April 3, 1949 — Israel, Jordan Sign Armistice
Israeli Col. Moshe Dayan and Jordanian Col. Abdullah El Tel meet at the American School in Jerusalem on Dec. 5, 1948. National Photo Collection of Israel.
Israel signs an armistice with Jordan, the third of four such agreements it signs with Arab states to end the War of Independence. The war leaves the city of Jerusalem divided between Israel and Jordan, not to be reunited until the June 1967 war, and the West Bank of the Jordan River in Jordan’s control. Jordan soon annexes those areas, but not even the Arab League recognizes the move. Israel and Jordan don’t sign a treaty until 1994.
April 4, 1948 — Joint Chiefs Advise Truman on Trusteeship
The Joint Chiefs of Staff and other top military leaders meet with Defense Secretary James Forrestal in Key West, Florida, in March 1948. Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum.
A Joint Chiefs of Staff memorandum advises President Harry Truman that under the U.N. partition plan for Palestine, 100,000 U.S. troops or 50,000 each from the United States and Britain would be required to monitor an Arab-Jewish truce, and the United States might need the military draft to raise the manpower. The findings support Truman’s announced policy shift in support of a Palestine trusteeship instead of partition.
April 5, 1974 — British Zionist Richard Crossman Dies
Richard Crossman (right) and Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol talk at a dinner in London in March 1968. By David Eldan, Israeli Government Press Office, CC BY-SA 3.0.
British politician Richard Crossman, a member of the Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry on Palestine in 1946, dies of liver cancer at 66. Crossman long sympathized with the Arabs in Mandatory Palestine, believing that the British were wrongly suppressing the Arabs while allowing the Jews to thrive. But the anti-Zionist 1939 White Paper and his experience on the 1946 commission flipped him to Zionist advocacy.
April 6, 1948 — Ben-Gurion Outlines Keys to Independence War
Haganah troops train in October 1948.
David Ben-Gurion presents the Zionist General Council a five-step plan to prepare the Yishuv, the Jewish area of Mandatory Palestine, to win the war that will come when the State of Israel declares independence. Arabs have already killed more than 900 Jews since the United Nations approved its partition resolution. Ben-Gurion emphasizes military mobilization and unified leadership for the army and government.
April 7, 1967 — Israel Downs 6 Syrian MiGs in Dogfight
The next day, Prime Minister Levi Eshkol visits a Kibbutz Gadot house damaged by Syrian shell fire April 7, 1967. By Moshe Milner, Israeli Government Press Office, CC BY-SA 3.0.
An air battle involving 130 planes develops after Israel responds to Syrian shelling of unarmored Israeli tractors in the demilitarized zone between the countries. During the fight, Israeli Mirage fighters shoot down six Syrian MiGs, supplied by the Soviet Union. The confrontation follows increasing attacks from Syria all year, including the destruction of a kibbutz water pump by Palestinian guerrillas April 1.
April 8, 2006 — Competitive International Ballroom Dancing Waltzes Into Ashdod
Although Russian immigrants greatly increased interest and involvement in ballroom dancing in Israel, this November 1949 photo of a young-adult party in Tel Aviv shows that it was always a part of society. National Photo Collection of Israel.
Israel’s growing participation in ballroom dancing is rewarded with the country’s first international competition in the sport, the Ten Dance European Cup, before 3,000 spectators in Ashdod. A Russian team wins; an Israeli team finishes seventh. The 1990s immigration of a million people from the former Soviet Union and the Israeli version of the TV show “Dancing With the Stars” have driven ballroom dancing’s popularity.
April 9, 1980 — Saudi Prince Hints at Recognition of Israel
The Saudi foreign minister, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, meets with President Jimmy Carter at the White House in December 1979. Jimmy Carter Presidential Library.
Prince Bandar bin Sultan, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, joins Egyptian President Anwar Sadat at a White House meeting with President Jimmy Carter and National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski slightly more than a year after Sadat signed a peace treaty with Israel. After Carter asks the Saudis to join Egypt’s peace initiative, Bandar says the time will come when Saudi Arabia will recognize Israel within the pre-1967 borders.
Items are provided by the Center for Israel Education (israeled.org), where you can find more details.