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The Yom Kippur War of 1973, in which Israel crushed the Egyptian forces in a flash. Photo/Times of Israel
JAKARTA – The Yom Kipur War, also known as the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, became the most historic battle in both Egypt and the Middle East Israel.
The war that occurred on October 6, 1973 was initiated by Egypt and Syria which attacked Israel in order to seize territory previously taken by the Zionist stronghold.
Unfortunately the Egyptian and Syrian efforts had to end in failure after the Israeli military managed to fight back and was able to achieve victory in an instant.
5 Yom Kippur War Facts
Here are some interesting facts about the Yom Kippur War. Starting from the causes of the war to the impact of the battle on both sides.
1. Causes of the Yom Kippur War
The war began when Anwar Sadat, who became President of Egypt from 1969-1970, made an offer for a peace treaty and asked Israel to return the territories it had captured in the previous war.
Israel rejecting the agreement made Anwar Sadat choose the path to fight it in 1970.
2. The War Happened on the Holy Day of Yom Kippur and the Month of Ramadan
Reporting from Britannica, the war that occurred on October 6 coincided with a Jewish holy day; Yom Kippur. That day also coincided with the holy month of Ramadan.
At a time when the Israeli military was weakened because most of them were celebrating the holy day of Yom Kippur, Egypt and Syria began to attack and made the Israeli troops fall back.
The Egyptian troops managed to cross the Suez Canal, while the Syrian troops were able to break into the Golan Heights.
3. There was American and Soviet interference
The intensity of the Egyptian and Syrian attacks was unlike the situation in the previous war in 1967. Their troops were quickly able to use up Israel’s ammunition reserves.
This was caused by the Soviet Union supplying weapons to Egypt. Seeing this condition, the Prime Minister of Israel at that time, Golda Meir, asked for the help of the United States (US).
