FROM JAFFA TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH 35escalating political tension. Arab raids into Israel occurred
almost daily along the borders from Egypt to Jordan and
Syria. And the Israeli army regularly retaliated with raids of
their own.
In May 1967 Israel and the three Arab countries all
alerted their armed forces for a possible war. At Egypt's
demand the United Nations troops left the Gaza Strip and
the Sinai Peninsula.
Then, on June 5, 1967, Israeli planes attacked airfields
in Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. It was called the Six-Day War.
In less than one week, the Israelis destroyed the Arab air
forces almost completely. Israeli troops occupied the Gaza
Strip, the Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank, and Syria's
Golan Heights. Suddenly, Israel controlled Arab territory
totaling more than three times the area of Israel itself.
I'll never forget the day, early in 1968, that my father
gathered the family together and told us that he was making
plans for us to emigrate. He said, "Please don't discuss it
with anyone because there may be some problems with our
exit visas."
In the beginning, the plan was to move to Belgium.
Father had some relatives there, and the thought of moving
to a French-speaking country sounded exciting. After all,
that was the language of my schooling.
Then one evening an attache from the Canadian
embassy came to our home and showed us a short movie on
life in Canada. Toronto seemed like such a thriving city.
Father had two brothers who lived there, but we doubted
that they were financially qualified to be our official
sponsor.
The questions surrounding our leaving seemed to grow
day by day. At one point my father told us we might not be