was captured before the Egyptians approached it,
but at other places, Egyptian units managed to pass through and cross the canal to safety. Due to the haste of the
Egyptian retreat, soldiers often abandoned weapons, military equipment, and hundreds of vehicles. Many Egyptian
soldiers were cut off from their units had to walk about 200 kilometers on foot before reaching the Suez Canal with
limited supplies of food and water and were exposed to intense heat. Thousands of soldiers died as a result. Many
Egyptian soldiers chose instead to surrender to the Israelis. However, the Israelis eventually exceeded their capabilities
to provide for prisoners. As a result, they began directing soldiers towards the Suez Canal and only taking prisoner
high-ranking officers, who were expected to be exchanged for captured Israeli pilots.

According to some accounts, during the Egyptian retreat from the Sinai, a unit of Soviet Marines based on a Soviet
warship in Port Said at the time came ashore and attempted to cross the Suez Canal eastward. The Soviet force was
reportedly decimated by an Israeli air attack and lost 17 dead and 34 wounded. Among the wounded was the
commander, Lt. Col. Victor Shevchenko.

During the offensive, the Israeli Navy landed six combat divers from the Shayetet 13 naval commando unit to
infiltrate Alexandria harbour. The divers sank an Egyptian minesweeper before being taken prisoner. Shayetet 13
commandos also infiltrated into Port Said harbour, but found no ships there. A planned commando raid against
the Syrian Navy never materialized. Both Egyptian and Israeli warships made movements at sea to intimidate the
other side throughout the war, but did not engage each other. However, Israeli warships and aircraft did hunt for
Egyptian submarines throughout the war.

On 7 June, Israel began the conquest of Sharm el-Sheikh. The Israeli Navy started the operation with a probe of
Egyptian naval defenses. An aerial reconnaissance flight found that the area was less defended than originally
thought. At about 4:30 am, three Israeli missile boats opened fire on Egyptian shore batteries, while paratroopers
and commandos boarded helicopters and Nord Noratlas transport planes for an assault on Al-Tur, as Chief of Staff
Rabin was convinced it was too risky to land them directly in Sharm el-Sheikh.[90] However, the city had been
largely abandoned the day before, and reports from air and naval forces finally convinced Rabin to divert the
aircraft to Sharm el-Sheikh. There, the Israelis engaged in a pitched battle with the Egyptians and took the city,
killing 20 Egyptian soldiers and taking 8 prisoner. At 12:15 pm, Defense Minister Dayan announced that the Straits
of Tiran constituted an international waterway open to all ships without restriction.

On 8 June, Israel completed the capture of the Sinai by sending infantry units to Ras Sudar on the western coast
of the peninsula.

Several tactical elements made the swift Israeli advance possible: first, the surprise attack that quickly gave the Israeli
Air Force complete air superiority over the Egyptian Air Force; second, the determined implementation of an innovative
battle plan; third, the lack of coordination among Egyptian troops. These factors would prove to be decisive elements
on Israel's other fronts as well.

West Bank


Egyptian-control of Jordanian forces

King Hussein had given control of his army to Egypt in 1 June, on which date Egyptian General Riad arrived in Amman
to take control of the Jordanian military.

Egyptian Field Marshal Amer used the confusion of the first hours of the conflict to send a cable to Amman that he was
victorious; he claimed as evidence a radar sighting of a squadron of Israeli aircraft returning from bombing raids in Egypt,
which he said was an Egyptian aircraft en route to attack Israel.[92] In this cable, sent shortly before 9:00am, Riad was
ordered to attack.

Initial attack







One of the Jordanian brigades stationed in the West Bank was sent to the Hebron area in order to link with the
Egyptians.

The IDF's strategic plan was to remain on the defensive along the Jordanian front, to enable focus in the expected
campaign against Egypt.

