Cover for No Agenda Show 1455: Systemic Rivals
May 29th, 2022 • 3h 15m

1455: Systemic Rivals

Shownotes

Every new episode of No Agenda is accompanied by a comprehensive list of shownotes curated by Adam while preparing for the show. Clips played by the hosts during the show can also be found here.

Uvalde
LEO-Mike on Uvalde - training
Australian view on US guns
US gun culture is so easy to deconstruct though.
It's just big companies selling crappy products to consumers. They are using the exact same playbook as big-pharma - playing on people's fears and insecurities.
And all the sheeples buy these things, because they think it makes them into something or because all their friends have got one.
From the outside it's obvious the whole thing is total BS.
It's exactly like if you go to China still everyone chain smokes still. Even young people tell you it's good for your circulation and sex drive. They'll also tell it is part of the Chinese national identity to smoke. They don't realise the rest of the world moved on, and they are consumers spending money to buy products that kill them.
Antony.
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From the "outside" you don't understand out culture and history.
If the right to bear arms was in an Australian constitution, you would understand.
But you don't and that's why so many participated in the buy-back. If anything, the current administration is trying to emulate Australia and NZ
Uvalde body armor
Great Reset
Michel UK no one wants to work - Blue Jeans and 3 years of unemployment / France now full UBI
Senator Warren Introduced Price Gouging Prevention Act of 2022
Two federal price gouging bills were recently introduced in Congress. Senator Elizabeth Warren led the introduction of the Price Gouging Prevention Act of 2022. The bill prohibits “unconscionably excessive price[s]” at any point in a supply chain or distribution network during an “exceptional market shock” triggered by a range of events – including public health emergencies. The law would apply to any good or service offered in commerce, and would authorize the Federal Trade Commission and State Attorneys General to enforce the prohibition. Additionally, during “exceptional market shocks,” the law would require public companies to disclose and explain changes in pricing and gross margins in quarterly SEC filings—raising the specter of SEC enforcement with respect to those disclosures.
Under Senator Warren’s bill, a defendant would presumptively violate the act if, during an “exceptional market shock,” it is shown that they (1) either have “unfair leverage” or are using circumstances related to the market shock to increase prices; and (2) sell or offer to sell a good or service at an excessive price compared to the average price during the 120-days prior to the market shock. Unfair leverage is defined as: (1) earning $1 billion in revenue in the last year; (2) discriminating between otherwise equal trading partners; (3) being a critical trading partner; or (4) having a characteristic described in any rule issued by the FTC further defining unfair leverage. Businesses earning less than $100 million in gross U.S. revenue during the preceding year can raise an affirmative defense by showing by a preponderance of evidence the increase in price is directly attributable to additional costs outside of the business’s control. Larger business can rebut the presumption of a violation only if they demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence the price increase is directly attributable to additional costs outside of the business’s control.
Hydrogen Economy BOTG
Please keep my name private.
Re: a Hydrogen Economy.
I’ve been hired to study this. I wrote the paper (attached).
The Readers Digest is this:
There is nothing better than 100LL and Jet-A1. That’s never going to change.
Hydrogen has a MAJOR infrastructure problem, and will not be installed into existing pipelines.
NIMBY – “Not In My Back-Yard”
If hydrogen were to develop, Steam Methane Reforming will be how it will develop. It’s proven technology and is used every day to make fertilizer and etc, but it creates a LOT of CO2.
If “clean” hydrogen were to develop, it would be via the “green hydrogen” model using electrolysis. (a waste of time). It requires a ridiculous quantity of nearly-perfectly-distilled water. We cannot even make clean drinking water in California, and the energy required would be higher than the energy we can get from the H2 itself. (pointless).
Major Supermarkets to ban paying with Cash or Card and only accept payments via Digital ID & Facial Recognition Technology – The Expose
Whole Foods Amazon Palm scanner
Elon
Ukraine Russia
Hydrogen Economy BOTG
Please keep my name private.
Re: a Hydrogen Economy.
I’ve been hired to study this. I wrote the paper (attached).
The Readers Digest is this:
There is nothing better than 100LL and Jet-A1. That’s never going to change.
Hydrogen has a MAJOR infrastructure problem, and will not be installed into existing pipelines.
NIMBY – “Not In My Back-Yard”
If hydrogen were to develop, Steam Methane Reforming will be how it will develop. It’s proven technology and is used every day to make fertilizer and etc, but it creates a LOT of CO2.
If “clean” hydrogen were to develop, it would be via the “green hydrogen” model using electrolysis. (a waste of time). It requires a ridiculous quantity of nearly-perfectly-distilled water. We cannot even make clean drinking water in California, and the energy required would be higher than the energy we can get from the H2 itself. (pointless).
BLM LGBBTQQIAAPK+ Noodle Boy
Jussie Smollett attempts career comeback with LGBT film on BET+ streaming service | Fox News
Big Pharma
The Metaverse
Women are being sexually assaulted in the Metaverse
SumOfUs
SumOfUs also partners with a number of foundations and NGO groups, including Tides Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Packard Foundation, Sunrise Project, Park Foundation, Luminate, Reset, Mighty Earth, Hull Family Foundation, One Project, and Tara Foundation.
Donation verbiage
SumOfUs exists to challenge corporate power and fight for people over profits -- so we can't take a dime in corporate or government money.
