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119-434: A number of high-profile funerals have been conducted at the mosque, including that of Anwar Sadat and Ma'mun al-Hudaybi , partially due to its proximity to the cemetery east of Cairo. In July 2013, Rabaa al-Adawiya Mosque and the adjacent Rabaa Square became a sit-in protest area for supporters of President Mohamed Morsi after he was removed from power by Minister of Defense Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on July 3. The mosque

238-521: A General Assembly of 300 volunteers. This article about a mosque or other Islamic place of worship in Egypt is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Anwar Sadat Muhammad Anwar es-Sadat (25 December 1918 – 6 October 1981) was an Egyptian politician and military officer who served as the third president of Egypt , from 15 October 1970 until his assassination by fundamentalist army officers on 6 October 1981. Sadat

357-534: A Middle East war, and on 6 October 1973, Kissinger sent a further dispatch discouraging a preemptive strike. Israel was totally dependent on the United States for military resupply and sensitive to anything that might endanger that relationship. At 10:15 am, Meir met with American ambassador Kenneth Keating to inform him that Israel did not intend to preemptively start a war and asked that American efforts be directed at preventing war. Kissinger urged

476-533: A UN-brokered ceasefire broke down, with both sides accusing each other of violations. By 24 October, Israel had encircled the Egyptian Third Army and Suez City, coming within 100 kilometres (62 mi) of Cairo. Egypt successfully repelled further Israeli advances in the battles of Ismailia and Suez . A second ceasefire was imposed on 25 October, officially ending the war. The Yom Kippur War had significant consequences. The Arab world, humiliated by

595-602: A failed military coup in June 1981, Sadat ordered a major crackdown that resulted in the arrest of numerous opposition figures. Although Sadat still maintained high levels of popularity in Egypt, it has been said that he was assassinated "at the peak" of his unpopularity. Earlier in his presidency, Islamists had benefited from the 'rectification revolution' and the release from prison of activists jailed under Nasser. But Sadat's Sinai treaty with Israel enraged Islamists, particularly

714-502: A halt by a fresh ceasefire on 24 October. Anticipating a swift Israeli armored counterattack by three armored divisions, the Egyptians had armed their assault force with large numbers of man-portable anti-tank weapons— rocket-propelled grenades and the less numerous but more advanced Sagger guided missiles, which proved devastating to the first Israeli armored counterattacks. Each of the five infantry divisions that were to cross

833-639: A hero in Egypt and, for a time, the wider Arab World . Afterwards, he engaged in negotiations with Israel, culminating in the Camp David Accords and the Egypt–Israel peace treaty ; this won him and Menachem Begin the Nobel Peace Prize, making Sadat the first Muslim Nobel laureate. Although reaction to the treaty – which resulted in the return of Sinai to Egypt – was generally favorable among Egyptians, it

952-633: A junior officer proposed using high pressure water cannons. The idea was tested and found to be a sound one, and several high pressure water cannons were imported from Britain and East Germany. The water cannons effectively breached the sand walls using water from the canal. At 2:00 pm on 6 October, Operation Badr began with a large airstrike. More than 200 Egyptian aircraft conducted simultaneous strikes against three airbases, Hawk missile batteries, three command centers, artillery positions, and several radar installations. Airfields at Refidim and Bir Tamada were temporarily put out of service, and damage

1071-513: A leading role in cleaning up and reactivating the blocked Suez Canal with heavy investment. The country also facilitated the withdrawal of Israel from the occupied Sinai Peninsula by promising to substitute the loss of the oil to the Israelis with free Iranian oil if they withdrew from the Egyptian oil wells in western Sinai. All these added more to the personal friendship between Sadat and

1190-648: A message of support from Pope Paul VI regarding achieving peace with Israel, to include a just solution to the Palestinian issue . Sadat, on his part, extended to the Pope a public invitation to visit Cairo. Sadat also used the media to promote his purposes. In an interview he gave to the Lebanese magazine Al Hawadeth in early February 1976, he claimed he had secret commitment from the US government to put pressure on

1309-475: A peace agreement with Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir reacted to the overture by forming a committee to examine the proposal and vet possible concessions. When the committee unanimously concluded that Israel's interests would be served by full withdrawal to the internationally recognized lines dividing Israel from Egypt and Syria, returning the Gaza Strip and, in a majority view, returning most of

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1428-640: A personal friend and insisted on attending the funeral, walking throughout the funeral procession so as not to desecrate the Sabbath. Sadat was buried in the unknown soldier memorial in Cairo , across the street from the stand where he was assassinated. Over three hundred Islamic radicals were indicted in the trial of assassin Khalid Islambouli, including future al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri , Omar Abdel-Rahman , and Abd al-Hamid Kishk . The trial

1547-587: A poor family, and he had 14 siblings. One of his brothers, Atef Sadat , later became a pilot and was killed in action in 1973 during the Yom Kippur War . His father, Anwar Mohammed El Sadat, was an Upper Egyptian , and his mother, Sit Al-Berain, was born to an Egyptian mother and a Sudanese father. He graduated from the Royal Military Academy in Cairo , the capital of what was then

1666-633: A possibility of a "real, permanent peace" between Israel and the Arab states. Armed hostilities continued on a limited scale after the Six-Day War and escalated into the War of Attrition , an attempt to wear down the Israeli position through long-term pressure. In December 1970, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat had signaled in an interview with The New York Times that, in return for a total withdrawal from

1785-545: A series of astute political moves by which he was able to retain the presidency and emerge as a leader in his own right. On 15 May 1971, Sadat announced his Corrective Revolution , purging the government, political and security establishments of the most ardent Nasserists . Sadat encouraged the emergence of an Islamist movement, which had been suppressed by Nasser. Believing Islamists to be socially conservative he gave them "considerable cultural and ideological autonomy" in exchange for political support. In 1971, as part of

