WILL ISRAELIS EVER LIVE IN PEACE?

Israel's fight started at birth. The 1948 War of Independence lasted some 20 months and was the culmination of 30 years of friction between Jews and Arabs during the period of British rule of Palestine

- JOHN DOBSON

Formed on the land of historic Palestine, Israel seems to have been at war ever since it was created in 1948. The current conflict in Gaza and Lebanon, sparked by Hamas' 7 October massacre last year which killed 1200 mostly innocent Israeli civilians and saw 250 people dragged as hostages into Gaza, is just the latest in a long series of Israel's wars with its neighbours. As you read this, Israel appears determined to take on all its enemies Iran, Lebanon, Gaza, Yemen and Syria-at once. The Netanyahu government seems to be in no mood to hold back.

Israel's fight started at birth. The 1948 War of Independence lasted some 20 months and was the culmination of 30 years of friction between Jews and Arabs during the period of British rule of Palestine. Eight years later, Israel invaded Egypt, along with Britain and France, after President Nasser nationalised the Suez Canal. Israel captured Sinai, but returned it in exchange for UN peacekeepers along the Egypt-Israel border. Then, feeling that it was surrounded by Arab states dedicated to its eradication, Israel carried out a successful surprise attack against Egypt, Syria and Jordan in June 1967. Known as the "Six-Day War", the outcome was the redrawing of the region's landscape, with Israel gaining territory four times its original size however, Israel's success, did nothing more than set the stage for future conflict.

Between 1967 and 1970 there was a war of attrition between Egypt and Israel with Nasser attempting to regain the Sinai Peninsula through political and military means. The conflict ended with a ceasefire, but didn't resolve the underlying territorial issue. Six years later, Arab forces launched a surprise attack on Israel during Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism, aiming to recapture territories lost in 1967. Both sides suffered heavy casualties during the 19-day campaign before a UN brokered ceasefire on 25 October 1973.