The vast majority of our funding comes from thousands of members across the globe.
Can you chip in and help make sure we can move fast to win the campaigns that matter to all of us? You can make a secure donation on this page.
Annual Report ESG
A key aspect to achieving success will be educating and activating
investment firms and advisors to demand Facebook shift its toxic business
model. To advance this goal, we have produced a risk report for investors to
examine the numerous concerns that Facebook’s management and practices
raise for their shareholders, particularly for Environmental, Social, and
Governance (ESG) funds.
Lloyd's of London is accelerating the climate crisis by insuring destructive
fossil fuel projects around the globe.
Abba-Tars
To create the spectacle, the band performed in motion capture suits for five weeks, with 160 cameras scanning their body movements and facial expressions.
Those became reference points for hundreds of animators and visual effects artists to create avatars of the band in their heyday.
Affectionately known as "Abba-tars", the characters are not 3D holograms - as everyone involved in the production is at pains to point out.
"I don't think any hologram shows have been successful,"producer Baillie Walsh told Dazed magazine last year. "After five minutes, I don't think they're that interesting."
Instead, the characters appear on a massive, 65million pixel screen, with lights and other effects blurring the boundaries between the digital elements and the "real world" in the arena.
Amazingly, they've pulled it off. The images might be 2D, but impressive lighting effects and back projections provide a crucial depth of field - creating the illusion that the band are really in the room with you.
I was cynical about the technology ahead of the show, but the effect is mystifyingly realistic. It needs to be seen to be believed.
As the concert begins, the quartet "emerge" from under the stage on risers, before launching into the spooky electric psychodrama of The Visitors - the title track of their penultimate album, from 1981.
A photo-realistic Agnetha and Frida resemble peacocks in red and blue winged catsuits, twirling around the stage while Benny and Bjorn vamp on the piano and guitar.
Food Intelligence
Mandates & Boosters
Bugs
OTG
Legal - Identity & Privacy - Apple
Additional verification information you submit when adding your ID, such as your photo and recorded facial and head movements, will be used by Apple for fraud prevention for this feature and retained only until your state issuing authority authorizes or declines adding your driver’s license or state ID to Wallet.
Information about your Apple account, device use patterns and settings, and information about your photo and facial and head movements, will be shared with Apple for fraud prevention. Apple will share fraud indicators based on this information with your state issuing authority for fraud prevention. Your state issuing authority, and not Apple, will decide whether to authorize adding your driver’s license or state ID to Wallet. In some cases, your state issuing authority may ask for more information or an in-person visit.
STORIES
Legal - Identity & Privacy - Apple
Sun, 29 May 2022 17:02
Apple and your state issuing authority do not know when or to whom you present your driver's license or state ID.Apple does not see or store images of your ID. Apple uses only limited information from your driver's license or state ID to prevent fraud at setup and to display your driver's license or state ID in Wallet.When presenting your ID, your device will show you the specific information requested and will not present that information without your confirmation.When adding your driver's license or state ID, your identity information and information about your Apple ID, and device use patterns and settings will be used by Apple and your state issuing authority to verify your identity and prevent fraud.Additional verification information you submit when adding your ID, such as your photo and recorded facial and head movements, will be used by Apple for fraud prevention for this feature and retained only until your state issuing authority authorizes or declines adding your driver's license or state ID to Wallet.Identity cards in Wallet provide an easy, fast, and more secure way for people to present their driver's license or state ID.
Adding Your Identity Card
To add an identity card, you will be asked to take a picture of the front and back of your driver's license or state ID. Your device will evaluate the quality and type of the images to help ensure that the images you provide will be accepted by your state issuing authority. Your identity card images are encrypted on device and sent to your state issuing authority, which may share them with their third-party identity verification service provider; Apple does not see or store images of your identity card. Your device will read the barcode from your identity card and share name, address, and date of birth with Apple for identity verification and fraud prevention. Apple may continue to store information about the verification outcome, such as whether the identity information was successfully verified, to help support the feature and prevent fraud on underlying Apple platforms, but will not store the underlying identity information (such as the date of birth read from your barcode).
To help ensure that the person adding the identity card to Wallet is the same person to whom the identity card belongs, you will be asked to take a photo of yourself. As with the images of the front and back of your ID, your device will evaluate the quality of your photo you are providing in order to help ensure that the photo you provide will be accepted by your state issuing authority. Your photo will be encrypted on device and sent to your state issuing authority to be compared against their image on file for the ID. Your state issuing authority will process this photo in accordance with their privacy policies, which may allow them to use facial recognition technology. Apple will not store your photo. To help prevent fraud, before your photo is submitted to your state issuing authority, you will be asked to conduct a series of facial and head movements. These movements are evaluated by your device and Apple to help ensure that the photo being submitted is of a live person and that the same live person is submitting their photo as a part of adding their driver's license or state ID to Wallet. Information about the movements, but not the recording or video of movements themselves, is stored in a way that is associated with you while you are in the process of adding your ID.
