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Israel was plunged into a neverending war with the much larger Arab countries for many years after its founding in 1948. The small state-with no significant territorial depth-faced constant shelling, aerial duels, small to moderate battles with hostile Arab regulars incursions by Arab guerillas...and the constant threat of total annihilation by Arab armies that could move from the Sinai, the West Bank and the Golan Heights. Finally, in 1967, as the hostile Arab armies massed for a final attack against Israel, Israel launched a huge pre-emptive attack that routed and destroyed the massing Arab armies in a conflict that became known as "the Six Day War".

The State of Israel added huge territories to its land through the conquest of the Sinai Penniusla, the West Bank and the Golan Heights, effectively creating a buffer zone around it to protect it. The war of attrition continued with a refurbished and rearmed Egyptian and other Arab armies battled Israeli forces. The USA, although encouraging peace, was embroiled in a long-term war in Viet-Nam and enormous domestic unrest in its own country made few if any substantial moves towards ending the conflict.

Within just over six years of Israel's victory, ominous signs of a future conflict began to rapidly take shape and form in the Middle East. The conflict that was known as "the Yom Kippur War" or "the War of Ramadan" would see the completely rearmed and restructured armies of Egypt and Syria launch a massive surprise attack on the Israeli-held Sinai and Golan Heights. Israel soon was forced into a series of bloody battles that saw Egypt gain a substantial part of the Sinai, and Syria come close to overrunning the Golan Heights. In fact, Syrian armored spearheads were so close to Israel, they could see the lights from the towns in and around Lake Tiberias. The IDF was suffering horrendous casualties, equipment losses and was on the verge of defeat in many key sectors.

The American response of rushing weapons, ammunitions and fighter-planes to a beleagured and almost defeated IDF provoked an Arab oil embargo and the threat of a wider war with the then Soviet Union. As the war started to turn towards Israel's favor, then secretary of state Dr. Henry Kissinger launched a series of frantic shuttle-diplomacy moves across the Israeli and Arab capitals. Eventually, a cease-fire came into effect as the USA moved to settle the Arab-Israeli conflict and bring peace to the very troubled Mid-East-a process that would take several

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