The Development of the Jordanian National Guard in the 1950s

After the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Palestinians living in the West Bank began to infiltrate Israel. These infiltrations were characterised by robberies and break-ins, and sometimes the killing of Israelis. Israel responded to these actions with military raids and harm to the civilian population in the villages of Jordan from which these infiltrators set out and crossed the border. As a result, a defensive Jordanian National Guard was developed. Shaul Bartal presents the Jordanian military concept behind the Jordanian National Guard and outlines its military successes in repelling Israeli attacks in the period preceding the 1956 Suez Crisis. ◼.