1904-481: A similar initiative four days later, on 8 February 1971. Egypt responded by accepting much of Jarring's proposals, though differing on several issues, regarding the Gaza Strip , for example, and expressed its willingness to reach an accord if it also implemented the provisions of United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 . This was the first time an Arab government had gone public declaring its readiness to sign

2023-427: A single shot during the killing, and not one of them has been put on trial. In 1983, Sadat , a miniseries based on the life of Anwar Sadat, aired on US television with Oscar -winning actor Louis Gossett Jr. in the title role. The film was promptly banned by the Egyptian government, as were all other movies produced and distributed by Columbia Pictures , over allegations of historical inaccuracies. A civil lawsuit

2142-542: The AT-3 Sagger anti-tank guided missile from the Soviet Union and improving its military tactics, based on Soviet battlefield doctrines. Political generals, who had in large part been responsible for the rout in 1967, were replaced with competent ones. The Soviets thought little of Sadat's chances in any war. They warned that any attempt to cross the heavily fortified Suez Canal would incur massive losses. Both

2261-516: The Agranat Commission , Brigadier General Yisrael Lior (Meir's military secretary/attaché) claimed that Mossad knew from Marwan that an attack was going to occur under the guise of a military drill a week before it occurred, but the process of passing along the information to the prime minister's office failed. On the night of 5–6 October, Marwan incorrectly informed Zamir that a joint Syrian-Egyptian attack would take place at sunset. It

2380-593: The Arab League from 1979 to 1989. The peace treaty was also one of the primary factors that led to his assassination; on 6 October 1981, militants led by Khalid Islambouli opened fire on Sadat with automatic rifles during the 6 October parade in Cairo, killing him. Anwar Sadat was born on 25 December 1918 in Mit Abu El Kom , part of Monufia Governorate in what was then the Sultanate of Egypt , to

2499-519: The Arab League suspended Egypt in the wake of the Egyptian–Israel peace agreement, and the League moved its headquarters from Cairo to Tunis . Arab League member states believed in the elimination of the "Zionist Entity" and Israel at that time. It was not until 1989 that the League re-admitted Egypt as a member, and returned its headquarters to Cairo. As part of the peace deal, Israel withdrew from

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2618-546: The Camp David Accords and the Egypt–Israel peace treaty , the "opening up" (or Infitah ) of Egypt's economy, and lastly his assassination in 1981. Sadat succeeded Nasser as president after the latter's death in October 1970. Sadat's presidency was widely expected to be short-lived. Viewing him as having been little more than a puppet of the former president, Nasser's supporters in government settled on Sadat as someone they could manipulate easily. Sadat surprised everyone with

2737-718: The Gama'a Islamiyya interviewed in Middle East Report , it was not Islamic Jihad but his organization, known in English as the "Islamic Group", that organized the assassination and recruited the assassin (Islambouli). Members of the Group's 'Majlis el-Shura' ('Consultative Council') – headed by the famed 'blind shaykh' – were arrested two weeks before the killing, but they did not disclose the existing plans and Islambouli succeeded in assassinating Sadat. On 6 October 1981, Sadat

2856-584: The Iranian parliament in Tehran in fluent Persian , describing the 2,500-year-old historic connection between the two lands. Overnight, the Egyptian and Iranian governments were turned from bitter enemies into fast friends. The relationship between Cairo and Tehran became so friendly that the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi , called Sadat his "dear brother". After the 1973 war with Israel, Iran assumed

2975-619: The Jarring Mission , three years into the War of Attrition in the Suez Canal zone, Sadat endorsed in a letter the peace proposals of UN negotiator Gunnar Jarring , which seemed to lead to a full peace with Israel on the basis of Israel's withdrawal to its pre-war borders. This peace initiative failed as neither Israel nor the United States of America accepted the terms as discussed then. Shortly after taking office, Sadat shocked many Egyptians by dismissing and imprisoning two of

3094-529: The Khartoum Arab Summit , was to reject any peaceful settlement with the State of Israel. The eight participating states—Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Algeria, Kuwait, and Sudan—passed a resolution that would later become known as the "three nos": there would be no peace, no recognition and no negotiation with Israel. Prior to that, King Hussein of Jordan had stated that he could not rule out

3213-881: The Kingdom of Egypt , in 1938 and was appointed to the Signal Corps. He entered the army as a second lieutenant and was posted to the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan (the Sudan being a condominium under joint British and Egyptian rule at the time). There, he met Gamal Abdel Nasser , and along with several other junior officers they formed the Free Officers , an organization committed to overthrowing British rule in Egypt and eliminating state corruption. During World War II , Sadat collaborated with spies of Nazi Germany in Egypt as part of Operation Salam . Once this

3332-586: The Nobel Peace Prize . In his 11 years as president, he changed Egypt 's trajectory, departing from many political and economic tenets of Nasserism , reinstituting a multi-party system , and launching the Infitah economic policy. As President, he led Egypt in the Yom Kippur War of 1973 to regain Egypt's Sinai Peninsula , which Israel had occupied since the Six-Day War of 1967, making him

3451-810: The October War , also known as the Yom Kippur War (and less commonly as the Ramadan War), a surprise attack against the Israeli forces occupying the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula , and the Syrian Golan Heights in an attempt to retake these respective Egyptian and Syrian territories that had been occupied by Israel since the Six Day War six years earlier. The Egyptian and Syrian performance in the initial stages of

3570-469: The Sinai Desert with two armies (both corps-sized by western standards, included the 2nd Infantry Division in the northern Second Army). By the following morning, some 850 tanks had crossed the canal. In his account of the war, Saad El Shazly noted that by the morning of 7 October, the Egyptians had lost 280 soldiers and 20 tanks, though this account is disputed. Most Israeli soldiers defending

