The Signing Of The Camp David Agreement That Brings Israel-Egypt Peace

Israeli PM Menachem Begin, US President Jimmy Carter, and Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - On September 15. The White House witnessed the signing of the normalization of relations between Israel and the two Gulf Arab countries, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Previously, the White House had also witnessed peace between Israel and Egypt, precisely on September 17, 1978.

At the White House in Washington DC, United States (US), Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister (PM) Menachem Begin signed the Camp David Agreement, laying the groundwork for a permanent peace agreement between Egypt and Israel after three decades of turmoil and hostility. . The deal was negotiated over 12 days in intense talks at the US President Jimmy Carter resting place in Camp David, Catoctin Mountains, Maryland.

The final peace treaty, the first to be concluded by Israel and an Arab country, was signed in March 1979. Sadat and Begin were jointly awarded the 1978 Nobel Peace Prize for their peace efforts.

Launching History, Thursday, September 17, Israel and Egypt have experienced continuous wars since the founding of Israel in 1948. In three wars involving Arab-Israelis, Israel was able to defeat Egypt. As a result of the 1967 war, Israel occupied Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, a peninsula measuring 37,000 square kilometers connecting Africa and Asia.

When Anwar el-Sadat became president of Egypt in 1970, he found himself the leader of an economically troubled country unable to continue its endless war against Israel. He wanted to make peace and thus achieve stability and restoration of Sinai. But after Israel's astonishing victory in the 1967 war, it is unlikely that Israel's terms of peace will benefit Egypt.

Not standing still, Sadat devised a plan to attack Israel again. It didn't work, but it did convince the Israelis that peace with Egypt was necessary.

In 1972, Sadat expelled 20,000 Soviet advisers from Egypt and opened new diplomatic channels with the US, which, as Israel's main ally, would be an important mediator in any peace talks with Israel. Then, on October 6, 1973, Egyptian and Syrian forces launched a joint offensive against Israel. It was Yom Kippur, the holiest day for the Jews and the Israeli army was in shock. It took more than a week for Israel to beat the impressive Arab advances.

US arms shipments help Israel's cause, but US President Richard Nixon suspended emergency military assistance for seven days as a tacit signal of US sympathy for Egypt. In November, an Egyptian-Israeli ceasefire was secured by the US.

Although Egypt suffered another military defeat against Israel, Egypt's early success greatly enhanced Sadat's prestige in the Middle East and gave him the opportunity to seek peace. In 1974, the first of two Egyptian-Israeli relinquishment agreements regulating the return of parts of the Sinai area to Egypt were signed and in 1975. Sadat traveled to the US to discuss peace efforts and seek aid and investment in the US.

When talks with Israel broke down, Sadat made a dramatic trip to Jerusalem in November 1977 and spoke before the Israeli Parliament. In September 1978, US President Jimmy Carter invited Sadat and Begin to a presidential retreat in Camp David, Maryland, where a peace agreement was concluded under Carter's direction.

Signed on September 17, the historic agreement resulted in the complete evacuation of Israel from Sinai, laying the groundwork for signing a final peace agreement and outlining a broader framework for achieving peace in the Middle East.

Sadat and Begin received the Nobel Peace Prize for concluding the agreement. On March 29, 1979, a permanent peace treaty was signed that closely resembled the Camp David Treaty. The agreement ended the state of war between the two countries and provided for the establishment of full diplomatic and commercial relations.

Although Sadat was highly praised in the West, he was widely condemned in the Arab world. In 1979, Egypt was expelled from the Arab League and internal opposition to its policies led to a domestic crisis. On October 6, 1981, Sadat was killed by Muslim extremists in Cairo while watching a military parade commemorating the Yom Kippur War. Even though Sadat died, the peace process with Israel continued under the direction of Egypt's new president, Hosni Mubarak. In 1982, Israel fulfilled the 1979 peace treaty by returning the last segment of the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt.