The Yom Kippur War, October 1973
The Yom Kippur War was an armed conflict fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria. The majority of combat between the two sides took place in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights—both of which were occupied by Israel in 1967—with some fighting in African Egypt and northern Israel.
The war began on 6 October 1973, when the Arab coalition jointly launched a surprise attack against Israel on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, which had occurred during the 10th of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan in that year.
By 24 October, the Israelis had improved their positions considerably and completed their encirclement of the Egyptian Third Army and Suez City. This development led to dangerously heightened tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union (allied with Israel and with the Arab states, respectively). Eventually the bilateral ceasefire was imposed on 25 October to officially end the war.
The 1978 Camp David Accords that followed the war saw Israel return the entire Sinai Peninsula to Egypt and the subsequent 1979 Egyptian–Israeli peace treaty, which marked the first instance of an Arab country recognizing Israel as a legitimate state. Following the achievement of peace with Israel, Egypt continued its drift away from the Soviet Union and eventually left the Soviet sphere of influence entirely.
The Yom Kippur War, October 1973
The Yom Kippur War was an armed conflict fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria. The majority of combat between the two sides took place in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights—both of which were occupied by Israel in 1967—with some fighting in African Egypt and northern Israel.
The war began on 6 October 1973, when the Arab coalition jointly launched a surprise attack against Israel on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, which had occurred during the 10th of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan in that year.
By 24 October, the Israelis had improved their positions considerably and completed their encirclement of the Egyptian Third Army and Suez City. This development led to dangerously heightened tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union (allied with Israel and with the Arab states, respectively). Eventually the bilateral ceasefire was imposed on 25 October to officially end the war.
The 1978 Camp David Accords that followed the war saw Israel return the entire Sinai Peninsula to Egypt and the subsequent 1979 Egyptian–Israeli peace treaty, which marked the first instance of an Arab country recognizing Israel as a legitimate state. Following the achievement of peace with Israel, Egypt continued its drift away from the Soviet Union and eventually left the Soviet sphere of influence entirely.