3689-844: The Sinai Peninsula in phases, completing its withdrawal from the entire territory except the town of Taba by 25 April 1982 (withdrawal from which did not occur until 1989). The improved relations Egypt gained with the West through the Camp David Accords soon gave the country resilient economic growth. By 1980, however, Egypt's strained relations with the Arab World would result in a period of rapid inflation. The relationship between Iran and Egypt had fallen into open hostility during Gamal Abdel Nasser 's presidency. Following his death in 1970, President Sadat turned this around quickly into an open and close friendship. In 1971, Sadat addressed

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3808-493: The chairman of the USSR Council of Ministers , cancelled an official meeting with Danish Prime Minister Anker Jørgensen to travel to Egypt where he tried to persuade Sadat to sign a peace treaty. During Kosygin's two-day long stay it is unknown if he and Sadat ever met in person. The Israeli military then continued their drive to encircle the Egyptian army. The encirclement was completed on 24 October, three days after

3927-567: The 1967 Six-Day War . The agreement also provided for the free passage of Israeli ships through the Suez Canal and recognition of the Strait of Tiran and the Gulf of Aqaba as international waterways. The agreement notably made Egypt the first Arab country to officially recognize Israel. The peace agreement between Egypt and Israel has remained in effect since the treaty was signed. The treaty

4046-591: The 1967 defeat, felt psychologically vindicated by its early successes in 1973. Meanwhile, Israel, despite battlefield achievements, recognized that future military dominance was uncertain. These shifts contributed to the Israeli–Palestinian peace process , leading to the 1978 Camp David Accords , when Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt, and the Egypt–Israel peace treaty , the first time an Arab country recognized Israel . Egypt drifted away from

4165-551: The American response was a call for a cease-fire in place. The Egyptian units generally would not advance beyond a shallow strip for fear of losing the protection of their SAM batteries, which were situated on the west bank of the canal. In the Six-Day War, the Israeli Air Force had pummeled the defenseless Arab armies; this time, Egypt had heavily fortified their side of the ceasefire lines with SAM batteries provided by

4284-558: The Bar Lev Line became casualties, and some 200 were taken prisoner. In the subsequent days, some defenders of the Bar Lev Line managed to break through the Egyptian encirclement and return to their lines or were extracted during later Israeli counterattacks. For the next several days, the IAF played a minimal role in the fighting, largely because it was needed to deal with the simultaneous, and ultimately more threatening, Syrian attack in

4403-473: The Egyptian Army conducted military exercises near the border, and Ashraf Marwan inaccurately warned that Egypt and Syria would launch a surprise attack in the middle of May. The Israeli Army mobilized with their Blue-White Alert, in response to both the warnings and exercises, at considerable cost. These exercises led some Israelis to dismiss the actual war preparations—and Marwan's warning right before

4522-487: The Egyptian Army to participate in these exercises. Two days before the outbreak of the war, on 4 October, the Egyptian command publicly announced the demobilization of part of the reservists called up during 27 September to lull Israeli suspicions. Around 20,000 troops were demobilized, and subsequently some of these men were given leave to perform the Umrah (pilgrimage) to Mecca. According to Egyptian General El-Gamasy, "On

4641-447: The Egyptian assault force of 32,000 infantry began crossing the canal in twelve waves at five separate crossing areas, from 14:05 to 17:30, in what became known as The Crossing . The Egyptians prevented Israeli forces from reinforcing the Bar Lev Line and proceeded to attack the Israeli fortifications. Meanwhile, engineers crossed over to breach the sand wall. The Israeli Air Force conducted air interdiction operations to try to prevent

4760-533: The Egyptian people. Reportedly, after the end of the Second World War, Sadat wrote to Al-Musawar weekly a letter that praised Adolf Hitler's legacy. During the presidency of Gamal Abdel Nasser, Sadat was appointed minister of State in 1954. He was also appointed editor of the newly founded daily Al Gomhuria . In 1959, he assumed the position of secretary to the National Union. Sadat was

4879-490: The Golan Heights. Egyptian forces then consolidated their initial positions. On 7 October, the bridgeheads were enlarged an additional 4 km ( 2 + 1 ⁄ 2  mi), at the same time repulsing Israeli counterattacks. In the north, the Egyptian 18th Division attacked the town of El-Qantarah el-Sharqiyya , engaging Israeli forces in and around the town. The fighting there was conducted at close quarters, and

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4998-589: The Israeli army led by General Ariel Sharon had crossed the Suez Canal , trying to encircle first the Egyptian Second Army. Although this failed, prompted by an agreement between the United States of America and the Soviet Union, the United Nations Security Council passed Resolution 338 on 22 October 1973, calling for an immediate ceasefire. Although agreed upon, the ceasefire was immediately broken. Alexei Kosygin ,

5117-617: The Israeli government for a major withdrawal in Sinai and the Golan Heights. This statement caused some concern to the Israeli government, but Secretary of State Henry Kissinger denied such a promise was ever made. In January 1977, a series of 'Bread Riots' protested Sadat's economic liberalization and specifically a government decree lifting price controls on basic necessities like bread. The riots lasted for two days and included hundreds of thousands in Cairo. 120 buses and hundreds of buildings were destroyed in Cairo alone. The riots ended with

5236-484: The Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur , which coincided with the 10th day of Ramadan . The United States and Soviet Union engaged in massive resupply efforts for their allies (Israel and the Arab states, respectively), which heightened tensions between the two superpowers. Egyptian and Syrian forces crossed their respective ceasefire lines with Israel, advancing into the Sinai and Golan Heights. Egyptian forces crossed

