The Six-Day War marks the establishment of Israel's control over East Jerusalem, Gaza, Golan Heights and the West Bank, as well as military control over thousands of Palestinians.

Hundreds of Israeli Arabs and Jews gathered at Paris Square in the northern city of Haifa on Monday evening to mark the 50th anniversary of the Israeli occupation of Palestine in the aftermath of the Six-Day War. The group marched to Ben-Gurion Boulevard with the rallying call "50 years is too much".

"As a Palestinian citizen of Israel, I really want this occupation to end; I want people to have their freedom, my people, my Palestinian people" said one demonstrator. Another stated they were part of the demo to protest the occupation and "call all the world to recognise now the independent Palestinian state."

The Six-Day War marks the establishment of Israel's control over East Jerusalem, Gaza, Golan Heights and the West Bank, as well as military control over thousands of Palestinians. Israeli control of East Jerusalem is rejected under international law, with United Nations Security Council Resolution 478 condemning the 'annexation' as illegal in 1980.

"The occupation has been continuing for fifty years now, and this is a very bad thing. I, as a Palestinian, citizen of Israel, I really want this occupation to end; I want people to have their freedom, my people, my Palestinian people," said another protester in the above video.

The war

For several weeks in 1967, the underdog Israelis genuinely feared their young Jewish state would be wiped out. They mobilised reserves to face Egyptian troops arrayed at the border and barricaded the streets with sacks of sand.

Then it was over in a shocking flash. A pre-emptive air strike on June 5 destroyed the Egyptian Air Force on the ground, and the Israeli Army also pushed back Jordan and Syria. Israel was crowned a regional power. “The Six Day War was one of the greatest victories in the history of Israel,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a nationalist, recently said.

Read the full story here: 6-day war begets 50 years of conflict for Israel

(With inputs from The Associated Press)