MASARYK UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND EUROPEAN STUDIES
Spring 2020
POLITICS AND SOCIETY IN ISRAEL: IRE215
‘Between the Wars’ 1967-2000
This session will introduce students to four wars fought by Israel and third parties between
1967 and 2000. Namely, the Sinai War/Suez Crisis, The Six Days War, The Yom Kippur War
and Operation “Peace for Galilee”, aka the first Lebanon War. The examination of the wars
(including the political situation that preceded them, on and offset parties, battlefields, results,
etc.) is not only interesting from historical and political points of view when researching the
state of Israel but is essential in understanding contemporary relationships between Israel and
its neighbours alongside regional dynamics.
After going over the presentation, students are asked to assess their newly acquired knowledge
by answering the following questions:
The Suez Crisis
1. What is the Suez Canal? Where is it located? Who controls it and why is it important?
2. Why did the Suez Crisis erupt? How did it end?
3. Why did France and GB get involved in the crisis? What were their goals/interests?
4. Why did the US and the USSR get involved in the crisis?
5. What were the results of the crisis from an IR point of view?
The Six Day War
1. What were the important events that led to the war?
2. Was Israel right to feel threatened prior to the war? Make two arguments and one
counter-argument.
3. Who participated in the war and how many fronts did it include?
4. How did the war end? What were the military results of the war?
5. What was the response of the Arab leaders to the conclusion of the war? What did it
mean for the future relationship with Israel/regional peace?
The Yom Kippur war
1. Why was Israel taken aback when the war erupted?
2. How did the involvement of great powers affect the way the war was fought/ended?
3. What were the military and political results of the war (for Israel, Egypt and the US)?
Operation “Peace for Galilee”
1. What were the Israeli motives/goals that underlined the operation? Were the goals
met?
2. What were the results of the operation (for Israel, Lebanon, the PLO)?
3. What was the ‘shift in national consensus’ that occurred in Israel following the
operation?