At
2pm of October 6, 1973, while Israel observed Yom Kippur, Egyptian guns
bombarded Israeli forts along the Suez Canal, while the Syrians attacked Israeli
positions within the Golan Heights. The surprise attacks signaled the start of
the Arab-Israeli War known as the Yom Kippur War or Ramadan War in Arab states. But what led the two Arab
countries to attack Israel? What drove them into starting another
conflict in a highly volatile region?
Israel Before the War
Israel
proved itself as a formidable military force to be reckoned with. A country
founded from decades of Jewish aspiration for a homeland came materialized in
a region dominated by Arabs. Upon its establishment, it was baptized
immediately with fire and blood as its neighboring Arab states, in support of
their Palestinian brothers, declared war upon the new State of Israel. But the Israeli State held its ground, flexed its muscles against overwhelming odds and proved it time and again.
After
the war upon their independence, Israelis continued to show their prowess in the 1956 Suez
Crisis and finally, in 1968 Six Day War. By
the Six Day War’s end, Israel expanded its size 4 times, capturing Gaza, the
Sinai Peninsula, Golan Heights, West Bank, and Jerusalem. Israel’s expansion
and their humiliation of their vastly numerically superior opponents – Egypt,
Syria, Jordan, along with contingents from other Arab League countries –
created a myth of invincibility.
The United Nations stepped in to secure a compromise between Israelis and Arabs by passing the Resolution 242. But the Resolution brought nothing but confusion. It failed to achieve peace nor resolve any territorial issues. Israel’s definition of the Resolution’s stand on territory meant they had the right to keep their gains from the Six Day War, while the Arabs interpreted it as a total withdrawal of Israeli forces from all the captured territories. Thus, differences prevailed that resulted to another conflict.
The United Nations stepped in to secure a compromise between Israelis and Arabs by passing the Resolution 242. But the Resolution brought nothing but confusion. It failed to achieve peace nor resolve any territorial issues. Israel’s definition of the Resolution’s stand on territory meant they had the right to keep their gains from the Six Day War, while the Arabs interpreted it as a total withdrawal of Israeli forces from all the captured territories. Thus, differences prevailed that resulted to another conflict.
Egypt’s
Causes
Anwar Sadat |
Egypt
before the 1973 War stood as the most prominent Arab country fighting Israel
for the rights of the Palestinians. However, the Six Day War diminished Egypt's and its leader Gemal Abdel Nasser’s prestige when the Egyptian Air Force and
the Army suffered from a devastating pre-emptive strike by Israel. Egypt looked
for diplomatic and military means to retake the Sinai Peninsula from Israel and
to avenge their damaged pride and confidence.
The
picture of Israeli flag waving up high in the other side of the Suez Canal
determined the Egyptians to retake the Sinai Peninsula one way or the other.
The Arab League Summit in Khartoum in the aftermath of the Six Day War
concluded with a stand known as the “3 Noes” – No peace with Israel, No
negotiations with Israel, No recognition of Israel. Then by the later months of
1967, the UN Security Council issued Resolution 242 which the Egyptians hoped
would lead to the return of the loss territory. But the Israelis interpreted
the Resolution differently and stood firm in holding their newly captured territories.
Nasser
then approved the military to commence small raids and skirmishes with the
Israel to harass them to withdraw, while the main bulk of the military rebuild
and retrained itself with Soviet advisers and weapons. The conflict that became
known as the War of Attrition waged until 1970.
Egypt supported terrorist activities of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and launched more daring attacks on Israel, starting in 1969. They, however, also suffered from counter-attacks and raids by Israel, prompting Nasser to allow Soviet pilots to join the fray. Nasser’s involvement of the Soviets then brought the United States to broker a ceasefire that took effect in August 1970. The conflict ended inconclusively, and about a month later, Nasser passed away.
Egypt supported terrorist activities of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and launched more daring attacks on Israel, starting in 1969. They, however, also suffered from counter-attacks and raids by Israel, prompting Nasser to allow Soviet pilots to join the fray. Nasser’s involvement of the Soviets then brought the United States to broker a ceasefire that took effect in August 1970. The conflict ended inconclusively, and about a month later, Nasser passed away.
Nasser’s
successor, Anwar Sadat ascended as President. Sadat needed to silence his
detractors and cement his rule. He viewed a victory or the retaking of the
Sinai Peninsula as a way to achieve this goal. He continued to rebuild the
Egyptian military and sought the support of the Soviet. The Soviets, however,
disappointed Sadat by rejecting to support a war. Sadat then expelled thousands
of Soviet advisers as a revenge. Nevertheless, he kept the Soviets as Egypt's supplier of weapons. For the next three years, Sadat threatened Israel annually
with war. But as each year passed by, Israel only yawned at Sadat’s blank
threats.
Sadat’s
blank threats, however, might be part of his deception to make Israel
complacent enough to be blind over his army’s preparations. Speculations today
suggested Sadat planted a double agent – known as “the Source” - in the
Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad’s spy ring to mislead the enemy.
Sadat then looked for allies that would join him in the war, and he did not need to look
for long and far. Syria shared Sadat's aspiration.
Syria’s Causes
Hafez Al-Assad |
Syria
had the same reason as Egypt had in starting the 1973 war. They too suffered
humiliation and loss of territory in the hands of the Israelis. In 1970, a new
leader came to power, determined to cement his rule that indeed lasted for
decades.
