Though they had the ability to launch a limited war, they knew perfectly well that Israel would not feel itself bound by the rules of that game, and a limited war would quickly escalate into a general one. Second, Zeira's concept laid down, if there was to be a war, it would be a short one. The third assumption was that in an overall war, the Arabs would be quickly defeated." ↑ Dayan, Moshe, "Story of My Life."