Intermittent machine-gun exchanges began taking place in Jerusalem at 9:30 am, and the fighting gradually escalated
as the Jordanians introduced mortar and recoilless rifle fire. Under the orders from General Narkis, the Israelis responded
only with small-arms fire, firing in a flat trajectory to avoid hitting civilians, holy sites or the Old City. At 10:00 am on 5
June, the Jordanian Army began shelling Israel. Two batteries of 155 mm Long Tom cannons opened fire on the suburbs
of Tel Aviv and Ramat David Airbase. The commanders of these batteries were instructed to lay a two-hour barrage
against military and civilian settlements in central Israel. Some shells hit the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

By 10:30 am, Eshkol had sent a message via Odd Bull to King Hussein promising not to initiate any action against Jordan
if it stayed out of the war. King Hussein replied that it was too late, "the die was cast". At 11:15 am, Jordanian
howitzers began a 6,000-shell barrage at Israeli Jerusalem. The Jordanians initially targeted kibbutz Ramat Rachel in the
south and Mount Scopus in the north, then ranged into the city center and outlying neighborhoods. Military installations,
the Prime Minister's Residence, and the Knesset compound were also targeted. Israeli civilian casualties totalled 20 dead
and about 1,000 wounded. Some 900 buildings were damaged, including Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital.

At 11:50 am, sixteen Jordanian Hawker Hunters attacked Netanya, Kfar Sirkin and Kfar Saba, killing one civilian, wounding
seven and destroying a transport plane. Three Iraqi Hawker Hunters strafed civilian settlements in the Jezreel Valley, and
an Iraqi Tupolev Tu-16 attacked Afula, and was shot down near the Megiddo airfield. The attack caused minimal material
damage, hitting only a senior citizens' home and several chicken coops, but sixteen Israeli soldiers were killed, most of
them when the Tupolev crashed.

Israeli cabinet meets

When the Israeli cabinet convened to decide what to do, Yigal Allon and Menahem Begin argued that this was an
opportunity to take the Old City of Jerusalem, but Eshkol decided to defer any decision until Moshe Dayan and Yitzhak
Rabin could be consulted. Uzi Narkiss made a number of proposals for military action, including the capture of Latrun,
but the cabinet turned him down. Dayan rejected multiple requests from Narkiss for permission to mount an infantry
assault towards Mount Scopus. However, Dayan sanctioned a number of more limited retaliatory actions.

Initial response

Shortly before 12:30 pm, the Israeli Air Force attacked Jordan's two airbases. The Hawker Hunters were refueling at
the time of the attack. The Israeli aircraft attacked in two waves, the first of which cratered the runways and knocked
out the control towers, and the second wave destroyed all 21 of Jordan's Hawker Hunter fighters, along with six
transport aircraft and two helicopters. One Israeli jet was shot down by ground fire.

Israeli aircraft also attacked H-3, an Iraqi Air Force base in western Iraq. During the attack, 12 MiG-21s, 2 MiG-17s,
5 Hunter F6s, and 3 Il-28 bombers were destroyed or shot down. A Pakistani pilot stationed at the base shot down
an Israeli fighter and a bomber during the raid. The Jordanian radar facility at Ajloun was destroyed in an Israeli
airstrike. Israeli Fouga Magister jets attacked the Jordanian 40th Brigade with rockets as it moved south from the
Damiya Bridge. Dozens of tanks were knocked out, and a convoy of 26 trucks carrying ammunition was destroyed.
In Jerusalem, Israel responded to Jordanian shelling with a missile strike that devastated Jordanian positions. The
Israelis used the L missile, a surface-to-surface missile developed jointly with France in secret.

Jordanian battalion at Government House

A Jordanian battalion advanced up Government House ridge and dug in at the perimeter of Government House, the
headquarters of the United Nations observers, and opened fire on Ramat Rachel, the Allenby Barracks and the Jewish
section of Abu Tor with mortars and recoilless rifles. UN observers fiercely protested the incursion into the neutral zone
and several manhandled a Jordanian machine gun out of Government House after the crew had set it up in a second-floor
window. After the Jordanians occupied Jabel Mukaber, an advance patrol was sent out and approached Ramat Rachel,
where they came under fire from four civilians, including the wife of the director, who were armed with old Czech-made
weapons.

