The Six-Day War

On 5 June 1967, Israel launched a surprise air strike against Egypt and, over six days of war, defeated the Egyptian, Jordanian, and Syrian armies. When the ceasefire took hold on 10 June, Israel occupied the Sinai Peninsula, the Gaza Strip, the West Bank including East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights.

For Palestinians, 1967 was a second catastrophe — the Naksa, or “setback.” Roughly 300,000 more Palestinians were displaced, many of them refugees for a second time. Israel began establishing settlements in the occupied territories almost immediately and effectively annexed East Jerusalem.

In November 1967, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 242, calling for the “withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict” and enshrining the principle of land for peace. The occupation begun in 1967 remains the central fact of Palestinian political life.