Most Israelis believe that the strategic depth Israel gained in the Six Day War – a legitimate war of defense – should not be given up witho

By late May, Egyptian President Nasser’s deployment of tens of thousands of troops in the buffer zone along Israel’s border was an unambiguous threat to Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol responded cautiously that Israel would not initiate hostilities as long as Egypt refrained from closing the international waterway leading to Israel’s southern port - the Straits of Tiran. Such an act would cut off Israel’s supply of oil and other vital resources, by blocking Israeli