The 1967 Six Day War radically changed the balance of power between Israel and i
ts neighbors, and, according to Moshe Dayan, inaugurated the image of the warrio
r Jew. Excerpting from 63 hours of interviews with Israeli soldiers, Pressman (T
he War of Art) provides an up-close-and-personal, if one-sided, view of the war.
The soldiers' and flyers' accounts are particularly notable on Operation Moked
through which Israeli pilots effectively won the war in its first hour by destro
ying the Egyptian Air Force and on the battle for the Jerusalem's Old City. For
Israelis, the moment when Israeli paratroopers stood at the Western Wall constit
uted an emotional high point, even a kind of moment of redemption.
