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00:10trouble and death in the Middle East fighting erupted quickly when Syrians
00:16allegedly fired on Israeli farmers operating tractors Israel used tanks
00:21mortars and aircraft to counter-attack Israeli premier Levi Eshkol said friendly
00:26foreign powers will understand the situation
00:34in May 1967 the leaders of the Soviet Union took a step that would change the
00:39map of the Middle East the losers would be their own allies it all began with a
00:47false report from Soviet intelligence Anwar Sadat speaker of the Egyptian
00:54parliament was in Moscow for talks with Soviet Prime Minister Kosygin it was a
01:00routine trip Egypt was now firmly in the Soviet camp
01:07Sadat was seen to his plane by the deputy foreign minister the minister took Sadat
01:16aside he said Israeli troops were massing against Syria he asked him to report
01:25this at once to Nasser Egypt's president Gamal Abdel Nasser was the hero of the Arab world
01:35if Israel was massing troops on the Syrian border Nasser would be expected to act he
01:42sent for his chief of staff and instructed him to find out what the Israelis were up to
01:51I went to the border between Syria and Israel I found nothing unusual so I asked to see the latest
02:00aerial photos of the border area they showed me photos from the previous day and the day before that I
02:08I studied them but I still found nothing
02:22the chief of staff found nothing to back up the Soviet report but then the Soviet ambassador came back to
02:30us
02:31he said Soviet intelligence had reconfirmed their report Israeli troops really were massing on the Syrian border and the situation
02:41was very dangerous
02:46Soviet diplomats spread the alarm throughout the region even in Israel as the Prime Minister and his wife soon found
02:54out
03:00it was 2.30 in the morning a secretary came in looking sleepy he said the Soviet ambassador is down
03:09in the lobby
03:10he's all dressed up very formal and he insists on seeing the Prime Minister right now
03:17I said to Ashkol let's receive him in our pajamas
03:26our ambassador gave Ashkol a telegram from Kosygin Ashkol offered to go to Moscow to discuss the regional situation
03:39the ambassador was angry he said you are massing your troops in the north Ashkol said we can go there
03:48now we can go
03:50look together to the Golan border you'll see we haven't mobilized anything
03:55the Soviet ambassador said no
04:01at that time Soviet leaders believed that America was on the run in Vietnam
04:07some in the Kremlin now sought to weaken America's influence in the Middle East even at the risk of another
04:13regional war
04:20we believed a war could bring us political gains even a stalemate could bring us benefits
04:28Egypt had our backing both political and military we thought their forces would demonstrate the benefits of Soviet support
04:41so we were confident that the balance of power in the Middle East would be altered by a localized war
04:54in Cairo Nasser had put his armed forces on alert the moment he received the Soviet report
05:01if Moscow's plan was to provoke a war it seemed to be working
05:10the Russian report escalated everything
05:14we felt obliged to move troops into the Sinai
05:21from there we could retaliate against Israel if Israel attacked Syria
05:25if Israel tried to return to Syria
05:38Abdel Nasser did not want a war with Israel
05:45Abdel Nasser was thinking of his image in the Arab world
05:55so he put on a show of strength using the armed forces
06:02Marshal Amir wanted to attack Israel right away
06:12the Arab media had been criticizing Nasser
06:17some countries had accused Abdul Nasser of hiding behind the United Nations
06:23since the Suez War of 1956
06:25United Nations troops had provided a buffer on the border between Egypt and Israel
06:34now Nasser ordered them out
06:38the eyes of the world
06:40the eyes of the world focused on a small harbour
06:41at the edge of the Sinai desert
06:43Sharm el-Sheikh
06:50Headquarters wanted to expel the UN troops from Sharm el-Sheikh
06:55I told them if we do that
06:57Egyptian troops will have to take over at Sharm el-Sheikh
07:01we will then be obliged to close the straits of Tehran
07:05that will mean war
07:09a blockade at the straits of Tehran by Egypt
07:12could lead to war
07:14because the straits at the foot of the Gulf of Aqaba
07:17controlled Israel's only trade route to the eastern half of the world
07:25Nasser in the name of Arab solidarity
07:27was going on the offensive
07:36our armed forces are ready for war
07:39the Gulf of Aqaba belongs to Egypt
07:43there is no way that we will allow Israeli ships to pass through
07:47the Jews are threatening war
07:50we tell them hello and welcome
07:52we are ready for war
07:54but there is no way we will give up our rights to the Gulf of Aqaba
08:08In Israel, the people prepared to defend themselves
08:15Their prime minister, Levi Eshkol
08:18summoned his cabinet and military commanders
08:26I told him until now I was not sure what was going to happen
08:32but after the Egyptians closed the straits
08:34I'm sure the situation will develop into a war
08:41the straits are a case's belly for us
08:43and I told him firmly that this will be their end
08:46this will be their grave
08:52we commanders told him
08:54we have no choice
08:55we have to mobilize
08:58we have to launch an attack within 72 hours
09:02if we give the Egyptians more time
09:04they will pack the Sinai with more and more divisions
09:11the general saw Israel becoming increasingly vulnerable
09:14the chief of staff, General Rabin
09:17was very worried
09:18he smoked a great number of cigarettes
09:20and he ate nearly all the nuts and raisins in the little basket there
09:24and he was very worried because
09:27not because he doubted the result of the war
09:30but because we were really very unprepared for war
09:35Rabin asked Abba Iban for a diplomatic solution
09:38Rabin had said we were really not prepared for war
09:41and second
09:43there should still be some attempt to avoid it
09:46by exercising warnings and pressures upon the Egyptians
09:52and then Mr. Eshkol sent me a note saying
09:57what are you doing here?
10:00Prime Minister Eshkol dispatched Abba Iban
10:03to seek the help of Israel's key allies
10:06he wanted an international fleet to keep the straits open
10:10to prevent war
10:11I've been asked by my government to explore
10:17what these governments intend to do
10:20in order to reopen this international waterway
10:23to a situation of law
10:24What do you want the United States to do, sir?
10:27Well, I've come here really to find out
10:29what the United States intends to do
10:33President Johnson made it clear
10:34that he didn't want Israel to attack first
10:37The President had said to Dean Rusk and me
10:40and I'm going to speak rather crudely
10:42get Eban in here
10:43into the family quarters of the White House
10:45so we can work him over
10:47because we had heard
10:50that the Israelis were about to preempt
10:54they were about to attack the Egyptians
11:00Eban talked at great length
11:02and eloquently
11:05he always spoke eloquently
11:06he always spoke eloquently
11:07and he always spoke at great length
11:09but what he had to say was very simple
11:11this was a mortal crisis for Israel
11:14and he wanted to know what the United States was prepared to do
11:17The President, he simply expressed skepticism
11:23about the idea that Israel was in danger
11:25he said you are not in danger
11:27you are in a very difficult situation
11:31but you are not in peril
11:32he said to Eban
11:35we do not believe
11:36that Egypt
11:38is about to attack
11:41Israel
11:43moreover
11:44if it does
11:45you'll lick them
11:48To make the point
11:49President Johnson asked for the Defense Department's assessment
11:53of the likely outcome of a Middle East war
11:56We had concluded that if Israel preempted
12:00they could win clearly
12:03in a period of about seven days
12:06as I remember
12:07we had also estimated
12:09that if they did not preempt
12:12and Egypt attacked first
12:13that it would take somewhat longer
12:16perhaps 10 to 14 days
12:18Then the President took out a piece of paper
12:22and started reading from it
12:23as though this was some kind of a sacred text
12:27and what this document said was
12:30Israel will not be alone
12:32unless it decides to be alone
12:34If you go alone
12:35you'll stand alone
12:38That was a very cold-blooded statement
12:41We will not come to your offense
12:43if you preempt
12:45We cannot come to your offense
12:46if you preempt
12:49As Israel received its warning in the White House
12:52an Egyptian delegation
12:53was heading towards the Kremlin
12:59We didn't even see Moscow
13:01We were driven in cars
13:03with the curtains drawn
13:04straight into the Kremlin
13:09The Egyptians were self-assured
13:13Shams Badran
13:16Shams Badran exuded confidence
13:20He said that if war came
13:22the Egyptian military could handle it
13:27In fact, he described the army
13:29like a wild horse raring to go
13:35But the Soviets warned the Egyptians
13:38not to be seen as the aggressors
13:42Prime Minister Kosygin said
13:45tell Nasser
13:46if he strikes first
13:48he will escalate the conflict
13:50he will provoke the superpowers
13:54America will not stand aside
14:01I said, we understand
14:03but closing the straits
14:04isn't an attack on America
14:08The Soviets made it clear
14:09they meant what they said
14:14We asked about the arms contracts
14:16we had with them
14:16We asked if they would hurry things up
14:19especially some spare parts
14:20we needed for our planes
14:21We could have taken them with us in a bag
14:28They were always asking for arms
14:31Every high-level delegation
14:34would ask for arms
14:36including Badran
14:39They did not refuse to supply the arms
14:42they just claimed they had none
14:46I was really shocked
14:47I thought, how can our Soviet friends
14:50treat us like this?
