JAKARTA - On October 6, 1973, Egypt and Syria carried out an attack on Israel. The day coincides with the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur and the month of Ramadan that year. Egypt and Syria seek to win back territory lost to Israel during the Arab-Israeli war during the 1967 Six-Day War.
Citing Britannica, Israel has captured and occupied Arab territories including the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights, followed by years of sporadic fighting. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, who took office shortly after the War of Attrition ended, made an offer to reach a peaceful settlement if, in accordance with United Nations (UN) Resolution 242, Israel returned the territory it had seized. Israel rejected the terms and the fighting developed into a full-scale war in October 1973.
Egypt and Syria attacked Israel simultaneously on two fronts. With both taking advantage, the Egyptians managed to cross the Suez Canal more easily. Meanwhile, Syrian troops were able to launch attacks on Israeli positions and break through the Golan Heights.
Egyptian and Syrian attacks make Israel's ammunition run out quickly. Israeli Prime Minister (PM) Golda Meir asked the United States (US) for help, while the Israeli general staff hastily improvised a battle strategy.
Reinforcements for Israel also arrived. The US helped Israel quickly when it learned the Soviet Union was providing supplies to Egypt and Syria. US President Richard Nixon retaliated by setting up emergency supply lines to Israel, despite Arab countries imposing a costly oil embargo and various US allies refusing to facilitate arms shipments against Israel.
With US help, Israel could quickly turn things around. The men succeeded in disabling part of Egypt's air defenses, allowing Israeli forces commanded by General Ariel Sharon to cross the Suez Canal and encircle the Egyptian Third Army. On the Golan front, Israeli forces repelled the Syrians and advanced to the edge of the Golan Heights on the road to Damascus.
With Resolution 338, the UN Security Council called for an immediate end to the fighting. Despite this, however, hostilities continued for several days. This prompted the United Nations to reiterate calls for a ceasefire with Resolutions 339 and 340. With increasing international pressure, the war finally stopped on October 26, 1973.
Defeat after defeatThe war proved to be detrimental to Israel, Egypt, and Syria. The number of victims was so significant and paralyzed a large amount of military equipment. Moreover, although Israel had prevented Egypt from recapturing the Sinai Peninsula during the war, Israel never recovered its fortress which Egypt destroyed on October 6.
In an effort to maintain the ceasefire between Israel and Egypt, a disengagement agreement was signed on January 18, 1974. The treaty provided for Israel to withdraw its troops in the Sinai Peninsula west of the Mitla and Gidi routes.
Meanwhile Egypt reduced its forces on the eastern bank of the Suez Canal. The UN peacekeepers then established a buffer zone between the two armies. The Israel-Egypt agreement was supplemented by another treaty, signed on September 4, 1975, covering the withdrawal of additional troops and the expansion of the UN buffer zone.
The Yom Kippur War did not necessarily change the dynamics of the Arab-Israeli conflict, but had a significant impact on the trajectory of the peace process between Egypt and Israel. The process culminated in the return of the entire Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in exchange for lasting peace.
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
According to a VOI article entitled Signing of the Camp David Agreement Bringing Israel-Egypt Peace, Israel and Egypt signed the Camp David Agreement in September 1978, which is the basis of a permanent peace agreement between Egypt and Israel. The deal was negotiated for 12 days in intensive talks at US President Jimmy Carter's resting place at Camp David, Catoctin Mountains, Maryland.
The signing of a similar agreement was carried out again on March 26, 1979. The agreement provided for permanent peace between the two countries which led to the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Sinai Peninsula and the normalization of relations between the two countries. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin received the Nobel Peace Prize for carrying out the agreement.
The peace between Egypt and Israel is not without another impact. Egypt was expelled from the Arab League and internal opposition led to a domestic crisis. On October 6, 1981, Sadat was killed by extremists in Cairo while watching a military parade commemorating the Yom Kippur War.
Despite Sadat's death, the peace process with Israel continued under the direction of Egypt's new president, Hosni Mubarak. Israel fulfilled the agreement by returning the last segment of the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in 1982.
*Read other information about TODAY's HISTORY or read other interesting articles from Putri Ainur Islam.
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