Since the partition of PALESTINE by the United Nations in 1947 and the founding of the modern state of ISRAEL in 1948, there have been four major Arab-Israeli wars (1947-49, 1956, 1967 and 1973 ) and numerous intermittent battles. Although Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in 1979, hostility between Israel and the rest of its Arab neighbors, complicated by the demands of the Palestinian Arabs, continued into the 1980s. THE FIRST PALESTINE WAR (1947-49) The first war began as a civil conflict between Palestinian Jews and Arabs following the United Nations recommendation of 29 November 1947 to partition Palestine, then still under British mandate, into an Arab state and a Jewish state. Fighting spread quickly as Arab guerrillas attacked Jewish settlements and communications links to prevent implementation of the UN plan. Jewish forces prevented the seizure of most of the settlements, but Arab guerrillas, supported by the Transjordan Arab Legion under the command of British officers, besieged Jerusalem. In April, the Haganah, the main Jewish military group, went on the offensive, scoring victories against the Arab Liberation Army in northern Palestine, Jaffa and Jerusalem. British military forces retreated to Haifa; although officially neutral, some commanders aided one side or the other. After the departure of the British and the founding of the state of Israel on May 15, 1948, under the leadership of David BEN-GURION, the Palestinian Arab forces and foreign volunteers were joined by the regular armies of Transjordan (now the kingdom of JORDAN), IRAQ, LEBANON, and SYRIA, with the symbolic support of SAUDI ARABIA. UN efforts to stop the fighting were unsuccessful until June 11, when a 4-week truce was declared. When the Arab states refused to renew the truce, another ten days of fighting broke out. At that time, Israel greatly expanded the area under its control and raised the siege of Jerusalem. Smaller-scale fighting continued during the second UN truce, which began in mid-July, and Israel acquired more territory, especially in the Galilee and the Negev. By January 1949, when the last battles ended, Israel had extended its borders by some 5,000 square km (1,930 square miles) beyond the 15,500 square km (4,983 square miles) allocated to the Jewish state in the United Nations partition resolution. It had also secured its independence. During 1949, armistice agreements were signed under UN auspices between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. The armistice borders were unofficial borders until 1967. SUEZ-SINAI WAR (1956) Border conflicts between Israel and the Arabs continued despite provisions in the 1949 armistice agreements for peace negotiations. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian Arabs who had left Israeli-controlled territory during the first war concentrated in refugee camps along Israel's borders and became a major source of friction as they infiltrated their homes or