14:52War was at our doorstep
14:56Nasser got the message
14:57The Soviets would back him
14:59only if he did not appear
15:00to be the aggressor
15:03His commanders were instructed
15:04to stay on the defensive
15:05ready to absorb an Israeli attack
15:12The Air Force Chief jumped up
15:14He said, it will be crippling
15:16He said, Mr. President
15:17the first strike will be crippling
15:19He said it in English
15:22He meant that a first strike by Israel
15:24would cripple our Air Force
15:26The commander-in-chief told him
15:28If you let them strike first
15:30you will fight only Israel
15:31But if you strike first
15:33you will have to fight Israel and America
15:36If you take the first strike
15:37or if you take the first strike
15:40or if you take the first strike
15:40or if you strike America
15:48But the war fever in Cairo had become unstoppable
15:53Popular hatred of Israel
15:55which Nasser did nothing to discourage
15:57now swept him forward
15:59and drove other Arab rulers to his side
16:05Even King Hussein of Jordan
16:07for years at odds with Nasser
16:09decided he could no longer stand aloof
16:11In the morning I got into my aircraft
16:14and flew it to Cairo
16:16and I was met by the president
16:21I was in military fatigues
16:23with my troops with my gun on
16:25and he said, I see you are carrying a gun
16:27I said, I've been like that
16:29for the last few days with my troops
16:31And then he made a strange remark
16:35What would happen if we suddenly
16:37took you prisoner
16:39and denied all knowledge
16:40of your arriving in this country?
16:44Soon after, King Hussein signed
16:47a mutual defence treaty with Nasser
16:49and agreed to put his army
16:51under Egyptian command
16:57We were on the verge of a war
17:01Therefore, any reservations they had
17:03in the past to any troops coming into Jordan
17:06were removed as far as I am concerned
17:10So Israel faced the prospect of war
17:12on three fronts
17:14from Jordan in the east
17:16from Syria in the north
17:18and from Egypt in the south
17:23That was the time when Auschwitz came up
17:27It never happened before
17:30When people spoke
17:31they said there was a feeling
17:32we are surrounded
17:33we are surrounded
17:35no one will help us
17:36no one is helping us
17:38and God forbid
17:39if the Arab armies invade us
17:41they'll kill us all
17:50by this point
17:52Israel had been mobilized
17:53for more than two weeks
17:57all males aged 18 to 55
18:00were called to serve
18:12Most vehicles were requisitioned
18:16Most factories closed
18:18Israel could not stay fully mobilized for long
18:22but still Prime Minister Eshkol
18:25waited for the international community
18:26to do something
18:29He came to military headquarters
18:31to remind his generals of America's warning
18:34Israel must not go it alone
18:40He told us that they were making diplomatic efforts
18:43in the US and Europe
18:44They were trying to reach a deal with Nasser
18:48It made no sense to us
18:50Flanked by Rabin
18:52Eshkol found himself
18:53surrounded by generals
18:54insisting on a pre-emptive strike
19:01General Peled was usually pretty quiet
19:04Now he was shouting
19:06He was actually shrieking
19:08Why do you hesitate?
19:10Why are you afraid?
19:15Why are you afraid?