The immediate Israeli response was an offensive to retake Government House and its ridge. The Jerusalem Brigade's
Reserve Battalion 161, under Lieutenant-Colonel Asher Dreizin, was given the task. Dreizin had two infantry companies
and eight tanks under his command, several of which broke down or became stuck in the mud at Ramat Rachel,
leaving three for the assault. The Jordanians mounted fierce resistance, knocking out two tanks.

The Israelis broke through the compound's western gate and began clearing the building with grenades, before General
Odd Bull, commander of the UN observers, compelled the Israelis to hold their fire, telling them that the Jordanians had
already fled. The Israelis proceeded to take the Antenna Hill, directly behind Government House, and clear out a series of
bunkers to the west and south. The fighting, often conducted hand-to-hand, continued for nearly four hours before the
surviving Jordanians fell back to trenches held by the Hittin Brigade, which were steadily overwhelmed. By 6:30 pm, the
Jordanians had retreated to Bethlehem, having suffered about 100 casualties. All but ten of Dreizin's soldiers were casualties,
and Dreizin himself was wounded three times.

Israeli invasion

During the late afternoon of 5 June, the Israelis launched an offensive to encircle Jerusalem, which lasted into the
following day. During the night, they were supported by intense tank, artillery and mortar fire to soften up Jordanian
positions. Searchlights placed atop the Labor Federation building, then the tallest in Israeli Jerusalem, exposed and
blinded the Jordanians. The Jerusalem Brigade moved south of Jerusalem, while the mechanized Harel Brigade and
55th Paratroopers Brigade under Mordechai Gur encircled it from the north.

A combined force of tanks and paratroopers crossed no-man's land near the Mandelbaum Gate. One of Gur's paratroop
battalions approached the fortified Police Academy. The Israelis used bangalore torpedoes to blast their way through
barbed wire leading up to the position while exposed and under heavy fire. With the aid of two tanks borrowed from
the Jerusalem Brigade, they captured the Police Academy. After receiving reinforcements, they moved up to attack
Ammunition Hill.

The Jordanian defenders, who were heavily dug-in, fiercely resisted the attack. All of the Israeli officers except for two
company commanders were killed, and the fighting was mostly led by individual soldiers. The fighting was conducted
at close quarters in trenches and bunkers, and was often hand-to-hand. The Israelis captured the position after four
hours of heavy fighting. During the battle, 36 Israeli and 71 Jordanian soldiers were killed.

The battalion subsequently drove east, and linked up with the Israeli enclave on Mount Scopus and its Hebrew University
campus. Gur's other battalions captured the other Jordanian positions around the American Colony, despite being short
on men and equipment and having come under a Jordanian mortar bombardment while waiting for the signal to advance

At the same time, the mechanized Harel Brigade attacked the fortress at Latrun, which the Jordanians had abandoned
due to heavy Israeli tank fire. The brigade attacked Har Adar, but seven tanks were knocked out by mines, forcing the
infantry to mount an assault without armoured cover. The Israeli soldiers advanced under heavy fire, jumping between
stones to avoid mines. The fighting was conducted at close-quarters, often with knives and bayonets.

The Jordanians fell back after a battle that left two Israeli and eight Jordanian soldiers dead, and Israeli forces advanced
through Beit Horon towards Ramallah, taking four fortified villages along the way. By the evening, the brigade arrived
in Ramallah. Meanwhile, the 163rd Infantry Battalion secured Abu Tor following a fierce battle, severing the Old City from
Bethlehem and Hebron.

Meanwhile, 600 Egyptian commandos stationed in the West Bank moved to attack Israeli airfields. Led by Jordanian
intelligence scouts, they crossed the border and began infiltrating through Israeli settlements towards Ramla and
Hatzor. They were soon detected and sought shelter in nearby fields, which the Israelis set on fire. Some 450 commandos
were killed, and the remainder escaped to Jordan.