5355-612: The Muslim Brotherhood, the fascist Young Egypt , the pro-Axis and pro-Royalist Iron Guard of Egypt , and the secret military group called the Free Officers. Along with his fellow Free Officers, Sadat participated in the military coup that launched the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 , which overthrew King Farouk I on 23 July of that year. Sadat gave the first statement of the revolution over the radio to

5474-512: The Shah of Iran. (The Shah's first wife was Princess Fawzia of Egypt . She was the eldest daughter of Sultan Fuad I of Egypt and Sudan (later King Fuad I ) and his second wife Nazli Sabri.) After his overthrow, the deposed Shah spent the last months of his life in exile in Egypt. When the Shah died, Sadat ordered that he be given a state funeral and be interred at the Al-Rifa'i Mosque in Cairo,

5593-642: The Sinai Peninsula, he was ready "to recognize the rights of Israel as an independent state as defined by the Security Council of the United Nations ." On 4 February 1971, Sadat gave a speech to the Egyptian National Assembly outlining a proposal under which Israel would withdraw from the Suez Canal and the Sinai Peninsula along with other occupied Arab territories. Swedish diplomat Gunnar Jarring coincidentally proposed

5712-454: The Sinai Peninsula. The U.S. considered Israel an ally in the Cold War and had been supplying the Israeli military since the 1960s. U.S. National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger believed that the regional balance of power hinged on maintaining Israel's military dominance over Arab countries and that an Arab victory in the region would strengthen Soviet influence. Britain's position, on

5831-400: The Sinai with Kelt missiles , while another two Egyptian Tupolevs fired two Kelt missiles at a radar station in central Israel. One missile was shot down by a patrolling Israeli Mirage fighter, and the second fell into the sea. The attack was an attempt to warn Israel that Egypt could retaliate if it bombed targets deep within Egyptian territory. Under cover of the initial artillery barrage,

5950-404: The Sinai. Shazly's account was disputed by Kenneth Pollack, who noted that for the most part, the forts only fell to repeated assaults by superior forces or prolonged sieges over many days. The northernmost fortification of the Bar Lev Line, code-named ' Fort Budapest ', withstood repeated assaults and remained in Israeli hands throughout the war. Once the bridges were laid, additional infantry with

6069-455: The Six-Day War, the Israeli government voted to return the Sinai to Egypt and the Golan Heights to Syria in exchange for a permanent peace settlement and a demilitarization of the returned territories. This decision was not made public at the time, nor was it conveyed to any Arab state. Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban has said that it had been conveyed, but there seems to be no solid evidence to corroborate his claim; no formal peace proposal

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6188-628: The Soviet Union, eventually leaving the Eastern Bloc . The war was part of the Arab–Israeli conflict , an ongoing dispute that has included many battles and wars since the founding of the State of Israel in 1948. During the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel had captured Egypt's Sinai Peninsula , roughly half of Syria's Golan Heights , and the territories of the West Bank which had been held by Jordan since 1948 . On 19 June 1967, shortly after

6307-500: The Soviet Union. On 9 October, the IDF chose to concentrate its reserves and build up its supplies while the Egyptians remained on the strategic defensive. Nixon and Kissinger held back on a full-scale resupply of arms to Israel. Short of supplies, the Israeli government reluctantly accepted a cease-fire in place on 12 October, but Sadat refused to do so. The Soviets started an airlift of arms to Syria and Egypt. The American global interest

6426-657: The Soviets and Americans were at that time pursuing détente and had no interest in seeing the Middle East destabilized. In a June 1973 meeting with American President Richard Nixon , Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev had proposed Israel pull back to its 1967 border. Brezhnev said that if Israel did not, "we will have difficulty keeping the military situation from flaring up"—an indication that the Soviet Union had been unable to restrain Sadat's plans. Between May and August 1973,

6545-495: The Soviets to use their influence to prevent war, contacted Egypt with Israel's message of non-preemption, and sent messages to other Arab governments to enlist their help on the side of moderation. These late efforts were futile. According to Kissinger, had Israel struck first it would not have received "so much as a nail". The Egyptians had prepared for an assault across the canal and deployed five divisions totaling 100,000 soldiers, 1,350 tanks and 2,000 guns and heavy mortars for

6664-454: The Suez Canal in Operation Badr and advanced into the Sinai, while Syrian forces gained territory in the Golan Heights. After three days, Israel halted the Egyptian advance and pushed the Syrians back. Israel then launched a counteroffensive into Syria, shelling the outskirts of Damascus . Egyptian forces attempted to push further into Sinai but were repulsed, and Israeli forces crossed the Suez Canal, advancing toward Suez City. On 22 October,

6783-429: The Syrian army. These activities were considered puzzling but not a threat because Israeli intelligence suggested they would not attack without Egypt, and Egypt would not attack until the weaponry they wanted arrived. Despite this belief, Israel sent reinforcements to the Golan Heights. These forces were to prove critical during the early days of the war. On 27 to 30 September, two batches of reservists were called up by

6902-418: The United States. He was portrayed by Robert Loggia in the 1982 television movie A Woman Called Golda , opposite Ingrid Bergman as Golda Meir . The first Egyptian depiction of Sadat's life came in 2001, when Ayyam El Sadat (English: The Days of Sadat ) was released in Egyptian cinemas. The movie was a major success in Egypt, and was hailed as Ahmed Zaki 's greatest performance to date. Sadat

7021-399: The West Bank and East Jerusalem, Meir was angered and shelved the document. The United States was infuriated by the cool Israeli response to Egypt's proposal, and Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Joseph Sisco informed Israeli ambassador Yitzhak Rabin that "Israel would be regarded responsible for rejecting the best opportunity to reach peace since the establishment of