19:18I said
19:19Eshkol
19:21You have the best army
19:23since King David
19:24If you don't attack
19:26you will never be forgiven
19:28If you do
19:29you will be the conquering hero
19:33To regain the confidence of his generals
19:36Prime Minister Eshkol appointed a new Minister of Defence
19:39Moshe Dayan
19:41Moshe Dayan
19:41hero of the 1956 Suez War
19:43I suppose the number of their forces is bigger than ours
19:50but still I hope that we can make it
19:54but much depends
19:55very much depends
19:56upon where the battle is
19:59The generals also asked for another envoy
20:02to be sent to Washington
20:03The Prime Minister agreed
20:06Meir
20:07He said
20:08Listen Meir
20:09You go to Washington
20:10and find out
20:11what's going on there
20:13Are the Americans
20:14organizing a naval task force?
20:16Is anybody going to do anything?
20:19When?
20:22Amit's mission was to see
20:23if the Americans planned
20:24to open the Straits of Tehran
20:26or if Israel would have to act alone
20:29The Pentagon had quite enough trouble in Vietnam
20:31and didn't want another war
20:36The director of the CIA made it perfectly clear
20:40There is no international naval force
20:45There are no American plans for action
20:49There is no task force
20:56So the head of the Mossad
20:58Israel's intelligence agency
21:00called on the Secretary of Defense
21:02I said to him
21:03You know our situation
21:06I am here on the instruction of my Prime Minister
21:09He was doing most of the talking
21:11I did ask one or two questions
21:16At the meeting
21:17At the meeting
21:17I realized that America
21:19because of Vietnam
21:20was unwilling to act alone
21:22and they did not succeed
21:24in organizing the international naval force
21:29Also, Eisenhower made a commitment to Israel
21:32about the Straits in 1956
21:35so America would no longer oppose Israel acting on its own
21:42I was friendly
21:44during my discussion
21:46and friendly as he left
21:47but
21:50he didn't ask for answers
21:51he got no answers
21:55Amit raced back to Israel
21:57to report to the Prime Minister
21:58and the Cabinet
21:59not to expect international help
22:05I gave a detailed account of my trip to Washington
22:08and I said
22:09I recommend we launch the war as soon as possible
22:13Not one of the ministers disagreed
22:32We went for our usual walk
22:38Suddenly, Eshkol starts humming
22:40He was completely tone deaf
22:41He had this Hasidic song he liked to sing
22:44He sang it over and over again
22:51The rabbi has told us to enjoy ourselves
22:56because hard times are coming
23:08So I asked him
23:10What's happening, dearest?
23:11And he told me
23:13Tomorrow the war will start
23:15There will be widows
23:17There will be orphans
23:19There will be bereaved parents
23:23Who knows what tomorrow will bring
23:33The generals chose the morning of June 5th for the attack
23:45The chief of staff and I took a decision
23:48On the night of June 4th
23:50We would sleep at home
23:53The tomtoms in Israel work like in the jungle
23:57If the chief of staff and air force chief both come home
24:00Word gets round that tomorrow is going to be quiet
24:05That was the commander's bedtime message
24:08So everyone knew that tomorrow is going to be quiet
24:10The chief of staff and the chief of staff and the chief of staff
24:11The chief of staff and the chief of staff and the chief of staff
24:15Leaving behind only 12 fighters to defend Israel
24:18180 aircraft took off for Egypt
24:23Their target was 45 minutes away
24:32We observed total radio silence
24:36We flew at the height of the waves for about 15 minutes
24:40We flew low over the sand dunes
24:42We crossed the Suez Canal at Cantara and entered the Delta
24:46As we flew over the Delta, farmers waved to us
24:50They probably thought we were Egyptian
24:57Most of the Israeli squadrons flew out to sea far to the west
25:02They had extra fuel tanks to enable them to approach Egypt's air bases
25:06From an unexpected direction
25:12That was the longest 45 minutes in my life
25:17The hands on my watch didn't seem to move
25:20They went very slowly
25:26As the Israeli bombers approached their targets
25:28The Egyptians received a coded message
25:31From Jordan
25:34They spotted Israeli planes heading towards us
25:37So they sent us a signal from their radar base
25:40To warn us
25:41The signal was in code
25:45Our codes had changed the day before
25:47And we had real trouble decoding it
25:53The Ministry of Defence asked the air defence people
25:57What they had done with the signal they had received
26:00It had the code word, grape
26:03They replied, what signal?