From the American Colony, the paratroopers moved towards the Old City. Their plan was to approach it via the lightly
defended Salah al-Din Street. However, they made a wrong turn onto the heavily defended Nablus Road. The Israelis
ran into fierce resistance. Their tanks fired at point-blank range down the street, while the paratroopers mounted repeated
charges. Despite repelling repeated Israeli charges, the Jordanians gradually gave way to Israeli firepower and momentum.
The Israelis suffered some 30 casualties – half the original force – while the Jordanians lost 45 dead and 142 wounded.

Meanwhile, the Israeli 71st Battalion breached barbed wire and minefields and emerged near Wadi Joz, near the base of
Mount Scopus, from where the Old City could be cut off from Jericho and East Jerusalem from Ramallah. Israeli artillery
targeted the one remaining route from Jerusalem to the West Bank, and shellfire deterred the Jordanians from
counterattacking from their positions at Augusta-Victoria. An Israeli detachment then captured the Rockefeller Museum
after a brief skirmish.

Afterwards, the Israelis broke through to the Jerusalem-Ramallah road. At Tel al-Ful, the Israelis fought a running battle
with up to thirty Jordanian tanks. The Jordanians stalled the advance and destroyed a number of half-tracks, but the
Israelis launched air attacks and exploited the vulnerability of the external fuel tanks mounted on the Jordanian tanks.
The Jordanians lost half their tanks, and retreated towards Jericho. Joining up with the 4th Brigade, the Israelis then
descended through Shuafat and the site of what is now French Hill, through Jordanian defenses at Mivtar, emerging
at Ammunition Hill.

With Jordanian defenses in Jerusalem crumbling, elements of the Jordanian 60th Brigade and an infantry battalion
were sent from Jericho to reinforce Jerusalem. Its original orders were to repel the Israelis from the Latrun corridor,
but due to the worsening situation in Jerusalem, the brigade was ordered to proceed to Jerusalem's Arab suburbs
and attack Mount Scopus. Parallel to the brigade were infantrymen from the Imam Ali Brigade, who were approaching
Issawiya. The brigades were spotted by Israeli aircraft and decimated by rocket and cannon fire. Other Jordanian
attempts to reinforce Jerusalem were beaten back, either by armoured ambushes or airstrikes.

Fearing damage to holy sites and the prospect of having to fight in built-up areas, Dayan ordered his troops not to
enter the Old City.[97] He also feared that Israel would be subjected to a fierce international backlash and the outrage
of Christians worldwide if it forced its way into the Old City. Privately, he told David Ben-Gurion that he was also
concerned over the prospect of Israel capturing Jerusalem's holy sites, only to be forced to give them up under the
threat of international sanctions.

The West Bank

Israel was to gain almost total control of the West Bank by the evening of 7 June, and began its military occupation
of the West Bank on that day, issuing a military order, the "Proclamation Regarding Law and Administration
(The West Bank Area) (No. 2)—1967", which established the military government in the West Bank and granted
the commander of the area full legislative, executive, and judicial power.Jordan had realised that it had no
hope of defence as early as the morning of 6 June, just a day after the conflict had begun. At Nasser’s request,
Egypt’s Abdul Munim Riad sent a situation update at midday on 6 June:

          The situation on the West Bank is rapidly deteriorating. A concentrated attack has been launched on all axes,
          together with heavy fire, day and night. Jordanian, Syrian and Iraqi air forces in position H3 have been virtually
          destroyed. Upon consultation with King Hussein I have been asked to convey to you the following choices:
          1. A political decision to cease fighting to be imposed by a third party (the USA, the Soviet Union or the Security
              Council).
          2. To vacate the West Bank tonight.
          3. To go on fighting for one more day, resulting in the isolation and destruction of the entire Jordanian Army.
          King Hussein has asked me to refer this matter to you for an immediate reply."


An Egyptian order for Jordanian forces to withdraw across the Jordan River was issued at 10am on June 6; however
that afternoon King Hussein learned of the impending United Nations Security Council Resolution 233 and decided
instead to hold out in the hope that a ceasefire would be implemented soon. It was already too late, as the counter-order
caused confusion and in many cases it was not possible to regain positions which had previously been left.

