ABSTRACT
Israel was founded amid war and violence, which continued throughout the 1950s in the form of guerrilla raids by Palestinians, Israeli counter-strikes and reprisals, and was punctuated by war against Egypt in 1956. The pattern continued into the 1960s and culminated in a period of virtually permanent warfare from 1967 to 1973. In May 1967 Nasser started to lead from the front, with a dramatic political and military escalation that included blockading Israel's access to the Red Sea through the Straits of Tiran. Israel was determined to hold onto the newly occupied territory. The UN Security Council passed Resolution calling on Israel to withdraw from territories occupied in the war; Israel and its supporters have ever since insisted on interpreting this as meaning some territories, not all. With the additional territory, Israel expected better security. Within Israel, the government was blamed for complacency, lack of readiness, and a confused and uncertain response when the Egyptian offensive began.