Information about your Apple account, device use patterns and settings, and information about your photo and facial and head movements, will be shared with Apple for fraud prevention. Apple will share fraud indicators based on this information with your state issuing authority for fraud prevention. Your state issuing authority, and not Apple, will decide whether to authorize adding your driver's license or state ID to Wallet. In some cases, your state issuing authority may ask for more information or an in-person visit. Apple may receive information about the fact that your state issuing authority required additional verification and the type of verification (such as an in-person visit); Apple retains this information in a manner that is linked to you only while the state issuing authority is in the process of making a decision on whether to authorize adding your ID to Wallet for managing and improving the feature. In some cases, your state issuing authority may provide you with a verification code following their review of additional information. This verification code is encrypted on device and sent to the state issuing authority; Apple does not see or store the verification code. Your state issuing authority may provide Apple with information on the status of its authorization (for example, under review, accepted) so that Apple may send updates to your device and help manage your driver's license or state ID in Wallet.
Once your state issuing authority authorizes adding your driver's license or state ID to Wallet, the information reflected on your driver's license or state ID is stored in an encrypted format that can be decrypted only using the Secure Enclave on your device. You can view this information at any time by going to Wallet, viewing the back of your identity card, tapping ''Driver's License Info'' or ''State ID Info'' and authenticating to view details. Apple cannot see this information. To learn more about the Secure Enclave, visit support.apple.com/guide/security/secure-enclave-sec59b0b31ff/web.
To help protect your ID card from unauthorized access or presentment, you will be asked to tie your ID card to a Face ID appearance or a biometric identifier used for Touch ID. Presenting your ID or information from your ID will require authentication with the specific method and biometric identifier you tied to your ID during set up. Alternative authentication options may be available depending on your device settings. Your device, and not Apple, stores your authentication method. If you authenticated with Touch ID, you can change your tied authentication at any time by going to Wallet, viewing the back of your identity card, and tapping Replace Fingerprint. If you authenticated with Face ID and would like to change your authentication, you must delete your identity card and add it again to Wallet with the new authentication.
Presenting Your Identity Card
To present your identity card in person, hold your iPhone or Apple Watch near the identity reader to receive information about who is requesting your identity and the specific information from your identity card being requested. Upon authorization, your device will establish a direct, end-to-end encrypted channel with the identity reader and transmit the authorized information.
You can view past presentments, including when, where, and to whom you presented your identity card, and the specific information presented, by tapping on your identity card in Wallet. This information is generated by your device; neither Apple nor your state issuing authority know or keep a record of when, where, or to whom you present your identity card.
Managing Your Identity Card
You can manage your identity card at any time by tapping on your state ID or driver's license in Wallet. To help protect your privacy and keep your identity card information secure, you will be asked to authenticate before you can view your identity details. To update or change your identity card information, you must contact your state issuing authority. To help manage your driver's license or state ID in Wallet, your state issuing authority will periodically tell Apple whether your driver's license or state ID is still valid. Apple will also receive information about any identity card updates from your state issuing authority, such as whether your address was updated or your identity card status was changed (for example, from active to inactive). Apple will not receive details about the update, such as your actual updated address. Apple will retain information about your identity card updates, such as whether your identity card status changed, while you keep an identity card in Wallet; this information will be used only for fraud prevention and security purposes.
You can delete your identity card from Wallet at any time by going to the back of your identity card in Wallet and tapping ''Remove This Driver's License'' or ''Remove This State ID.'' Removing your identity card will delete all presentment history from your device.
Improving Identity Cards
Apple will not use information displayed on your identity card itself, such as your name or date of birth, to improve drivers' licenses or state IDs in Wallet. Identity card data that is not linked to you may be retained to improve the feature and other Apple products and services. For example, Apple may retain anonymous and aggregate information about where users have difficulty when adding an identity card to Wallet in order to help improve the experience. Apple may also anonymize information it collects from you or receives from your state issuing authority in connection with this feature in order to improve identity cards in Wallet. For example, Apple will receive information about the quality of images submitted when adding your ID card to Wallet and whether the images were accepted by the state issuing authority. Apple may, for example, anonymize and use this information to help improve your device's evaluation of the images to be submitted or to help provide users with better instructions on how to take images acceptable to the state issuing authorities.
Other
Apple may share information with our service providers, who are obligated to handle the information consistent with this notice and Apple instructions, are required to use reasonable security measures to protect any personal data received, and must delete the personal information as soon as they have completed the services unless retention is required by law or otherwise with your consent.
At all times, information collected by Apple will be treated in accordance with Apple's Privacy Policy, which can be found at www.apple.com/privacy
Published Date: February 15, 2022
Hindenburg: Was Zeppelin technology a threat to the 20th century? | stolenhistory.net - Rediscovered History of the World
Sun, 29 May 2022 17:01
Background'‹
Most of the background for the Hindenburg can be found
here, I will abridge thusly.
Wouldn't be a SH post without at least some reference to a flag with an eagle on it
Actual construction of LZ-129 began in the Fall of 1931, but progress lagged due to a severe lack of funds during the Depression. At first, the Nazi Party's assumption of power in January, 1933 had little effect on the fortunes of the Zeppelin Company, partly due to Air Minister Hermann G¶ring's dislike of lighter-than-air flight. But Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels was aware of the potential symbolic value of LZ-129 as a showcase for German strength and technology, and in 1934 Goebbels offered Hugo Eckener 2 million marks toward the completion of LZ-129.
So not only did the Hindenburg represent the finest in air travel, it also represented the finest in Nazi propaganda. They pretty much used it like Goodyear uses their blimp -- at sporting events, rallies, and other events where the Nazis wanted to show off their prowess.