7140-515: The arrest of an operative carrying crucial information. In September, Sadat ordered a highly unpopular roundup of more than 1,500 people, including many Jihad members, but also the Coptic Pope and other Coptic clergy, intellectuals and activists of all ideological stripes. All non-government press was banned as well. The roundup missed a Jihad cell in the military led by Lieutenant Khalid Islambouli , who would succeed in assassinating Anwar Sadat that October. According to Tala'at Qasim , ex-head of

7259-403: The assassination of Amin Osman, Sadat returned again and finally to prison. In Qarmidan prison, he faced the most difficult ordeals of imprisonment by being held in solitary confinement, but the first accused in the Hussein Tawfiq case, escaped, and after there is no criminality evidence all the charges fall and the suspected went free. Salah Zulfikar , then young police officer, at that time

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7378-451: The assassination was an international conspiracy. On 31 October 2006, he was sentenced to a year in prison for defaming Egypt's armed forces, less than a month after he gave the interview accusing Egyptian generals of masterminding his uncle's assassination. In an interview with a Saudi television channel, he also claimed both the United States and Israel were involved noting that no one from the special personal protection group of Sadat fired

7497-416: The attack was launched—as another exercise. In the week leading up to Yom Kippur , the Egyptian Army staged a week-long training exercise adjacent to the Suez Canal. Israeli intelligence, detecting large troop movements towards the canal, dismissed them as mere training exercises. Movements of Syrian troops towards the border were also detected, as were the cancellation of leaves and a call-up of reserves in

7616-533: The attack. Kenneth Pollack wrote that 18 Egyptian aircraft were shot down, and that these losses prompted the cancellation of the second planned wave. In one notable engagement during this period, a pair of Israeli F-4E Phantoms challenged 28 Egyptian MiGs over Sharm el-Sheikh and within half an hour, shot down seven or eight MiGs with no losses. One of the Egyptian pilots killed was Captain Atef Sadat , President Sadat's half-brother. Simultaneously, 14 Egyptian Tupolev Tu-16 bombers attacked Israeli targets in

7735-424: The bridges from being erected, but took losses from Egyptian SAM batteries. The air attacks were ineffective overall, as the sectional design of the bridges enabled quick repairs when hit. Despite fierce resistance, the Israeli reserve brigade garrisoning the Bar-Lev forts was overwhelmed. According to Shazly, within six hours, fifteen strongpoints had been captured as Egyptian forces advanced several kilometres into

7854-408: The canal had been equipped with RPG-7 rockets and RPG-43 grenades and reinforced with an anti-tank guided missile battalion, as they would not have any armor support for nearly 12 hours. In addition, the Egyptians had built separate ramps at the crossing points, reaching as high as 21 metres (69 ft) to counter the Israeli sand wall, provide covering fire for the assaulting infantry and to counter

7973-442: The ceasefire was broken. This development prompted superpower tension, but a second ceasefire was imposed cooperatively on 25 October to end the war. At the conclusion of hostilities, Israeli forces were 40 kilometres (25 mi) from Damascus and 101 kilometres (63 mi) from Cairo . The initial Egyptian and Syrian victories in the war restored popular morale throughout Egypt and the Arab World and, for many years after, Sadat

8092-415: The country, capture the headquarters of the army and State Security, the telephone exchange building, and of course the radio and television building, where news of the Islamic revolution would then be broadcast, unleashing – he expected – a popular uprising against secular authority all over the country". In February 1981, Egyptian authorities were alerted to El-Jihad's plan by

8211-419: The deployment of the army and the re-institution of the subsidies/price controls. During this time, Sadat was also taking a new approach towards improving relations with the West. The United States and the Soviet Union agreed on 1 October 1977, on principles to govern a Geneva conference on the Middle East. Syria continued to resist such a conference. Not wanting either Syria or the Soviet Union to influence

8330-470: The few commandos that did filter through were ineffectual and presented nothing more than a "nuisance". Kenneth Pollack asserted that despite their heavy losses, the Egyptian commandos fought exceptionally hard and created considerable panic, prompting the Israelis to take precautions that hindered their ability to concentrate on stopping the assault across the canal. Egyptian forces advanced approximately 4 to 5 km ( 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 to 3 mi) into

8449-414: The fighting occurred in the Sinai Peninsula and Golan Heights , territories occupied by Israel in 1967 . Some combat also took place in Egypt and northern Israel . Egypt aimed to secure a foothold on the eastern bank of the Suez Canal and use it to negotiate the return of the Sinai Peninsula . The war started on 6 October 1973, when the Arab coalition launched a surprise attack on Israel during

8568-404: The film's poor reception in Egypt to racism – Gossett being African-American – in the Egyptian government or Egypt in general. Either way, one Western source wrote that Sadat's portrayal by Gossett "bothered race-conscious Egyptians and wouldn't have pleased [the deceased] Sadat," who identified as Egyptian and Northeast African, not black. The two-part series earned Gossett an Emmy nomination in

8687-406: The first Israeli armored counterattacks. The Egyptian Army put great effort into finding a quick and effective way of breaching the Israeli defenses . The Israelis had built large 18-metre (59 foot) high sand walls with a 60-degree slope and reinforced with concrete at the water line. Egyptian engineers initially experimented with explosive charges and bulldozers to clear the obstacles, before

8806-466: The full implementation of UN Resolutions 242 and 338 . The Peace treaty was finally signed by Anwar Sadat and Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin in Washington, D.C., United States, on 26 March 1979, following the Camp David Accords , a series of meetings between Egypt and Israel facilitated by US president Jimmy Carter . Both Sadat and Begin were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for creating

8925-537: The initiative of the operations staff, we reviewed the situation on the ground and developed a framework for the planned offensive operation. We studied the technical characteristics of the Suez Canal, the ebb and the flow of the tides, the speed of the currents and their direction, hours of darkness and of moonlight, weather conditions, and related conditions in the Mediterranean and Red sea." He explained further by saying: "Saturday 6 October 1973 (10 Ramadan 1393)