On 7 June, Dayan had ordered his troops not to enter the Old City; however, upon hearing that the UN was about
to declare a ceasefire, he changed his mind, and without cabinet clearance, decided to capture it. Two paratroop
battalions attacked Augusta-Victoria Hill, high ground overlooking the Old City from the east. One battalion attacked
from Mount Scopus, and another attacked from the valley between it and the Old City. Another paratroop battalion,
personally led by Gur, broke into the Old City, and was joined by the other two battalions after their missions were
complete. The paratroopers met little resistance. The fighting was conducted solely by the paratroopers; the Israelis
did not use armour during the battle out of fear of severe damage to the Old City.

In the north, one battalion from Peled's division was sent to check Jordanian defenses in the Jordan Valley. A brigade
belonging to Peled's division captured the western part of the West Bank. One brigade attacked Jordanian artillery
positions around Jenin, which were shelling Ramat David Airbase. The Jordanian 12th Armored Battalion, which
outnumbered the Israelis, held off repeated attempts to capture Jenin. However, Israeli air attacks took their toll,
and the Jordanian M48 Pattons, with their external fuel tanks, proved vulnerable at short distances, even to the
Israeli-modified Shermans. Twelve Jordanian tanks were destroyed, and only six remained operational.

Just after dusk, Israeli reinforcements arrived. The Jordanians continued to fiercely resist, and the Israelis were unable
to advance without artillery and air support. One Israeli jet attacked the Jordanian commander's tank, wounding him
and killing his radio operator and intelligence officer. The surviving Jordanian forces then withdrew to Jenin, where they
were reinforced by the 25th Infantry Brigade. The Jordanians were effectively surrounded in Jenin.

Jordanian infantry and their three remaining tanks managed to hold off the Israelis until 4:00 am, when three battalions
arrived to reinforce them in the afternoon. The Jordanian tanks charged, and knocked out multiple Israeli vehicles, and
the tide began to shift. After sunrise, Israeli jets and artillery conducted a two-hour bombardment against the Jordanians.
The Jordanians lost 10 dead and 250 wounded, and had only seven tanks left, including two without gas, and sixteen
APCs. The Israelis then fought their way into Jenin, and captured the city after fierce fighting.

After the Old City fell, the Jerusalem Brigade reinforced the paratroopers, and continued to the south, capturing Judea
and Gush Etzion. Hebron was taken without any resistance. Fearful that Israeli soldiers would exact retribution for the
1929 massacre of the city's Jewish community, Hebron's residents flew white sheets from their windows and rooftops,
and voluntarily gave up their weapons.[citation needed] The Harel Brigade proceeded eastward, descending to the
Jordan River.

On 7 June, Israeli forces seized Bethlehem, taking the city after a brief battle that left some 40 Jordanian soldiers dead,
with the remainder fleeing. On the same day, one of Peled's brigades seized Nablus; then it joined one of Central
Command's armoured brigades to fight the Jordanian forces; as the Jordanians held the advantage of superior
equipment and were equal in numbers to the Israelis.

Again, the air superiority of the IAF proved paramount as it immobilized the Jordanians, leading to their defeat. One
of Peled's brigades joined with its Central Command counterparts coming from Ramallah, and the remaining two
blocked the Jordan river crossings together with the Central Command's 10th. Engineering Corps sappers blew up
the Abdullah and Hussein bridges with captured Jordanian mortar shells, while elements of the Harel Brigade crossed
the river and occupied positions along the east bank to cover them, but quickly pulled back due to American pressure.
The Jordanians, anticipating an Israeli offensive deep into Jordan, assembled the remnants of their army and Iraqi
units in Jordan to protect the western approaches to Amman and the southern slopes of the Golan Heights.

As Israel continued its offensive on 7 June, taking no account of the UN ceasefire resolution, the Egyptian-Jordanian
command ordered a full Jordanian withdrawal for the second time, in order to avoid an annihilation of the Jordanian
army. This was complete by nightfall on 7 June.