By the end of 1936, Hindenburg had crossed the Atlantic 34 times, carrying over 3,500 passengers and more than 66,000 pounds of mail and freight, and the ship's highly successful 1936 season seemed to indicate that regular transatlantic air service had arrived.
So for those that haven't looked much into it, it is clear that the Hindenburg had already established a track record of successful transatlantic flights with no issues.
A Life of Luxury'‹
Imagine a world in which luxury travel was not only available to everyone, but was also
affordable. In its day, airship travel was twice as fast as steamship travel and didn't require one to spend days adjusting to the tossing and turning of the ocean. You could leisurely float ~500-1000ft above the ocean in your transoceanic journey. Here is a translated except from the Hindenburg welcome brochure:
You open your suit case and arrange your clothes in the wardrobe. At last, your shaving kit, hair brushes and other articles of toilet are displayed upon the toilet stand. At once, your cabin acquires a homely personal atmosphere. You listen for the roar of the engines, or the fierce rush and vibration of the air, but apart from a distant quiet murmur, everything is tranquil and peaceful. You feel that nothing will disturb your sleep. Your steward appears and explains to you the arrangement of the handles and switches for light, heat, and ventilation. You are shown the bell-push in your cabin which will bring him to your side at any time during the day or night. Before he leaves), he reminds you to leave your shoes outside your cabin door for cleaning. You begin to feel that nothing has been overlooked to ensure your comfort.
Nazi regalia aside, sign me up! Its the first class experience that airplanes can only dream of providing. But I didn't make this post to oogle at the marvel that is luxurious travel, we need to talk about the design and implementation of airship technology.
Oh yeah, *slaps hood of Hindenburg* this baby can hold so much helium and coal.
As a matter of fact, according to the writings of
Kenneth Price Jr, 1lb of coal could carry one person and their luggage from Berlin to NYC at the cost of $1/lb!
So not only do airships like the Hindenburg utilize anti-gravity tech (Helium is lighter than air), they are also more fuel efficient than any modern jet airliner or vehicle!
Each of Hindenburg's four LOF-6 (DB-602) 16-cylinder engines had an output of 1320 hp @ 1650 RPM (maximum power), and 900 hp @ 1480 RPM.
The
normal cruise setting was 1350 RPM, generating approximately 850 hp, and this setting was usually not adjusted during an ocean crossing. The engines were started with compressed air, and could be started, stopped, and reversed in flight.
Using 2:1 reduction gearing, each engine drove a 4-bladed, fixed-pitch, 19.7'² diameter metal-sheathed wooden propeller (created from two 2-bladed props fused together).
There were plans, never implemented, to add a fifth engine car, containing a Daimler-Benz diesel adapted to burn hydrogen. The proposed installation would have been an experiment to improve the ship's economy and efficiency by burning hydrogen which would otherwise have been valved. (Hindenburg valved between 1 and 1-1/2 million cubic feet of hydrogen on an average north Atlantic crossing.)
An engine designed to burn the valved hydrogen? That's damn near a free energy device, or about as close as you can get when it comes to travel of this scale.
Did you know:One ton of coal has the same thermal energy as 188 gallons of petroleum?The Hindenburg was capable of flying around the world in 1936 without stopping for fuel?One modern Airbus carries enough fuel to power the Hindenburg 6 times across the Atlantic?So its safe, efficient, cheap, luxurious, and well received by the public. What could possibly go wrong?The story of the Hindenburg crash is all that remains of the history of this incredible flying machine. Let's start with the "official" explanation.
The
Hindenburg disaster at Lakehurst, New Jersey on May 6, 1937 brought an end to the age of the rigid airship.
The disaster killed 35 persons on the airship, and one member of the ground crew, but miraculously 62 of the 97 passengers and crew
survived.
After more than 30 years of passenger travel on commercial zeppelins '-- in which tens of thousands of passengers flew over a million miles, on more than 2,000 flights, without a single injury '-- the era of the passenger airship came to an end in a few fiery minutes.
Almost 80 years of research and scientific tests support the same conclusion reached by the original
German and
American accident investigations in 1937: It seems clear that the Hindenburg disaster was caused by an electrostatic discharge (i.e., a spark) that ignited leaking
hydrogen.
The spark was most likely caused by a difference in electric potential between the airship and the surrounding air: The airship was approximately 60 meters (about 200 feet) above the airfield in an electrically charged atmosphere, but the ship's metal framework was grounded by its landing line; the difference in electric potential likely caused a spark to jump from the ship's fabric covering (which had the ability to hold a charge) to the ship's framework (which was grounded through the landing line). A somewhat less likely but still plausible theory attributes the spark to coronal discharge, more commonly known as St. Elmo's Fire.
And that was the last time anyone ever saw commercial airship travel. No, seriously. It was over after this, after hundreds of successful flights and a track record for safety (pretty amazing that anyone survived that crash, they were clearly designed with safety in mind) airship travel was, on the whole, removed from the public.
The following section is the high octane speculation and ruminations on stolen history that I created this post for.
