Like Dreamers: The Story of the Israeli Paratroopers Who Reunited Jerusalem and Divided a Nation

In June 1967, Israel achieved the unimaginable-a decisive victory against Egypt, Jordan and Syria in the Six Day War. The young nation’s most symbolic triumph was the reunification of Israeli West Jerusalem and Jordanian East Jerusalem, achieved at great cost by a group of young paratroopers from Reserve Brigade 55. In restoring Jewish sovereignty to the Holy City, these men fulfilled the dream of two millennia, changing the history of Israel and of the Middle East. And, as veteran journalist Yossi Klein Halevi compellingly reveals in Like Dreamers, they served pivotal roles in shaping Israel’s destiny long after their resounding military success. A masterful storyteller, Halevi tracks down seven members of Brigade 55 and traces their lives through the decades after the Six Day War. But, despite the intensity of their shared experience protecting Israel, his narrative of their post-war paths reveals they nurtured drastically divergent visions for its future. His fascinating, diligently researched examination the motivations and actions humanizes the country’s complex political landscape, facilitating a deeper understanding of the forces that influence its evolution as a state.