Moshe Dayan
Portrait of an Israeli war leader turned politician
8/6/20253 min read
Youth and entry into armed struggle
Moshe Dayan was born on May 20, 1915, in the kibbutz Degania Alef, in Mandatory Palestine. Born into a pioneering family of the Zionist movement, he joined the Haganah, the main Jewish paramilitary organization, during his adolescence. Arrested by British authorities in 1939 for possession of weapons, he spent two years imprisoned in Acre.
In 1941, serving alongside British forces against the Vichy French army in Syria, he lost his left eye to a sniper shot. His black eye patch became one of the most recognizable symbols of Israel.
Military rise and the 1967 victory
During the 1948 War of Independence, Dayan commanded the Jerusalem front and participated in armistice negotiations with Jordan. This war led to the exodus of around 750,000 Palestinians—a mass displacement known as the Nakba. Several researchers, including Ilan Pappé and Benny Morris, highlight Dayan’s involvement in operations expelling and destroying Arab villages to prevent the return of their inhabitants. Many Palestinians and some historians consider these actions war crimes, given the targeting of civilians and the intent to ethnically cleanse certain areas.
From 1953 to 1958, he served as Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and oversaw the 1956 Sinai campaign. After Israel’s victory, several units under Israeli command were accused of executing Egyptian prisoners of war, particularly in Rafah and Khan Yunis. Although Dayan denied direct involvement, these incidents remained associated with his responsibility as military commander.
In 1967, now Minister of Defense, he played a central role in the Six-Day War. In six days, Israel captured the Sinai Peninsula, Gaza, the West Bank (including East Jerusalem), and the Golan Heights. However, this victory triggered a new Palestinian exodus: around 300,000 people fled or were expelled. Dayan faced particular criticism for ordering the destruction of three Palestinian villages in the Latrun area (Imwas, Yalu, and Beit Nuba), which were bulldozed and emptied of their residents. These destructions, documented by Human Rights Watch and various historians, are frequently described as violations of international humanitarian law.
Abdullah el-Tell and Moshe Dayan reach cease-fire agreement, Jerusalem, 30 November 1948
Ariel Sharon stands with Moshe Dayan during a military operation on September 11, 1956.
Yom Kippur War and severe criticism
In October 1973, Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israel during the holiest day in Judaism. Israel was caught off guard and suffered heavy losses during the initial days.
Although receiving intelligence from various sources, Moshe Dayan underestimated the severity of the situation. The Egyptian agent Ashraf Marwan, whom Israelis considered a reliable informant, actually provided information intended to mislead and delay Israel’s mobilization. This combination of false signals and strategic underestimation contributed to the initial surprise and significant losses.
While Israel eventually turned the tide of the conflict, the state suffered a military humiliation, and Dayan’s reputation as a military leader was severely tarnished.
From right to left: Chief of Staff David Eliezer, Defense Minister Moshe Dayan, and Prime Minister Golda Meir in 1973
Political and diplomatic career
Dayan entered the Knesset in 1959 as a member of Mapai (the left-wing Labor Party). He first served as Minister of Agriculture, before rising to his most influential roles as Minister of Defense (1967–1974) and Minister of Foreign Affairs (1977–1979) in Menachem Begin’s government.
In this role, he participated in negotiations leading to the Camp David Accords and the peace treaty with Egypt. However, disagreeing with Begin’s settlement policies in the occupied territories, he resigned in October 1979.
In 1981, he founded his own movement, Telem, a centrist party supporting a gradual withdrawal from the territories captured in 1967. Although Telem won only two seats in the Knesset, the initiative reflected Dayan’s shift toward a more pragmatic political stance.
Legacy and death
Moshe Dayan died on October 16, 1981, in Tel Aviv at the age of 66, from a heart attack while battling colon cancer. He was buried in the moshav of Nahalal, his childhood home.
His legacy remains deeply ambivalent: a military hero for some, responsible for occupations and exactions for others.
Sources
Benny Morris, The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem, 1947–1949 (Cambridge University Press, 1988)
Ilan Pappé, The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine (Oneworld, 2006)