Oil Barons: Mucking thing up for everyone, all the time'‹
You can't really get very far into topics like these without inevitably hitting the brick wall that is Oil Interests of the 19th and 20th Century. These are your Rockefellers, Standard Oil, etc. Others have been blamed for the conspiracy to destroy the Hindenburg - -
even the FBI investigated the matter and speculated that the plot was designed by anti-fascist Communists (full disclosure: I only skimmed the FOIA report linked above, perhaps someone braver than I could dive deeper and find some gems in there, as I didn't see much). However when it comes to events like this, one must always ask:
Qui Bono?
If you've made it this far in this post, you could see how a technology like the Hindenburg threatens the petroleum oligopoly of the day. Moreover, there was a symbolic issue here - - the Hindenburg was the crown jewel of the Nazi party which to some was not exactly kosher. It is hardly a secret that many businessman of the day had deals with Nazis just as soon as anyone else, but this threat was on a different level because it represented a potential end to the Oil Oligarchy.
Isn't it a bit curious that right after the Titanic and Hindenburg disasters you have a concerted effort to standardize transportation to running off petroleum almost exclusively? And that standard has neither changed nor evolved in over 100 years?
Kenneth Price brings up some questions that I ask anyone who is going to do further research on the topic to look into and see if you can answer for yourself:
Why was the public never shown one single photographic picture that showed the beginning of Hindenburg's fire even though there were 22 professional photographers at the event to film her docking?Why were there so many photographers there to film the Hindenburg's arrival into Lakehurst, Va. when she had already completed 34 successful transatlantic crossings the prior year? Why was a ''static spark '' theory selected as Hindenburg's nemesis when there was no evidence to support the occurrence of a static spark in the first place since it had never occurred in the four previous decades of flying hydrogen-filled zeppelins? Why did all nations stop building rigid airships after the burning of the Hindenburg when she and Graf Zeppelin had clearly demonstrated an effective form of anti-gravity resulting in extreme fuel efficiency? Why does hydrogen continue to be shunned as a gas that is flammable when modern airliners and passenger cars continue to carry a fuel that is not only volatile but even more dangerous? Postscript'‹
I am totally open to this topic weaving towards the direction of this discussion towards "rediscovered" technology. While I didn't necessarily find a ton of evidence to support the model that airship tech was the stolen product of a past civilization, that doesn't mean its not out there. I highly recommend checking out the work of
Kenneth M. Price, as his research is responsible for this post today.
Note: This OP was recovered from the
Wayback Archive.
Yom Kippur War - Wikipedia
Sun, 29 May 2022 17:00
1973 war between Israel and a coalition of Arab states
Fourth Arab''Israeli WarPart of the Arab''Israeli conflict and the Cold WarClockwise from top-left:Belligerents IsraelSupported by: United States[1]
Egypt SyriaExpeditionary forces:Supported by: Soviet Union[9] East Germany[10] North Korea [11][12][13][14] Pakistan[15][16][17][18] Lebanon[19]
Commanders and leadersStrength375,000[37]''415,000 troops1,700 tanks[38]3,000 armored carriers945 artillery units[39]440 combat aircraftEgypt:650,000[37]''800,000[40] troops (200,000 crossed)[41]1,700 tanks (1,020 crossed)[42]2,400 armored carriers1,120 artillery units[39]400 combat aircraft140 helicopters[43]104 naval vessels150 surface-to-air missile batteries (62 in the front line)[44]Syria:150,000[37] troops1,200 tanks800''900 armored carriers600 artillery units[39][45][46]Expeditionary Forces*:Saudi-Arabia:Cuba:2 tank brigades (1,500[8]''4,000[52] troops)Morocco:Total:914,000''1,067,500 troops3,430''3,600 tanks3,900''4,000 armored carriers1,720 artillery units452 combat aircraft140 helicopters104 naval vessels150 surface-to-air missile batteriesCasualties and losses2,521[54]''2,800[55][56] dead7,250[57]''8,800[55] wounded293 captured400 tanks destroyed, 663 damaged or captured[58]407 armored vehicles destroyed or captured102''387 aircraft destroyed[59][60]Syria:Iraq:278 dead898 wounded[63]13 captured[62]Cuba:Jordan:Morocco:Total casualties:The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War,[69] the 1973 Arab''Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab''Israeli 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.[70][71] Egypt's initial objective in the war was to seize a foothold on the eastern bank of the Suez Canal and subsequently leverage these gains to negotiate the return of the rest of the Israeli-occupied Sinai Peninsula.[75]
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;[76] Egyptian and Syrian forces crossed their corresponding ceasefire lines with Israel and invaded the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights, respectively. Following the outbreak of hostilities, both the United States and the Soviet Union initiated massive resupply efforts to their respective allies during the war, which led to a near-confrontation between the two nuclear-armed superpowers.[77]
Fighting commenced with a massive and successful crossing of the Suez Canal by the Arab coalition; Egyptian forces crossed the ceasefire lines with Israel and advanced virtually unopposed into the Sinai Peninsula. However, Israel mobilized most of its forces three days later and halted the Egyptian offensive, resulting in a military stalemate. The Syrians coordinated their attack on the Golan Heights to coincide with the Egyptian offensive and initially made threatening gains into Israeli-held territory. After three days of heavy fighting, Israeli forces had pushed the Syrians back to the pre-war ceasefire lines. The Israeli military then launched a four-day-long counter-offensive deep into Syria. Within a week, Israeli artillery began to shell the outskirts of the Syrian capital of Damascus, and Egyptian president Anwar Sadat began to worry about the deteriorating integrity of the Arab coalition's leadership. Sadat believed that capturing two strategic mountain passes deeper within the Sinai Peninsula would make the Arab position stronger during post-war negotiations with Israel, and subsequently ordered Egyptian forces to mount another offensive against the Israelis, which was quickly repulsed. Israeli forces subsequently counter-attacked at the seam between the two Egyptian formations, crossed the Suez Canal into Egypt, and slowly began advancing southward and westward towards Suez City in over a week of heavy fighting that resulted in large casualties on both sides.[78][79]
On 22 October, an initial ceasefire brokered by the United Nations unravelled, with each side blaming the other for the breach. By 24 October, the Israelis had improved their positions considerably and completed their encirclement of the Egyptian Third Army and Suez City, bringing them within 100 kilometres (62 mi) of the Egyptian capital of Cairo. This development led to dangerously heightened tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union (allied with Israel and with the Arab states, respectively) and a second ceasefire was imposed cooperatively on 25 October to officially end the war.