9044-578: The likelihood of Jordan joining in." On the night of 25 September, Hussein secretly flew to Tel Aviv to warn Meir of an impending Syrian attack. "Are they going to war without the Egyptians, asked Mrs. Meir. The king said he didn't think so. 'I think they [Egypt] would cooperate. ' " This warning was ignored, and Israeli intelligence indicated that Hussein had not said anything that was not already known. Throughout September, Israel received eleven warnings of war from well-placed sources. However, Mossad Director-General Zvi Zamir continued to insist that war

9163-478: The mobilization and transportation of the military. Despite refusing to participate, King Hussein of Jordan "had met with Sadat and Assad in Alexandria two weeks before. Given the mutual suspicions prevailing among the Arab leaders, it was unlikely that he had been told any specific war plans. But it was probable that Sadat and Assad had raised the prospect of war against Israel in more general terms to feel out

9282-562: The most powerful figures in the regime, Vice President Ali Sabri , who had close ties with Soviet officials, and Sharawi Gomaa , the Interior Minister, who controlled the secret police. Sadat's rising popularity would accelerate after he cut back the powers of the hated secret police, expelled Soviet military from the country and reformed the Egyptian army for a renewed confrontation with Israel. On 6 October 1973, in conjunction with Hafez al-Assad of Syria , Sadat launched

9401-410: The movement of Israeli reserves to the front. These special operations often led to confusion and anxiety among Israeli commanders, who commended the Egyptian commandos. This view was contradicted by another source that stated that few commandos made it to their objectives, and were usually nothing more than a nuisance. According to Abraham Rabinovich , only the commandos near Baluza and those blocking

9520-655: The onslaught. Facing them were 450 soldiers of the Jerusalem Brigade , spread out in 16 forts along the length of the canal. There were 290 Israeli tanks in all of Sinai, divided into three armored brigades, only one of which was deployed near the canal when hostilities commenced. Large bridgeheads were established on the east bank on 6 October. Israeli armoured forces launched counterattacks from 6 to 8 October, but they were often piecemeal and inadequately supported and were beaten back principally by Egyptians using portable anti-tank missiles. Between 9 and 12 October,

9639-471: The other hand, was that war between the Arabs and Israelis could only be prevented by the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 and a return to the pre-1967 boundaries. Sadat also had important domestic concerns in wanting war. "The three years since Sadat had taken office ... were the most demoralized in Egyptian history. ... A desiccated economy added to the nation's despondency. War

9758-547: The peace process, Sadat decided to take more progressive stance towards building a comprehensive peace agreement with Israel. The 1977 visit by Anwar Sadat to Israel was the first time an Arab leader officially visited Israel. Sadat met with Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin , and spoke before the Knesset in Jerusalem about his views on how to achieve a comprehensive peace to the Arab–Israeli conflict , which included

9877-413: The peace proposal despite knowing that the only plausible alternative was going to war with Egypt. Four months before the war broke out, Kissinger made an offer to Ismail, Sadat's emissary. Kissinger proposed returning the Sinai Peninsula to Egyptian control and an Israeli withdrawal from all of Sinai, except for some strategic points. Ismail said he would return with Sadat's reply, but he never did. Sadat

9996-454: The presentations were done, the prime minister hemmed uncertainly for a few moments but then came to a clear decision. There would be no preemptive strike. Israel might be needing American assistance soon and it was imperative that it would not be blamed for starting the war. 'If we strike first, we won't get help from anybody,' she said. Prior to the war, Kissinger and Nixon consistently warned Meir that she must not be responsible for initiating

10115-573: The president of the National Assembly (1960–1968) and then Vice President of Egypt and member of the presidential council in 1964. He was reappointed as vice president again in December 1969. Some of the major events of Sadat's presidency were his "Corrective Revolution" to consolidate power, the break with Egypt's long-time ally and aid-giver the USSR , the 1973 October War with Israel,

10234-416: The radical Egyptian Islamic Jihad . According to interviews and information gathered by journalist Lawrence Wright , the group was recruiting military officers and accumulating weapons, waiting for the right moment to launch "a complete overthrow of the existing order" in Egypt. Chief strategist of El-Jihad was Abbud al-Zumar , a colonel in the military intelligence whose "plan was to kill the main leaders of

10353-576: The remaining portable and recoilless anti-tank weapons began to cross the canal, while the first Egyptian tanks started to cross at 20:30. The Egyptians also attempted to land several heli-borne commando units in various areas in the Sinai to hamper the arrival of Israeli reserves. This attempt met with disaster as the Israelis shot down up to 20 helicopters, inflicting heavy casualties. Israeli Major General (res.) Chaim Herzog placed Egyptian helicopter losses at 14. Other sources claim that "several" helicopters were downed with "total loss of life" and that

10472-522: The resting place of Egyptian Khedive Isma'il Pasha , his mother Khushyar Hanim, and numerous other members of the royal family of Egypt and Sudan . The last months of Sadat's presidency were marked by internal uprising. Sadat dismissed allegations that the rioting was incited by domestic issues, believing that the Soviet Union was recruiting its regional allies in Libya and Syria to incite an uprising that would eventually force him out of power. Following

10591-507: The road to Fort Budapest had measurable success. Of the 1,700 Egyptian commandos inserted behind Israeli lines during the war, 740 were killed—many in downed helicopters—and 330 taken prisoner. On 7 October, David Elazar visited Shmuel Gonen, commander of the Israeli Southern Command —who had only taken the position three months before at the retirement of Ariel Sharon—and met with Israeli commanders. The Israelis planned

