Critical

1948 Arab-Israeli War

War following the end of the British Mandate and creation of Israel, establishing armistice lines and mass displacement.

Timeline
1948-1949
Duration
2 years
Region
Middle East
Record
Static archive

Historical overview

Overview adapted from a Wikipedia summary and stored locally on May 11, 2026.

The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war became a war of separate states with the Israeli Declaration of Independence on 14 May 1948, the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight, and the invasion by a military coalition of Arab states into the territory of Mandatory Palestine the following morning. The war formally ended with the 1949 Armistice Agreements which established the Green Line.

Theater countries

IsraelPalestinian territoriesEgyptJordanLebanonSyria

Actors

IsraelArab League statesPalestinian forces

Tags

state-formationmiddle-eastdisplacement

Border context

1946-1962historical border era

Early Cold War and decolonization

Cold War blocs emerge while Asian and African decolonization creates new sovereign states.

Korea is divided after war. Israel and neighboring armistice lines reshape the Levant. Algeria's war signals the end of French North Africa.

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