The Yom Kippur War had far-reaching implications; the Arab world had experienced humiliation in the lopsided rout of the Egyptian''Syrian''Jordanian alliance in 1967, but felt psychologically vindicated by early successes in the 1973 conflict. The Israelis recognized that, despite impressive operational and tactical achievements on the battlefield, there was no guarantee that they would always dominate the Arab states militarily, as they had done consistently throughout the First Arab''Israeli War, the Second Arab''Israeli War and the Third Arab''Israeli War; these changes paved the way for the Israeli''Palestinian peace process. 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.
Background The war was part of the Arab''Israeli conflict, an ongoing dispute that has included many battles and wars since the founding of the State of Israel in 1948. During the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel had captured Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, roughly half of Syria's Golan Heights, and the territories of the West Bank which had been held by Jordan since 1948.[80]
On June 19, 1967, shortly after the Six-Day War, the Israeli government voted to return the Sinai to Egypt and the Golan Heights to Syria in exchange for a permanent peace settlement and a demilitarization of the returned territories.[81][82][83] It rejected a full withdrawal to the boundaries and the situation before the war,[citation needed ] and also insisted on direct negotiations with the Arab governments as opposed to accepting negotiation through a third party.[84]
This decision was not made public at the time, nor was it conveyed to any Arab state. Notwithstanding Abba Eban's (Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1967) insistence that this was indeed the case, there seems to be no solid evidence to corroborate his claim. No formal peace proposal was made either directly or indirectly by Israel. The Americans, who were briefed of the Cabinet's decision by Eban, were not asked to convey it to Cairo and Damascus as official peace proposals, nor were they given indications that Israel expected a reply.[85][86]
The Arab position, as it emerged in September 1967 at the Khartoum Arab Summit, was to reject any peaceful settlement with the State of Israel. The eight participating states'--Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Algeria, Kuwait, and Sudan'--passed a resolution that would later become known as the "three no's": there would be no peace, no recognition and no negotiation with Israel. Prior to that, King Hussein of Jordan had stated that he could not rule out a possibility of a "real, permanent peace" between Israel and the Arab states.[87]
Armed hostilities continued on a limited scale after the Six-Day War and escalated into the War of Attrition, an attempt to wear down the Israeli position through long-term pressure. A ceasefire was signed in August 1970.
President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt died in September 1970. He was succeeded by Anwar Sadat. A peace initiative led by both Sadat and UN intermediary Gunnar Jarring was tabled in 1971. Sadat set forth to the Egyptian Parliament his intention of arranging an interim agreement as a step towards a settlement on February 4, 1971, which extended the terms of the ceasefire and envisaged a reopening of the Suez Canal in exchange for a partial Israeli pullback. It resembled a proposal independently made by Moshe Dayan.[citation needed ] Sadat had signaled in an interview with The New York Times in December 1970 that, in return for a total withdrawal from the Sinai Peninsula, he was ready "to recognize the rights of Israel as an independent state as defined by the Security Council of the United Nations." Gunnar Jarring coincidentally proposed a similar initiative four days later, on February 8, 1971. Egypt responded by accepting much of Jarring's proposals, though differing on several issues, regarding the Gaza Strip, for example, and expressed its willingness to reach an accord if it also implemented the provisions of United Nations Security Council Resolution 242. This was the first time an Arab government had gone public declaring its readiness to sign a peace agreement with Israel.[88]
In addition, the Egyptian response included a statement that the lasting peace could not be achieved without "withdrawal of the Israeli armed forces from all the territories occupied since 5 June 1967." Golda Meir reacted to the overture by forming a committee to examine the proposal and vet possible concessions. When the committee unanimously concluded that Israel's interests would be served by full withdrawal to the internationally recognized lines dividing Israel from Egypt and Syria, returning the Gaza Strip and, in a majority view, returning most of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, Meir was angered and shelved the document.[89] The United States was infuriated by the cool Israeli response to Egypt's proposal, and Joseph Sisco informed Yitzhak Rabin that "Israel would be regarded responsible for rejecting the best opportunity to reach peace since the establishment of the state." Israel responded to Jarring's plan also on February 26 by outlining its readiness to make some form of withdrawal, while declaring it had no intention of returning to the pre-June 5, 1967 lines.[90] Explicating the response, Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban told the Knesset that the pre-June 5, 1967 lines "cannot assure Israel against aggression", i.e., were not defensible.[91] Jarring was disappointed, and blamed Israel for refusing to accept a complete pullout from the Sinai peninsula.[90]
Sadat hoped that by inflicting even a limited defeat on the Israelis, the status quo could be altered. Hafez al-Assad, the leader of Syria, had a different view. He had little interest in negotiation and felt the retaking of the Golan Heights would be a purely military option. After the Six-Day War, Assad had launched a massive military buildup and hoped to make Syria the dominant military power of the Arab states. With the aid of Egypt, Assad felt that his new army could win convincingly against Israel and thus secure Syria's role in the region. Assad only saw negotiations beginning once the Golan Heights had been retaken by force, which would induce Israel to give up the West Bank and Gaza, and make other concessions.