10710-418: The state." Israel responded to Jarring's plan on 26 February by outlining its readiness to make some form of withdrawal, while declaring it had no intention of returning to the pre-5 June 1967 lines . Explicating the response, Eban told the Knesset that the pre-5 June 1967 lines "cannot assure Israel against aggression". Jarring was disappointed and blamed Israel for refusing to accept a complete pullout from

10829-698: The training exercises, and that the Egyptians had amassed all of their crossing equipment along the canal. He then called General Shmuel Gonen , who had replaced him as head of Southern Command, and expressed his certainty that war was imminent. Zamir's concern grew on 4–5 October, as additional signs of an impending attack were detected. Soviet advisers and their families left Egypt and Syria, transport aircraft thought to be laden with military equipment landed in Cairo and Damascus , and aerial photographs revealed that Egyptian and Syrian concentrations of tanks, infantry, and surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) were at an unprecedented high. According to declassified documents from

10948-441: The treaty. In his acceptance speech, Sadat referred to the long-awaited peace desired by both Arabs and Israelis. The main features of the agreement were the mutual recognition of each country by the other, the cessation of the state of war that had existed since the 1948 Arab–Israeli War , and the complete withdrawal by Israel of its armed forces and civilians from the rest of the Sinai Peninsula , which Israel had captured during

11067-546: The vision of a united "Arab front" for the support of the Palestinians against the "Zionist Entity". However, Sadat decided early on that peace was the solution. Sadat's shift towards a strategic relationship with the US was also seen as a betrayal by many Arabs. In the United States his peace moves gained him popularity among some Evangelical circles. He was awarded the Prince of Peace Award by Pat Robertson . In 1979,

11186-465: The war astonished both Israel, and the Arab World. The most striking achievement ( Operation Badr , also known as The Crossing) was the Egyptian military's advance approximately 15 km into the occupied Sinai Peninsula after penetrating and largely destroying the Bar Lev Line . This line was popularly thought to have been an impregnable defensive chain. As the war progressed, three divisions of

11305-427: The war began. Elazar proposed a mobilization of the entire air force and four armored divisions, or 100,000 to 120,000 troops, while Dayan favored a mobilization of the air force and two armored divisions, or around 70,000 troops. Meir chose Elazar's proposal. Elazar argued in favor of a pre-emptive attack against Syrian airfields at noon, Syrian missiles at 3:00 pm, and Syrian ground forces at 5:00 pm: When

11424-414: The world, including a rare simultaneous attendance by three former US presidents: Gerald Ford , Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon . Sudan 's President Gaafar Nimeiry was the only Arab head of state to attend the funeral. Only 3 of 24 states in the Arab League  – Oman, Somalia and Sudan – sent representatives at all. Israel's prime minister, Menachem Begin , considered Sadat

11543-536: Was a desperate option." Almost a full year before the war, in a meeting on 24 October 1972, with his Supreme Council of the Armed Forces , Sadat declared his intention to go to war with Israel even without proper Soviet support. In February 1973, Sadat made a final peace overture that would have included Israeli withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula that he relayed to Kissinger via his adviser Mohammad Hafez Ismail , which Kissinger made known to Meir. Meir rejected

11662-571: Was a recurring character on Saturday Night Live , played by Garrett Morris , who bore a resemblance to Sadat. Yom Kippur War Egyptian front International front The Yom Kippur War , also known as the Ramadan War , the October War , the 1973 Arab–Israeli War , or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War , was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria . Most of

11781-439: Was a senior member of the Free Officers who overthrew King Farouk I in the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 , and a close confidant of President Gamal Abdel Nasser , under whom he served as vice president twice and whom he succeeded as president in 1970. In 1978, Sadat and Menachem Begin , Prime Minister of Israel, signed a peace treaty in cooperation with United States President Jimmy Carter , for which they were recognized with

11900-510: Was already determined to go to war. Only an American guarantee that the United States would fulfill the entire Arab program in a brief time could have dissuaded Sadat. Sadat declared that Egypt was prepared to "sacrifice a million Egyptian soldiers" to recover its lost territory. From the end of 1972, Egypt began a concentrated effort to build up its forces, receiving MiG-21 jet fighters, SA-2 , SA-3 , SA-6 and SA-7 antiaircraft missiles, T-55 and T-62 tanks, RPG-7 antitank weapons, and

12019-725: Was assassinated during the annual victory parade held in Cairo to celebrate Egypt's crossing of the Suez Canal . Islambouli emptied his assault rifle into Sadat's body while in the front of the grandstand, mortally wounding the President. In addition to Sadat, eleven others were killed, including the Cuban ambassador, an Omani general, a Coptic Orthodox bishop and Samir Helmy, the head of Egypt's Central Auditing Agency (CAA). Twenty-eight were wounded, including Vice President Hosni Mubarak , Irish Defence Minister James Tully , and four US military liaison officers. The assassination squad

12138-493: Was brought by Egypt's artists' and film unions against Columbia Pictures and the film's directors, producers and scriptwriters before a court in Cairo, but was dismissed, since the alleged slanders, having taken place outside the country, fell outside the Egyptian courts' jurisdiction. The film was critically acclaimed in North America, but was unpopular among Egyptians and in the Egyptian press. Western authors attributed

12257-403: Was covered by the international press and Zawahiri's knowledge of English made him the de facto spokesman for the defendants. Zawahiri was released from prison in 1984. Abboud al-Zomor and Tareq al-Zomor, two Islamic Jihad leaders imprisoned in connection with the assassination, were released on 11 March 2011. Despite these facts, the nephew of the late president, Talaat Sadat , claimed that

12376-727: Was discovered by the British authorities he was arrested and imprisoned for much of the war. By the end of the conflict, he had already met with the secret society that decided to assassinate Amin Osman , Minister of Finance in the Wafd Party government, and the head of the Egyptian-British Friendship Society, due to his strong sympathies towards the British. Osman was assassinated in January 1946. Following

