The Forty-Year War

"May 16th, the day that the 'reunification' of Jerusalem fell this year by the Jewish calendar, was the day Israel marked the 40th anniversary of its greatest ever military victory, when it crushed three Arab armies and took control of nearly three times its own landmass in just six days. Like those conquering troops, this year's rejoicers wore a uniform, albeit of a different kind: casual clothes and skullcaps for the men, long skirts for the women. Other than religious Zionists, that subset (about a fifth) of Israeli Jews who believe that settling as much as possible of 'Greater Israel' is a religious duty, few Israelis today think that Israel's finest hour left it with a lot worth celebrating. Many of the rest are as likely to see its capture of land and subsequent occupation as a tragedy for Israel."

The Economist traces the legacy of 1967's Six-Day War.