Sadat also had important domestic concerns in wanting war. "The three years since Sadat had taken office ... were the most demoralized in Egyptian history. ... A desiccated economy added to the nation's despondency. War was a desperate option."[92] In his biography of Sadat, Raphael Israeli argued that Sadat felt the root of the problem was the great shame over the Six-Day War, and before any reforms could be introduced, he believed that that shame had to be overcome. Egypt's economy was in shambles, but Sadat knew that the deep reforms that he felt were needed would be deeply unpopular among parts of the population. A military victory would give him the popularity he needed to make changes. A portion of the Egyptian population, most prominently university students who launched wide protests, strongly desired a war to reclaim the Sinai and was highly upset that Sadat had not launched one in his first three years in office.
The other Arab states showed much more reluctance to fully commit to a new war. Jordanian King Hussein feared another major loss of territory, as had occurred in the Six-Day War, in which Jordan lost all of the West Bank, territory it had conquered and annexed in 1948''49, which had doubled its population. Sadat also backed the claim of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to the West Bank and Gaza and, in the event of a victory, promised Yasser Arafat that he would be given control of them. Hussein still saw the West Bank as part of Jordan and wanted it restored to his kingdom. Moreover, during the Black September crisis of 1970, a near civil war had broken out between the PLO and the Jordanian government. In that war, Syria had intervened militarily on the side of the PLO, estranging Hussein.
Iraq and Syria also had strained relations, and the Iraqis refused to join the initial offensive. Lebanon, which shared a border with Israel, was not expected to join the Arab war effort because of its small army and already evident instability. During the months before the war, Sadat engaged in a diplomatic offensive to try to win support for military action. By the fall of 1973, he claimed the backing of more than a hundred states. These were most of the countries of the Arab League, Non-Aligned Movement, and Organization of African Unity.
The US considered Israel an ally in the Cold War and had been supplying the Israeli military since the 1960s. Henry Kissinger believed that the regional balance of power hinged on maintaining Israel's military dominance over Arab countries, and that an Arab victory in the region would strengthen Soviet influence. Britain's position, on the other hand, was that war between the Arabs and Israelis could only be prevented by the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 and a return to the pre-1967 boundaries.[93]
Events leading up to the war Four months before the war broke out, Henry Kissinger made an offer to Ismail, Sadat's emissary. Kissinger proposed returning the Sinai Peninsula to Egyptian control and an Israeli withdrawal from all of Sinai, except for some strategic points. Ismail said he would return with Sadat's reply, but never did. Sadat was already determined to go to war. Only an American guarantee that the United States would fulfill the entire Arab program in a brief time could have dissuaded Sadat.[94]
Sadat declared that Egypt was prepared to "sacrifice a million Egyptian soldiers" to recover its lost territory.[95] From the end of 1972, Egypt began a concentrated effort to build up its forces, receiving MiG-21 jet fighters, SA-2, SA-3, SA-6 and SA-7 antiaircraft missiles, T-55 and T-62 tanks, RPG-7 antitank weapons, and the AT-3 Sagger anti-tank guided missile from the Soviet Union and improving its military tactics, based on Soviet battlefield doctrines. Political generals, who had in large part been responsible for the rout in 1967, were replaced with competent ones.[96]
The role of the superpowers, too, was a major factor in the outcome of the two wars. The policy of the Soviet Union was one of the causes of Egypt's military weakness. President Nasser was only able to obtain the materiel for an anti-aircraft missile defense wall after visiting Moscow and pleading with Kremlin leaders. He said that if supplies were not given, he would have to return to Egypt and tell the Egyptian people Moscow had abandoned them, and then relinquish power to one of his peers who would be able to deal with the Americans. The Americans would then have the upper hand in the region, which Moscow could not permit.
Nasser's policy following the 1967 defeat conflicted with that of the Soviet Union. The Soviets sought to avoid a new conflagration between the Arabs and Israelis so as not to be drawn into a confrontation with the United States. The reality of the situation became apparent when the superpowers met in Oslo and agreed to maintain the status quo. This was unacceptable to Egyptian leaders, and when it was discovered that the Egyptian preparations for crossing the canal were being leaked, it became imperative to expel the Soviets from Egypt. In July 1972, Sadat expelled almost all of the 20,000 Soviet military advisers in the country and reoriented the country's foreign policy to be more favourable to the United States. The Syrians remained close to the Soviet Union.