26:10At exactly 0745
26:12We pulled up to 6000 feet
26:15I looked down and saw the MiGs glinting on the edges of the runway
26:20The pilots were sitting inside the cockpits
26:23I knew we had caught them by surprise
26:31The Israelis began their attack by destroying the runways
26:35To prevent the Egyptian aircraft from taking off
26:42The few that did get off the ground were no match for the Israeli fighters
26:59I got a call from one of the Air Force chiefs
27:02He said, Noful, Noful
27:05I said, yes sir
27:06He said, our airfields are being attacked
27:09I said, what the hell are you talking about?
27:12He said, our airfields are being attacked
27:16I said, our airfields?
27:18He said, the airfields in the Sinai are being attacked
27:22I said, all the Sinai airfields?
27:25Tell me it's not true
27:28And he said, believe me
27:30All the airfields are being attacked
27:34I hung up
27:35The phone rang again
27:36It was another commander
27:37He said, we're being attacked
27:40So I said to myself
27:42Well, something must be going on
27:45But I was all alone
27:49He was alone because the head of the Egyptian armed forces
27:53Marshal Amer had left with the Minister of War and his top brass
27:57To inspect their positions in the Sinai
28:05Ten minutes after takeoff, we heard about the Israeli attack
28:09We turned round and flew back
28:13Our cars had gone
28:16We had to hail a taxi to get back to headquarters
28:26By the time Marshal Amer's taxi got him back to headquarters
28:31Egypt's Air Force was destroyed
28:39Egypt's Air Force was destroyed
28:39Marshal Amer was panicking
28:42He told the Air Force Chief to implement the counter-attack plan
28:46The Air Force Chief replied, how can I?
28:50I have no aircraft
28:59In the Sinai, Egypt had three times as many tanks as Israel
29:04But with no air cover, their situation was dire
29:10Marshal Amer told me, draw up a plan of retreat
29:14Bring the troops back across the canal
29:19Marshal Amer had been a close friend of President Nasser for more than 20 years
29:26They had fought together as young officers
29:29Together they had planned the coup which brought down the Egyptian monarchy
29:33Now the defeated President phoned his defeated army commander
29:41I was the only other person there
29:44Amer was in tears
29:46He was calling Nasser by his first name
29:49He said, let me bring our boys back safely, Gamal
29:53When he put the phone down I asked, why are you crying?
29:56He told me Nasser had said, forgive me Hakim
29:59I caused this catastrophe, forgive me Hakim
30:03Abdul Nasser had been crying too
30:07Marshal Amer didn't wait for his chief of staff to plan a retreat
30:11He simply picked up the phone and gave the order himself
30:20The order was, withdraw back across the canal
30:25Leave the artillery behind
30:33Marshal Amer's order was a disaster
30:37With no plan, his retreating units could not protect each other
30:44The Israelis gave chase
30:54Our tanks had Egyptian tanks in front and behind them
30:57We attacked them from the ground and from the air
31:01Thousands were destroyed
31:03Thousands were destroyed
31:04They were all burning
31:05It was a terrible sight
31:13338 Israelis were killed
31:18But the Egyptian dead numbered 15,000
31:29Days earlier, when the war had begun
31:31The Israelis had contacted the king of Jordan
31:40We did not plan to take Jerusalem or the West Bank
31:44We did not plan to take the Golan
31:49On the 5th, we sent a telegram through the Americans to King Hussein
31:53Telling him that the war was between us and the Egyptians
31:59If Jordan stayed out, nothing would happen
32:02But at about 10.30, he started shelling Jerusalem
32:17Teddy Kolak, the mayor of Jerusalem
32:21Asked me at the command post
32:22What he should do with the children in the kindergartens and schools
32:33In the command post, we looked at each other
32:36We said, this is not nice
32:38We'll take on Hussein
32:43The deputy chief of staff called me
32:45He said, Uzi, you are authorized to enter the old city
32:51You have to be quick and use your head
32:53And in the dark
32:55And in the dark
33:04It took the Israelis ten hours of bitter street fighting
33:08To defeat the Jordan Legion soldiers
33:11Defending the old city
33:17Once the troops had broken through to the Wailing Wall
33:20Keeping the city united under Israel's rule
33:24Became the basic goal of the government
33:33When the battle ended, Jordan had lost not only the old city
33:38But all the land on the west bank of the Jordan River
33:45I went out to the front and I could see people crossing over in small groups
33:51Very tired
33:53You know, all the years that I spent since 1953
33:56Trying to build that country and build that army
33:59All the pride, all the hopes
34:02I saw it just destroyed
34:06I never received a more crushing blow than that
34:15Mr. Prime Minister, does Israel wish any territory beyond the territory she now holds?
