Israel at Seventy-Seven: Rebirth and Redemption

On the 14 May 1948 at 4:00pm, Israel was declared a nation-state and successor of the British Mandate in Palestine. Minutes later, the American President, Harry S Truman, against the counsel of his top advisors, recognised the infant Jewish state. By midnight, Egyptian planes were bombing Tel Aviv, and the 1948 War (known in Israel as the war of independence), and the battle for Jerusalem had begun in earnest. Israel was birthed in the fire. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, the Jewish state survived. Jerusalem was divided: Israel captured West Jerusalem, the New City and Jordan occupied East Jerusalem, including the Old City.