12495-447: Was extremely unpopular in most of the Arab World and the wider Muslim World. His predecessor Nasser had made Egypt an icon of Arab nationalism, an ideology that appeared to be sidelined by an Egyptian orientation following the 1973 war (see National identity of Egyptians ). The neighboring Arab countries believed that in signing the accords, Sadat had put Egypt's interests ahead of Arab unity, betraying Nasser's pan-Arabism , and destroyed

12614-402: Was inflicted on a Hawk battery at Ophir. The aerial assault was coupled with a barrage from more than 2,000 artillery pieces for a period of 53 minutes against the Bar Lev Line and rear area command posts and concentration bases. Author Andrew McGregor claimed that the success of the first strike negated the need for a second planned strike. Egypt acknowledged the loss of five aircraft during

12733-527: Was known as the "Hero of the Crossing". Israel recognized Egypt as a formidable foe, and Egypt's renewed political significance eventually led to regaining and reopening the Suez Canal through the peace process. His new peace policy led to the conclusion of two agreements on disengagement of forces with the Israeli government. The first of these agreements was signed on 18 January 1974, and the second on 4 September 1975. One major aspect of Sadat's peace policy

12852-649: Was later destroyed on August 14, 2013, during what became known as the August 2013 Rabaa massacre , when security forces violently moved in and evacuated the area, resulting in at least 638 deaths. The mosque was later rebuilt under the direction of the Egyptian Armed Forces . The Association of the Rabia al-Adawiya Mosque established in 1993 is an association working in the field of philanthropy and development in Cairo. The Assembly Board of Directors works with

12971-598: Was launched on 15 October. IDF forces spearheaded by Ariel Sharon's division broke through the Tasa corridor and crossed the Suez Canal to the north of the Great Bitter Lake . After intense fighting, the IDF progressed towards Cairo and advanced southwards on the east bank of the Great Bitter Lake and in the southern extent of the canal right up to Port Suez . Israeli progress towards Cairo was brought to

13090-458: Was led by Lieutenant Khalid Islambouli after a fatwā approving the assassination had been obtained from Omar Abdel-Rahman . Islambouli was tried, found guilty, sentenced to death, and executed by firing squad in April 1982. Sadat was succeeded by his vice president Hosni Mubarak, whose hand was injured during the attack. Sadat's funeral was attended by a record number of dignitaries from around

13209-550: Was made either directly or indirectly by Israel. The Americans, who were briefed of the Cabinet's decision by Eban, were not asked to convey it to Cairo and Damascus as official peace proposals, nor were they given indications that Israel expected a reply. Eban rejected the prospect of a mediated peace, insisting of the need for direct negotiations with the Arab governments. The Arab position, as it emerged in September 1967 at

13328-407: Was not an Arab option, even after Hussein's warning. Zamir would later remark that "We simply didn't feel them capable [of war]." On the day before the war, General Ariel Sharon was shown aerial photographs and other intelligence by Yehoshua Saguy , his divisional intelligence officer. Sharon noticed that the concentration of Egyptian forces along the canal was far beyond anything observed during

13447-602: Was rejected by the country's Muslim Brotherhood and the left, which felt Sadat had abandoned efforts to ensure a State of Palestine . With the exception of Sudan, the Arab world and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) strongly opposed Sadat's efforts to make a separate peace with Israel without prior consultations with the Arab states. His refusal to reconcile with them over the Palestinian issue resulted in Egypt being suspended from

13566-410: Was sometimes hand-to-hand. The Egyptians were forced to clear the town building by building. By evening, most of the town was in Egyptian hands. El-Qantarah was completely cleared by the next morning. Meanwhile, the Egyptian commandos airdropped on 6 October began encountering Israeli reserves the following morning. Both sides suffered heavy losses, but the commandos were at times successful in delaying

13685-680: Was the day chosen for the September–October option. Conditions for a crossing were good, it was a fast day in Israel, and the moon on that day, 10 Ramadan, shone from sunset until midnight." The war coincided that year with the Muslim month of Ramadan , when many Muslim soldiers fast . On the other hand, the fact that the attack was launched on Yom Kippur may have helped Israel to more easily marshal reserves from their homes and synagogues because roads and communication lines were largely open, easing

13804-412: Was the officer in charge in the prison. He believed in his heart of Sadat's heroism and that he played a patriotic role towards his country and that he was convicted and imprisoned because of his love for his country. Zulfikar brought with him food, newspapers and cigarettes and helped his family a lot in obtaining visitor permits to check on him. Anwar Sadat was active in many political movements, including

13923-485: Was this warning in particular, combined with the large number of other warnings, that finally goaded the Israeli High Command into action. Just hours before the attack began, orders went out for a partial call-up of the Israeli reserves . Prime Minister Golda Meir, Minister of Defense Moshe Dayan and Chief of General Staff David Elazar met at 8:05 am on the morning of Yom Kippur, six hours before

14042-535: Was to gain some religious support for his efforts. Already during his visit to the US in October–November 1975, he invited Evangelical pastor Billy Graham for an official visit, which was held a few days after Sadat's visit. In addition to cultivating relations with Evangelical Christians in the US, he also built some cooperation with the Vatican. On 8 April 1976, he visited the Vatican for the first time, and got

14161-451: Was to prove that Soviet arms could not dictate the outcome of the fighting, by supplying Israel. With an airlift in full swing, Washington was prepared to wait until Israeli success on the battlefield might persuade the Arabs and the Soviets to bring the fighting to an end. The Israelis decided to counterattack once Egyptian armor attempted to expand the bridgehead beyond the protective SAM umbrella. The riposte, codenamed Operation Gazelle ,

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