EGYPT STRIKES BACK

To avenge its humiliation in 1967 the Egyptian military assaulted the Israeli-occupied Sinai Peninsula during the Yom Kippur holiday

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Having assumed office in 1970 the new Egyptian strongman President Anwar Sadat wanted to restore his country's stature in the region. When his overtures for a peace treaty with Israel were rebuffed he settled on the catchphrase "No War, No Peace" to encapsulate his own policy toward Jerusalem. Still confident about Egypt's role in the Arab world he made plans for assembling a pan-Arab coalition and tried to build a separate alliance with the United States. In 1972 he went as far as sending thousands of Soviet advisors and engineers home knowing full well their work was essential to the Egyptian armed forces and other endeavours, such as the prestigious Aswan High Dam.

In 1972, however, the mood in Cairo was tense. The War of Attrition in the Sinai Peninsula, where Israeli and Egyptian forces skirmished regularly, had resulted in no gains after several years. With the Soviets back in the fold preparations were made for a settling of accounts with Israel. To prepare for the war Egypt fielded the latest weapons delivered to its armed forces. This time, a combination of hubris and flawed decision-making by Israel's defence ministry blinded its government to the looming threat. The spirit of 1967 and the heroic generals who had achieved its spectacular victories was alive and well, for better or worse.