Past as Prologue: Sadat's War
Abstract
The Six Day War of 5-10 June 1967 resulted in a decisive military victory by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) over the forces of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. It was a short engagement, based on maneuver warfare, and was concluded with a minimum number of casualties for the Israelis. This military superiority catapulted Israel into the position of regional superpower in the Middle East. What Israel did not know at the time was that its occupation and control of the Sinai Peninsula, Golan Heights, Gaza Strip, West Bank, and east Jerusalem would become the object of future negotiations and a simmering, continuing war that has not abated to this day. Anwar al-Sadat emerged as Egyptian President Gamal Abd al-Nasser's successor following Nasser's death on 28 September 1970 and opened the way for a new direction in the Arab-Israeli conflict. When Sadat took office, Egypt was wracked by four major issues: the economy of Egypt was deeply troubled; Egyptian dependence on the Soviet Union was too entrenched and unreliable; Arab states, in particular Jordan and Syria, were uneasy about Egypt's domineering ways and arrogance; finally, Egyptians were still devastated by the outcome of the Six Day War. The Three-Year Border War, the period between the 1967 and 1973 wars, became incrementally the catalyst for Egyptian movement towards a limited war. As the border war progressed, there was no movement on the diplomatic front. If Sadat wanted to reclaim Sinai, negotiations would have to move forward. The stasis of the border war did not provide incentive for any of the parties to the conflict or their supporters to re-engage diplomatically. Sadat felt that only a war could force diplomatic movement.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA436955
Entities
People
- Martin Pankove
- Renata Louie
Organizations
- National War College