34:20No sir, no sir, we don't need any additional territory
34:24We want only to develop this territory that we have
34:26There is so much to put in energy and money and brain
34:31That we have a little, a little, a little
34:34We don't want any additional territory
34:39With Jordan and Egypt defeated
34:41Israel turned its might on the Golan Heights
34:44The site of frequent attacks from Syria
34:51Dayan said, we're going to take the Golan now
34:55I remember that some ministers from the religious parties were opposed to this
35:07Dayan was adamant
35:08He said, we're not going to lose time
35:12I've delayed it this long because we wanted to finish with the Egyptians and Jordanians
35:19We threw everything we had at the Golan Heights
35:24In 12 hours we dropped more bombs on the Golan than we had on all the Egyptian airfields
35:35Rockets, bombs, napalm, everything we had
35:43The whole war had been sparked by a false Soviet report of a threat to Syria
35:50Now that Israel was actually attacking Syria, the Soviets were forced to react
35:55Word came through, the hotline was up
35:57And I didn't know what it was about
35:59Because I thought that the war was pretty well over
36:03Nevertheless, I went back immediately to the White House
36:06The usual suspects were there, McIner and the rest
36:10And we had a rather hairy message from the Russians
36:13The Soviets made very clear they would intervene militarily
36:20And very likely they would not only turn Israel back from its attack on Syria
36:25But they would join Syria in an effort to deal a mortal blow to Israel
36:30It was a very, very dangerous situation
36:34The Soviets did not seem to be bluffing
36:37Strategic Bomber Command in the Ukraine
36:40Had received orders to prepare four squadrons to fly to the battle zone
36:46It was all arranged in a great hurry
36:51We were given strict instructions not to suffer any casualties
36:57The loss of even one Soviet aircraft would betray our involvement
37:01The loss of even one Soviet aircraft would betray our involvement
37:12But we saw this was unrealistic, so we had to find another way
37:23The pilots were then ordered to leave behind all identification
37:28Their planes were to be repainted in Egyptian colors
37:32Our red stars are only one color, red
37:37But it turned out that now we needed four different colors
37:42I remember green and black and something else
37:47Maybe red, but we didn't have the right colors
37:52So that caused a lot of fuss
37:57In the White House Situation Room
37:59President Johnson and his staff worked out their response to the Soviet ultimatum
38:05The President sent a message over the hotline telling the Kremlin that he was using every means
38:10To get the Israelis to stop the war
38:14This was not strictly true
38:16Although he could have phoned the Israeli Prime Minister directly
38:20He phoned the Israeli Ambassador to the UN instead
38:24United States Ambassador Goldbeck asked me to come out into the lobby
38:29And to send to say to me
38:31You must immediately, immediately announce that the fighting is over
38:37This was not within the Israeli Ambassador's power
38:40So he asked his boss, Abba Ibn, to phone the Prime Minister
38:45But Eshkol was with his generals on the Golan Heights
38:52Suddenly Abba Ibn calls and says, tell Eshkol to stop the war
38:57We're under terrible pressure here at the United Nations
39:03Then Eshkol calls me and he says, ah, this Golan is absolutely fantastic
39:09The view is wonderful
39:10He waxes lyrical about it
39:15And I tell him, Eshkol, listen, Ibn wants you to stop the war
39:19He can't take the pressure
39:21He said, I can't hear you
39:24What do you mean you can't hear me?
39:26I'm telling you in Ibn's exact words
39:30He says, I can't hear you, I can't hear you
39:34It's a bad line, it's a bad line
39:36I'll come home and then we'll talk
39:38And then I understood
39:40They wanted time to conquer some more kilometers
39:45The Israelis pressed on into the Golan
39:48And encountered no Soviet forces
39:51Because President Johnson had raised the stakes
39:57He asked McNamara what distance from the Syrian coast the fleet, American fleet, was at the time
40:05And he said a hundred miles
40:07It was steaming toward George Balder on a training exercise
40:12We turned it around and the President said, move them to within 50 miles
40:17Knowing that the fleet was shadowed by Soviet electronic ships
40:21And they would know them directly
40:23That was also part of the message
40:27So our secret invasion by the back door never happened
40:34Thank God for that
40:37The Israeli government waited until their forces had achieved their objective
40:42Before giving the order to halt
40:45A colleague of mine from foreign ministry in Jerusalem called me
40:51To give me the text of an agreed statement on ceasefire
40:58Israel accepts any proposal made by General Bull
41:02For the implementation of the Security Council ceasefire resolution
41:07And the arrangements for the supervision of the ceasefire
41:10I read this statement, slowly translating it from Hebrew into English
41:17And that was the end of the war
41:25In six days, the armed forces had quadrupled the territory Israel controlled
41:34From Syria, they had taken the Golan Heights
41:37From Jordan, the West Bank, and the Old City of Jerusalem
41:41From Egypt, Gaza, and the Sinai
41:45With so much land to trade, Israel had its best chance ever for peace
41:57Israelis flocked to the Old City
42:03To them, the victory was a deliverance from destruction
42:13The Israeli cabinet was determined to hold on to Jerusalem
42:16And for the time being, the West Bank
42:20But in exchange for peace, they were willing to give back the Golan Heights to Syria
42:25And the Sinai Desert to Egypt
42:32The foreign minister told the Americans of Israel's offer
42:39When I presented these to a meeting, headed by Dean Rusk and Goldberg and Cisco
42:45In general, they were astonished by the fact that we were clearly not in the mood of annexation
42:51That was, we believed then, a rather remarkable initiative on the part of the Israelis
43:00Because we were operating on the assumption
43:04Eban had told us some days before
43:08We are not interested in territory
43:12That week, President Johnson was hosting a summit for Soviet Prime Minister Kosygin
43:18Eager to appear as peacemakers at the UN, the two leaders had a peace resolution drafted
43:26In Cairo, it was scrutinized by the foreign ministry
43:29This was another turning point in the Arab-Israeli conflict
43:35We concluded that this proposal was the best we were likely to get
43:42We advised the foreign minister to accept it
43:45We advised the foreign minister to accept it
43:49The minister looked at it differently
43:56When the resolution was proposed, Israel was ready to accept it
44:00But Egypt's foreign minister was utterly against the resolution
44:04Because it indirectly implied Israel's right to exist
44:07And he wouldn't have that at all
44:13Israel, of course, did not want any resolution that only said, pull back your forces
44:18But didn't recognize Israel's existence
44:21So this was the problem
44:27But recognizing Israel was not on Nasser's agenda
44:31Following Egypt's defeat, he had more immediate problems at home
44:34Abdul Nasser said, we've lost
44:39There is no point in staying on
44:41I shall resign
44:47I have decided to resign, totally and finally, from all official positions
44:53I shall return to private life
45:02I shall perform my duties like any other citizen
45:08After his broadcast, crowds surrounded the presidential palace
45:13And begged Nasser to stay
45:18Most of the demonstrations were genuine
45:21People really were upset
45:25But something else happened too
45:29The party boss told members to gather and listen to the speech
45:38After the speech, they took to the streets and chanted
45:42We want Nasser, no leader but Nasser
45:49Nasser stayed on as president
45:53His old friend, Marshal Amer became the scapegoat
45:57He refused to resign, so Nasser had him arrested
46:02He died in custody
46:04It was said in Cairo, he was suicided
46:08Shortly after, Nasser rejected the Soviet-American peace plan
46:17Nasser could not bring himself to accept the peace plan
46:21He was a hero to the Arabs
46:25He couldn't be seen negotiating with the Israelis
46:29Three months later, Arab leaders met to formulate a unified policy towards Israel
46:36Nasser, still the idol of the Arab world, was subdued
46:40I found him a different man
46:43I noticed from the outset that he felt a great sense of guilt
46:48The Arabs agreed to reject any compromise with Israel
46:53The decision by the Arab countries not to negotiate with Israel
46:58And not to make peace with Israel
47:00And not to recognize Israel
47:04With no recognition, no negotiation, and no peace
47:09It was only a matter of time before war would break out again
47:14Thank you
47:14Thank you
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