At
the time of the Six Day War, Syria also stood as a major player in the Arab
struggle against Israel. They formed a short-lived union with Egypt. When
Israel launched their devastating pre-emptive strike, their air force and army
stood in ruins. Furthermore, the mountainous area known as the Golan Heights
fell to the Israelis and served as a buffer zone between the Arab and the
Zionist state. The responsibility of such defeat fell into the shoulders of
then Syrian Defense Minister Hafez Al-Assad.
By
1969, a group of military officers held the reins of power over Syria. Hafez
Al-Assad stood as the prominent leader. They faced a tough challenge in the
international stage when in 1970, they decided to intervene and fight in support
of the Palestinians against King Hussein of Jordan. The intervention, however,
turned to a disaster when a combined strike from Jordan and Israel, with the
support of the United States, pushed back Syrian and Palestinian forces out of
Northern Jordan. Assad used the debacle as an excuse to destroy his detractors
and emerge as Syria’s sole President and strongman. Nevertheless, like Sadat in
Egypt, he too wanted to cement his rule by conquest and wash away the
humiliation and blame of him for the loss of Golan Heights.
A Union of Vengeance
Syria’s
Hafez al-Assad and Egypt’s Anwar Sadat planned their move against Israel in
secret. They planned for a limited war that called for both sides to retake
their lands and hold them until the United States, the Soviet Union, and the
United Nations intervene for a ceasefire. In that case, if they held their
lands, they would have the upper hand in negotiations to make Israel drop their
occupation and claims in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights.
The
two countries plotted carefully that most of their own military only knew the
plan at the same day that the Yom Kippur War began.
Golda Meir |
Nevertheless,
words of the plot reached Israel. But Sadat’s deception through his rhetoric
led Israel to disregard the real threat of war. The Source, the speculated
double agent of Sadat, did warned Israel of an impending attack on October 6 at
6pm and Israel’s leaders, Prime Minister Golda Meir and legendary Defense
Minister Moshe Dayan, took it seriously. But the information they received was
wrong, an attack did take place on October 6 but it happened earlier than
expected – at 2 pm. And so, another conflict inflamed the Middle East once
more.
The War’s
Implications
The
actions of Egypt and Syria ignited another conflict in the tinderbox region of Middle
East. Israel fought for its survival, while the Arab League sent aids to their
Egyptian and Syrian allies. The superpowers intervened. The United States
actions led to an international economic crisis that made the war a global
issue. In the end, the Soviets and the Americans, along with the United
Nations, restored peace after difficult and tough talks.
Israel’s
myth of invincibility disappeared with the surprise attacks of Syria and Egypt.
The Israel Defense Force (IDF) retaliated in disarray. Its armor divisions
blown up by Egyptian Soviet-supplied anti-tank weapons and its air force crush
by an umbrella of surface to air missiles (SAMs). Casualties piled up while the
bulk of IDF – the reservist- mobilized as fast as they can to defend their
country. Although the war started terribly, they launched a counter attack that
turned the tides against the Egyptians and Syrians when they threatened to
capture the capital cities of Cairo and Damascus.
Meanwhile,
the Arab League joined the fray. Its members sent contingents of tanks, planes,
and troops to support the Egyptians and the Syrians. Jordanian, Moroccans, and
Iraqis sent troops to Syria to fight back the Israelis. Sudanese joined the
Egyptians to defend Cairo.
The
United States on the other hand supported Israel’s fight by sending equipment
and ammunition. The early fighting exhausted Israel's supplies and Prime
Minister Golda Meir pleaded American President Richard Nixon to help them replenish.
Meir convinced Nixon and American cargo planes flew in the badly needed
supplies that were immediately rushed to the front lines.
The
actions of the United States, however, prompted the Arab League to play their
oil card. To chastise the United States for its support of Israel and its
allies, they imposed an embargo on oil exports. The embargo
immediately resulted to skyrocketing prices and gas lines in stations. The oil
shock drag many economies down, not just the American economy, but the rest of the
world. The Arab League flaunted their oils’ power and influence.
The
Soviets, in the meantime, feared Israel attacking the capitals of its allies
Egypt and Syria and prepared to intervene militarily. The United States urged
the Soviet Union to back down and agreed to work together to create a settlement
in the conflict in the Middle East. The United Nations and the superpowers then
urged all parties to accept a ceasefire. But Israel broke the first to get the
upper hand. And only agreed to a cease on the October 26, 1973, ending the Yom
Kippur War.
By the end of the war, Israel had the upper hand of Egypt. But in the end, Sadat won strategically. Israel suffered humiliations with its might in tatters and Golda Meir and Moshe Dayan resigning as a result. Assad, meanwhile, failed to recapture the Golan Heights, but his administration continued until his death in 2000. Sadat, because of the war, got Israel to negotiate the return of the Sinai Peninsula culminating in the signing of the Camp David Accord in 1979. Sadat brandished the war as his personal victory, but his actions afterwards caused dissatisfaction that led to his assassination on October 6, 1981, the eighth anniversary of the conflict.
Bibliography:
Al Jazeera English. "Featured Documentary - The War in October: The Crossing." Published October 4, 2013. Youtube Video, 47:41. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5Iu1QM2oeE
Holt, Peter et. al. "Egypt." Britannica. Accessed on October 31, 2016. URL: https://www.britannica.com/place/Egypt/World-War-II-and-its-aftermath#toc22400
Hourani, Albet et. al. "Syria." Britannica. Accessed on October 31, 2016. URL: https://www.britannica.com/place/Syria/The-union-with-Egypt-1958-61#toc29927
"The Yom Kippur War." Jewish Virtual Library. Accessed on October 31, 2016. URL: http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/1973toc.html
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