: Israel cannot return to the pre-1967 borders. It would leave the center of the country a mere nine miles wide and its borders indefensible. The Jewish State could be cut in two by an Arab tank charge in just minutes. Arab forces would be positioned all along Israel’s eastern border, along with the areas that contain the greatest concentration of Israel’s population, including Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Haifa. Israel would be stripped of its protective Judea-Samaria mountain ranges. USA Lieut.-General Thomas Kelly, director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Gulf War, pointed out that Israel would be virtually indefensible without those mountainous areas.

An Israeli retreat to the pre-1967 borders would also mean the re-division of Jerusalem. The Arabs would gain control of the Old City section of Jerusalem (known as “east Jerusalem”), which includes the holiest sites in Judaism, the Temple Mount and the Western Wall. That area also includes the historic Jewish Quarter and the Mount of Olives cemetery, which is the oldest Jewish cemetery in the world. An Israeli retreat to the indefensible pre-1967 borders would encourage further Arab attacks and lead to an all-out war. (Compiled by JNN editors)