# @itsaihistory on Instagram

- **Type:** Video
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/DP-GdmSD5U-
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/61744803-itsaihistory-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/7a81c93c7e.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-10-19T00:39:46.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** Parker Gordon (@itsaihistory) — https://gondola.cc/itsaihistory

## Caption

✈️ Operation Focus (June 5, 1967, Six-Day War)

What happened?
At dawn Israel launched a surprise preemptive strike on Egyptian air bases, destroying many aircraft on the ground and gaining air control. Later that day, after fighting spread, Jordanian and Syrian fields were struck, enabling rapid ground gains.

Why the war started:
Border clashes; Soviet reports that Israel was preparing to attack Syria; Egypt asked the UN Emergency Force to leave Sinai; Egypt closed the Straits of Tiran (narrow channel at the mouth of the Gulf of Aqaba between Egypt’s Sinai and Saudi Arabia), which Israel had long called a casus belli (cause for war under international law). Jordan signed a defense pact with Egypt; Syria aligned.

Who fired first?
Israel opened hostilities on June 5 with morning air strikes on Egyptian airfields. Later that morning Jordan shelled Israeli positions after the war was underway.

Soviet role:
The USSR backed Egypt and Syria with arms and advisers. The May 13 warning about an imminent Israeli move against Syria is widely judged false and helped trigger Egyptian mobilization.

UNEF in Sinai:
Created after the 1956 Suez Crisis to separate forces in Sinai and Gaza; withdrawn at Egypt’s request in May 1967.

How Israel won in six days:
Air surprise and runway denial; very high sortie rates; interior lines that let Israel shift forces quickly; opposition coordination problems after air power and communications were degraded.

Then ground offensives
Sinai and Gaza June 5–8; West Bank and East Jerusalem June 5–7; Golan Heights June 9–10. Ceasefires: Israel and Jordan June 7; Egypt June 8; Syria June 10.

How it affects today:
The war placed Gaza and the West Bank under Israeli control. Gaza is a Mediterranean coastal enclave between Israel and Egypt. The West Bank lies west of the Jordan River and east of Israel, including East Jerusalem.

#itsaihistory #aihistory #sixdaywar #operationfocus #middleeasthistory #israel #egypt #middleeast

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## Tags

egypt, sixdaywar, middleeast, itsaihistory, israel, operationfocus, aihistory, middleeasthistory

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