In June 1967, tensions in the Middle East reached a breaking point. Israel, a small country about the size of New Jersey, was surrounded by larger Arab nations that had fought against it before. Egypt moved troops to the border and blocked Israeli ships from using a key waterway. On June 5, 1967, Israel launched a surprise attack. Israeli planes destroyed most of Egypt's air force while the planes were still on the ground. Without air protection, Egypt's army could not fight effectively. The war quickly spread to Syria and Jordan. In just six days, the fighting was over. Israel had captured three large territories: the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, the West Bank from Jordan, and the Golan Heights from Syria. The victory tripled the amount of land Israel controlled. The Six-Day War changed the map of the Middle East. But it also created new problems. Millions of Palestinian people now lived under Israeli control. Countries around the world disagreed about who had the right to the captured land. More than 55 years later, this question remains one of the most difficult in world politics.