Could Israel Have Gotten the West Bank in 1948?

kernals12

Banned
I know I'm treading in dangerous water here, but could Israel have made it all the way to the Jordan river in the 1948 war?
 

Deleted member 9338

West Bank yes, all of Jerusalem that is doubtful due to the Arab Legion. The reason for them stopping was the Western outlook that it was over and the Arabs would make peace. There was also the additional cost of further causalities which the Israelis could not afford.
 

kernals12

Banned
West Bank yes, all of Jerusalem that is doubtful due to the Arab Legion. The reason for them stopping was the Western outlook that it was over and the Arabs would make peace. There was also the additional cost of further causalities which the Israelis could not afford.
If they got all of the West Bank, then the Arab Legion would be surrounded and they'd either surrender or starve. And getting to the Jordan Valley would give Israel an easily defensible eastern border that would've probably deterred Jordan from attacking again.
 
I know I'm treading in dangerous water here, but could Israel have made it all the way to the Jordan river in the 1948 war?

Maybe, but it would have been hard.

The West Bank's borders basically follow the Judaean Hills (save for the Jerusalem Corridor), and that's no coincidence. Even setting aside the fact that it was guarded by the Arab Legion (easily the best fighting unit on the Arab side in the war), the geography there is very difficult and by far favors the defender, with lots of rugged, often steep hills the emplace on top of. The Israeli push up the Jerusalem Corridor is generally considered to have been the toughest campaign in the war, and they did that by following the easiest path up through the mountains. In the 6 Day War, the fighting in the West Bank was arguably the toughest, and Israel won with heavy, heavy use of air support (which they didn't have in 1948) - also, the Jordanian army retreated after a few big losses rather than fighting for every inch of land. Which I suppose could also happen in '48.

If the war lasted long enough, I think Israel could have taken it, but it would have been a very slow and costly operation. Possibly Israel would be willing to pay the cost, but it would still take a long time (unless somehow a diplomatic accord was reached).
 

Marc

Donor
And the main consequence is apartheid in a decade, with the US becoming more and more difficult for Israel to handle - which leads to economic misery if not military disasters when their armed forces stop being subsidized.
 
Top