If Israel's bold actions following the Six Day War hurt her reputation internationally, the 1970's saw a string of incidents that left most of the Western world firmly encamped with the Jews.
In 1972, during the Olympic Games in Munich, Germany, Palestinian terrorists from the Fatah Group took Israeli athletes coaches hostage, eventually killing 11 Israelis during a botched recovery effort by Munich police.
The next year, Egypt and Syria launched a joint attack on Israel's highest holiday, Yom Kippur, a move that further sparked international outrage against the Arabs and emboldened Israeli supporters. Israel once again repelled the attacks, but sustained heavy losses, and anger against the government's supposed lack of preparedness only increased Israel's military ethic.
Since the Yom Kippur War, Israel has not been seriously threatened, but has fought two wars with Lebanon, one in 1982 and one in 2006. In both cases, Israel claimed that it only wanted to eliminate terrorist strongholds in Southern Lebanon, in order to secure its border.
Image: (File Photo) An Israeli army soldier leads blindfolded Egyptian prisoners-of-war October 21, 1973, in the Sinai Desert during the Yom Kippur War.
Photograph: Ilan Ron/GPO/Getty Images
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