After the Old City was captured, Dayan told his troops to "dig in" to hold it. When an armoured brigade commander
entered the West Bank on his own initiative, and stated that he could see Jericho, Dayan ordered him back. It was
only after intelligence reports indicated that Hussein had withdrawn his forces across the Jordan River that Dayan
ordered his troops to capture the West Bank. According to Narkis:

         First, the Israeli government had no intention of capturing the West Bank. On the contrary, it was opposed to it.
         Second, there was not any provocation on the part of the IDF.
         Third, the rein was only loosened when a real threat to Jerusalem's security emerged. This is truly how things
         happened on June 5, although it is difficult to believe. The end result was something that no one had planned.

Golan Heights

In May–June 1967, in preparation for conflict, the Israeli government planned to confine the confrontation to the
Egyptian front, whilst taking into account the possibility of some fighting on the Syrian front.

Syrian front 5–8 June

Syria largely stayed out of the conflict for the first four days.

False Egyptian reports of a crushing victory against the Israeli army and forecasts that Egyptian forces would soon
be attacking Tel Aviv influenced Syria's decision to enter the war – in a sporadic manner – during this period Syrian
artillery began shelling northern Israel, and twelve Syrian jets attacked Israeli settlements in the Galilee. Israeli fighter
jets intercepted the Syrian aircraft, shooting down three and driving off the rest.  In addition, two Lebanese
Hawker Hunter jets, two of the twelve Lebanon had, crossed into Israeli airspace and began strafing Israeli positions in
the Galilee. They were intercepted by Israeli fighter jets, and one was shot down.

On the evening of 5 June, the Israeli Air Force attacked Syrian airfields. The Syrian Air Force lost some 32 MiG 21s, 23
MiG-15 and MiG-17 fighters, and two Ilyushin Il-28 bombers, two-thirds of its fighting strength. The Syrian aircraft
that survived the attack retreated to distant bases and played no further role in the war. Following the attack, Syria
realised that the news it had received from Egypt of the near-total destruction of the Israeli military could not have
been true.

On June 6, a minor Syrian force tried to capture the water plants at Tel Dan (the subject of a fierce escalation two
years earlier), Dan, and She'ar Yashuv. These attacks were repulsed with the loss of twenty soldiers and seven tanks.
An Israeli officer was also killed. But a broader Syrian offensive quickly failed. Syrian reserve units were broken up by
Israeli air attacks, and several tanks were reported to have sunk in the Jordan River.

Other problems included tanks being too wide for bridges, lack of radio communications between tanks and infantry,
and units ignoring orders to advance. A post-war Syrian army report concluded:

       Our forces did not go on the offensive either because they did not arrive or were not wholly prepared or because
       they could not find shelter from the enemy's planes. The reserves could not withstand the air attacks; they
       dispersed after their morale plummeted.

The Syrians bombarded Israeli civilian settlements in the Galilee Panhandle, by two battalions of M-46 130mm guns,
four companies of heavy mortars, and dug-in Panzer IV tanks. The Syrian bombardment killed two civilians, hit 205
houses as well as farming installations. An inaccurate report from a Syrian officer, however, said that as a result of
the bombardment that "the enemy appears to have suffered heavy losses and is retreating".

Israelis debate whether the Golan Heights should be attacked

On 7 and 8 June, the Israeli leadership debated about whether to attack the Golan Heights as well. Syria had supported
pre-war raids that had helped raise tensions and had routinely shelled Israel from the Heights, so some Israeli leaders
wanted to see Syria punished. Military opinion was that the attack would be extremely costly, since it would entail
an uphill battle against a strongly fortified enemy. The western side of the Golan Heights consists of a rock escarpment
that rises 500 meters (1,700 ft) from the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River, and then flattens to a gently sloping plateau.
Dayan opposed the operation bitterly at first, believing such an undertaking would result in losses of 30,000 and might
trigger Soviet intervention. Prime Minister Eshkol, on the other hand, was more open to the possibility, as was the head
of the Northern Command, David Elazar, whose unbridled enthusiasm for and confidence in the operation may have
eroded Dayan's reluctance.