The Soviets thought little of Sadat's chances in any war. They warned that any attempt to cross the heavily fortified Suez Canal would incur massive losses. Both the Soviets and Americans were at that time pursuing d(C)tente and had no interest in seeing the Middle East destabilized. In a June 1973 meeting with American President Richard Nixon, Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev had proposed Israel pull back to its 1967 border. Brezhnev said that if Israel did not, "we will have difficulty keeping the military situation from flaring up"'--an indication that the Soviet Union had been unable to restrain Sadat's plans.[97]
In an interview published in Newsweek (April 9, 1973), Sadat again threatened war with Israel. Several times during 1973, Arab forces conducted large-scale exercises that put the Israeli military on the highest level of alert, only to be recalled a few days later. The Israeli leadership already believed that if an attack took place, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) could repel it.
Almost a full year before the war, in a meeting on October 24, 1972 with his Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, Sadat declared his intention to go to war with Israel even without proper Soviet support.[98] Planning had begun in 1971 and was conducted in absolute secrecy'--even the upper-echelon commanders were not told of the war plans until less than a week prior to the attack, and the soldiers were not told until a few hours beforehand. The plan to attack Israel in concert with Syria was code-named Operation Badr (Arabic for "full moon"), after the Battle of Badr, in which Muslims under Muhammad defeated the Quraish tribe of Mecca.
War objectives and areas of combat Egypt's initial war objective was to use its military to seize a limited amount of Israeli-occupied Sinai on the east bank of the Suez Canal. This would provoke a crisis which would allow it to bring American and Soviet pressure to bear on Israel to negotiate the return of the rest of Sinai, and possibly other occupied territories, from a position of relative strength.[75] Egyptian President Anwar Sadat's publicly stated position was "to recover all Arab territory occupied by Israel following the 1967 war and to achieve a just, peaceful solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict".[100] Similarly, Syria intended to seize back some or all of the Golan and to then negotiate its retention via great power pressure. Both Egypt and Syria expected that the use of the "oil weapon" would assist them in post-conflict negotiations, once their attacks had generated a reason for its use.
Other than a flurry of Syrian missile attacks on Ramat David airbase and surrounding civilian settlements during the first days of the war,[70] the fighting took place in Sinai and the Golan Heights, territories that had been occupied by Israel since their victory in the Six-Day War of 1967, and in the later stages, on the west side of the Suez canal in Egypt and in areas of the Golan beyond those held by Israel prior to the outbreak of war.[71][104][105]
Lead-up to the surprise Arab offensive The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Directorate of Military Intelligence's (abbreviated as "Aman") Research Department was responsible for formulating Israel's intelligence estimate. Their assessments on the likelihood of war were based on several assumptions. First, it was assumed correctly that Syria would not go to war with Israel unless Egypt did so as well. Second, the department learned from Ashraf Marwan, former President Nasser's son-in-law and also a senior Mossad agent,[106] that Egypt wanted to regain all of the Sinai, but would not go to war until they were supplied MiG-23 fighter-bombers to neutralize the Israeli Air Force and Scud missiles to be used against Israeli cities as a deterrent against Israeli attacks on Egyptian infrastructure.
Since they had not received MiG-23s and Scud missiles had only arrived in Egypt from Bulgaria in late August and it would take four months to train the Egyptian ground crews, Aman predicted war with Egypt was not imminent. This assumption about Egypt's strategic plans, known as "the concept", strongly prejudiced the department's thinking and led it to dismiss other war warnings.
By mid-1973, Aman was almost completely aware of the Arab war plans. It knew that the Egyptian Second and Third Armies would attempt to cross the Suez Canal and advance ten kilometres into the Sinai, followed by armored divisions that would advance towards the Mitla and Gidi Passes, and that naval units and paratroopers would then attempt to capture Sharm el-Sheikh. Aman was also aware of many details of the Syrian war plan. However, Israeli analysts, following "the concept", did not believe the Arabs were serious about going to war.[107][better source needed ]
The Egyptians did much to further this misconception. Both the Israelis and the Americans felt that the expulsion of the Soviet military observers had severely reduced the effectiveness of the Egyptian army. The Egyptians ensured that there was a continual stream of false information regarding maintenance problems and a lack of personnel to operate the most advanced equipment. The Egyptians made repeated misleading reports about lack of spare parts that made their way to the Israelis. Sadat had so long engaged in brinkmanship that his frequent war threats were being ignored by the world.
In April and May 1973, Israeli intelligence began picking up clear signals of Egypt's intentions for war, recognizing that it had the necessary divisions and bridging equipment to cross the Suez Canal and a missile umbrella to protect any crossing operation from air attack. However, Aman Chief Eli Zeira was still confident that the probability of war was low.[107]
Between May and August 1973, the Egyptian Army conducted military exercises near the border, and Ashraf Marwan inaccurately warned that Egypt and Syria would launch a surprise attack in the middle of May. The Israeli Army mobilized with their Blue-White Alert, in response to both the warnings and exercises, at considerable cost. These exercises led some Israelis to dismiss the actual war preparations, and Marwan's warning right before the attack was launched, as another exercise.[108]
Egyptian and Syrian military exercises For the week leading up to Yom Kippur, the Egyptian army staged a week-long training exercise adjacent to the Suez Canal. Israeli intelligence, detecting large troop movements towards the canal, dismissed them as mere training exercises. Movements of Syrian troops towards the border were also detected, as were the cancellation of leaves and a call-up of reserves in the Syrian army. These activities were considered puzzling, but not a threat because, