In response to Foreign Minister Abba Eban’s declaration that Israel seeks only secure borders, not annexation, Begin argued that one cannot annex part of one’s Motherland. He further notes that the Jarring letter and all similar proposals are dangerous to Israel’s survival, drawing a comparison to the conflict between India and Pakistan.
Begin discusses American pressure to make concessions to Egypt for peace, increasing Egyptian threats, and the development of Soviet influence in the region.
Article by Begin for Yom Haatzmaut (Israel Independence Day) 1968, recounting the events that had transpired since the previous Independence Day. On Yom Haatzmaut 1967, even as Jews were both mourning the Holocaust and celebrating the resurgence of their people Israel, Colonel Nasser of Egypt ordered his troops to go into the Northern Sinai Peninsula. Soon the combined forces of three large Arab armies from Egypt, Syria, and Jordan surrounded Israel. Israel still won and took the Suez Canal, but Nasser was still spouting the same rhetoric a year after the war. Other Arab leaders made similar declarations about their intent to destroy Israel, in Syria, Iraq, and Jordan. Israel is in a state of “magnificent emergency” where it is under threat but has great opportunities to settle and claim its land. To this end Israel needs another mass aliyah from western Jewry and to initiate economic reforms to ensure a free market and economic growth that westerners expect.
On the occasion of Rosh Hashanah 1967, MK Begin wrote an article describing the momentousness of the Israeli victory in the Six-Day War. In it, he calls on the Israeli government to adopt territorial changes, arguing that Judea, Samaria and Gaza were seized in 1967 as part of a defensive war and, therefore, need not be returned. He ends with a call to speed up the ingathering of the exiles to Israel.
Begin gives an address in Tel Aviv on the 25th anniversary of Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s death. To commemorate Jabotinsky, he speaks about Jabotinsky’s disciples, ideas, and characteristics. Begin shares that regardless of where Jabotinsky’s disciples were, they all mourned his death. Additionally, his disciples continued to learn and teach Jabotinsky’s teachings, which keeps Jabotinsky alive. Then Begin illuminates Jabotinsky’s ideas by providing examples of his dedication to the Jewish Homeland. Lastly, Begin speaks of three main characteristics Jabotinsky held: love of Israel, human dignity, and the splendor of his conduct. Begin concludes with reminiscing about the previous year when Jabotinsky’s remains were buried in Israel and that Jabotinsky will continue to live in generations to come.