Eventually, the situation on the Southern and Central fronts cleared up, intelligence estimated that the likelihood of
Soviet intervention had been reduced, reconnaissance showed some Syrian defenses in the Golan region collapsing,
and an intercepted cable revealed that Nasser was urging the President of Syria to immediately accept a cease-fire.
At 3 am on 9 June, Syria announced its acceptance of the cease-fire. Despite this announcement, Dayan became
more enthusiastic about the idea and four hours later at 7 am, "gave the order to go into action against Syria"
without consultation or government authorisation.

The Syrian army consisted of about 75,000 men grouped in nine brigades, supported by an adequate amount of
artillery and armour. Israeli forces used in combat consisted of two brigades (the 8th Armored Brigade and the
Golani Brigade) in the northern part of the front at Givat HaEm, and another two (infantry and one of Peled's
brigades summoned from Jenin) in the center. The Golan Heights' unique terrain (mountainous slopes crossed by
parallel streams every several kilometers running east to west), and the general lack of roads in the area channeled
both forces along east-west axes of movement and restricted the ability of units to support those on either flank.
Thus the Syrians could move north-south on the plateau itself, and the Israelis could move north-south at the base
of the Golan escarpment. An advantage Israel possessed was the excellent intelligence collected by Mossad operative
Eli Cohen (who was captured and executed in Syria in 1965) regarding the Syrian battle positions. Syria had built
extensive defensive fortifications in depths up to 15 kilometers, comparable to the Maginot Line.

As opposed to all the other campaigns, IAF was only partially effective in the Golan because the fixed fortifications
were so effective. However, the Syrian forces proved unable to put up effective defense largely because the officers
were poor leaders and treated their soldiers badly; often officers would retreat from danger, leaving their men confused
and ineffective. The Israelis also had the upper hand during close combat that took place in the numerous Syrian
bunkers along the Golan Heights, as they were armed with the Uzi, a submachine gun designed for close combat,
while Syrian soldiers were armed with the heavier AK-47 assault rifle, designed for combat in more open areas.

Israeli attack: first day (9 June)







On the morning of 9 June, Israeli jets began carrying out dozens of sorties against Syrian positions from Mount Hermon
to Tawfiq, using rockets salvaged from captured Egyptian stocks. The airstrikes knocked out artillery batteries and
storehouses and forced transport columns off the roads. The Syrians suffered heavy casualties and a drop in morale, with
a number of senior officers and troops deserting. The attacks also provided time as Israeli forces cleared paths through
Syrian minefields. However, the airstrikes did not seriously damage the Syrians' bunkers and trench systems, and the
bulk of Syrian forces on the Golan remained in their positions.

About two hours after the airstrikes began, the 8th Armored Brigade, led by Colonel Albert Mandler, advanced into the
Golan Heights from Givat HaEm. Its advance was spearheaded by Engineering Corps sappers and eight bulldozers, which
cleared away barbed wire and mines. As they advanced, the force came under fire, and five bulldozers were immediately
hit. The Israeli tanks, with their maneuverability sharply reduced by the terrain, advanced slowly under fire toward the
fortified village of Sir al-Dib, with their ultimate objective being the fortress at Qala. Israeli casualties steadily mounted.
Part of the attacking force lost its way and emerged opposite Za'ura, a redoubt manned by Syrian reservists. With the
situation critical, Colonel Mandler ordered simultaneous assaults on Za'ura and Qala. Heavy and confused fighting followed,
with Israeli and Syrian tanks struggling around obstacles and firing at extremely short ranges. Mandler recalled that "the
Syrians fought well and bloodied us. We beat them only by crushing them under our treads and by blasting them with
our cannons at very short range, from 100 to 500 meters." The first three Israeli tanks to enter Qala were stopped by
a Syrian bazooka team, and a relief column of seven Syrian tanks arrived to repel the attackers. The Israelis took heavy
fire from the houses, but could not turn back, as other forces were advancing behind them, and they were on a narrow
path with mines on either side. The Israelis continued pressing forward, and called for air support. A pair of Israeli jets
destroyed two of the Syrian tanks, and the remainder withdrew. The surviving defenders of Qala retreated after their
commander was killed. Meanwhile, Za'ura fell in an Israeli assault, and the Israelis also captured the 'Ein Fit fortress.

