Battle of Karameh in Jordan between the Israel Defense Forces and the combined forces of the Jordanian Armed Forces and PLO.
The desert town of Karameh, nestled in the Jordan Valley, became the unexpected crucible of a significant military confrontation on March 21, 1968. Known as the Battle of Karameh (Arabic: معركة الكرامة), this intense 15-hour engagement pitted the might of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) against a combined force of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and the Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF). Occurring during the broader War of Attrition, this battle would leave a lasting mark on regional politics and the Palestinian national narrative.
The backdrop to Karameh was the shifting geopolitical landscape following the 1967 Six-Day War. After Jordan lost control of the West Bank to Israel, Palestinian fedayeen, or freedom fighters, moved their bases of operation into Jordan. From these new strongholds, particularly from towns like Karameh which served as a major headquarters, they intensified their cross-border attacks into Israel and Israeli-occupied territories. Israel viewed these escalating raids with growing concern and sought to deliver a decisive blow. Their planned operation was two-pronged: a raid on a PLO camp in Karameh, codenamed Operation Inferno (Hebrew: מבצע תופת), and another on the more distant village of Safi, known as Operation Asuta (מבצע אסותא). The primary objectives, according to the IDF, were to dismantle the fedayeen camps, capture prominent PLO leader Yasser Arafat as a reprisal for recent attacks, and to signal to Jordan that its perceived support for the fedayeen would not go unpunished.
The Battle Unfolds: An Unexpected Confrontation
As dawn broke on March 21, 1968, a substantial Israeli force, backed by powerful fighter jets, launched its assault on Karameh. The Israeli command anticipated that the Jordanian Army, wary of a direct confrontation, would likely stay out of the fray. However, this assumption proved gravely mistaken. The Jordanian Armed Forces, far from remaining passive, engaged with unexpected ferocity, deploying heavy artillery fire that rained down on the advancing Israeli units. Simultaneously, the Palestinian irregulars, despite being outmatched in conventional firepower, put up a tenacious resistance, employing effective guerrilla warfare tactics within the town's dense layout.
The battle raged for an entire day, marked by fierce fighting and unexpected casualties. The Israelis, facing a coordinated and determined defense from both the PLO and the JAF, found themselves in a much more challenging situation than anticipated. As the day wore on, with intense exchanges and mounting losses, the Israeli forces eventually withdrew, or were repulsed, marking the end of the engagement. While the IDF managed to achieve its tactical goal of largely destroying the Karameh camp and taking around 140 PLO members prisoner, the high number of casualties they sustained came as a considerable shock. Furthermore, they failed to capture Yasser Arafat, their prime target, and were unable to retrieve three fallen soldiers and several damaged vehicles and tanks left behind in Karameh – equipment that was later proudly paraded in Amman by the Jordanian Army, a symbol of their unexpected stand.
Aftermath and Lasting Impact
In the wake of the Battle of Karameh, both sides quickly declared victory, each for their own reasons. Tactically, Israel could claim success in dismantling the camp, but the unexpectedly strong resistance and their own losses challenged that narrative. The battle also controversially marked the first known instance of suicide bombings by Palestinian fighters, an ominous sign of future tactics. Internationally, the engagement led to the unanimous issuance of United Nations Security Council Resolution 248, which condemned Israel for violating the cease-fire line and its disproportionate use of force, adding another layer to the complex political fallout.
Culturally and politically, Karameh became a pivotal moment for the Arab world and the burgeoning Palestinian nationalist movement. Despite the Palestinians having limited success in inflicting Israeli casualties compared to the JAF, King Hussein of Jordan strategically allowed them to take credit, recognizing the immense symbolic value of the resistance. His famous proclamation, "I think we may reach a position where we are all fedayeen," underscored the newfound unity and defiance. The battle garnered widespread acclaim and recognition across the Arab world, fueling a significant upsurge of support from Arab countries for the fedayeen in Jordan. The PLO's stature and popular appeal soared, becoming a powerful force advocating for Palestinian self-determination.
However, this newfound strength and influence also sowed the seeds of future conflict. As the PLO's power grew within Jordan, some fedayeen began to openly challenge the authority of the Hashemite monarchy, advocating for the overthrow of King Hussein's rule. This growing friction between the increasingly autonomous Palestinian organizations and the Jordanian government escalated into intense tensions, eventually precipitating the violent events of Black September in 1970, which saw the expulsion of the fedayeen from Jordan to Lebanon, reshaping the regional power dynamics once more.