In the central sector, the Israeli 181st Battalion captured the strongholds of Dardara and Tel Hillal after fierce fighting.
Desperate fighting also broke out along the operation's northern axis, where Golani Brigade attacked thirteen Syrian
positions, including the formidable Tel Fakhr position. Navigational errors placed the Israelis directly under the Syrians'
guns. In the fighting that followed, both sides took heavy casualties, with the Israelis losing all nineteen of their tanks and
half-tracks. The Israeli battalion commander then ordered his twenty-five remaining men to dismount, divide into
two groups, and charge the northern and southern flanks of Tel Fakhr. The first Israelis to reach the perimeter of the
southern approach laid bodily down on the barbed wire, allowing their comrades to vault over them. From there, they
assaulted the fortified Syrian positions. The fighting was waged at extremely close quarters, often hand-to-hand.

On the northern flank, the Israelis broke through within minutes and cleared out the trenches and bunkers. During the
seven-hour battle, the Israelis lost 31 dead and 82 wounded, while the Syrians lost 62 dead and 20 captured. Among
the dead was the Israeli battalion commander. The Golani Brigade's 51st Battalion took Tel 'Azzaziat, and Darbashiya
also fell to Israeli forces.

By the evening of 9 June, the four Israeli brigades had all broken through to the plateau, where they could be reinforced
and replaced. Thousands of reinforcements began reaching the front, those tanks and half-tracks that had survived the
previous day's fighting were refueled and replenished with ammunition, and the wounded were evacuated. By dawn, the
Israelis had eight brigades in the sector.

Syria's first line of defense had been shattered, but the defenses beyond that remained largely intact. Mount Hermon
and the Banias in the north, and the entire sector between Tawfiq and Customs House Road in the south remained in
Syrian hands. In a meeting early on the night of 9 June, Syrian leaders decided to reinforce those positions as quickly
as possible, and to maintain a steady barrage on Israeli civilian settlements.


Israeli attack: the next day (10 June)


Throughout the night, the Israelis continued their advance. Though it was slowed by fierce resistance, an anticipated Syrian
counterattack never materialized. At the fortified village of Jalabina, a garrison of Syrian reservists, leveling their anti-aircraft
guns, held off the Israeli 65th Paratroop Battalion for four hours before a small detachment managed to penetrate the village
and knock out the heavy guns.

Meanwhile, the 8th Brigade's tanks moved south from Qala, advancing six miles to Wasit under heavy artillery and tank
bombardment. At the Banias in the north, Syrian mortar batteries opened fire on advancing Israeli forces only after Golani
Brigade sappers cleared a path through a minefield, killing sixteen Israeli soldiers and wounding four.

On the next day, 10 June, the central and northern groups joined in a pincer movement on the plateau, but that fell
mainly on empty territory as the Syrian forces retreated. At 8:30 am, the Syrians began blowing up their own bunkers,
burning documents and retreating. Several units joined by Elad Peled's troops climbed to the Golan from the south,
only to find the positions mostly empty. When the 8th Brigade reached Mansura, five miles from Wasit, the Israelis met
no opposition and found abandoned equipment, including tanks, in perfect working condition. In the fortified Banias village,
Golani Brigade troops found only several Syrian soldiers chained to their positions.

During the day, the Israeli units stopped after obtaining manoeuvre room between their positions and a line of volcanic hills to
the west. In some locations, Israeli troops advanced after an agreed-upon cease-fire to occupy strategically strong
positions. To the east, the ground terrain is an open gently sloping plain. This position later became the cease-fire line
known as the "Purple Line".

Time magazine reported: "In an effort to pressure the United Nations into enforcing a ceasefire, Damascus Radio undercut
its own army by broadcasting the fall of the city of Quneitra three hours before it actually capitulated. That premature report
of the surrender of their headquarters destroyed the morale of the Syrian troops left in the Golan area."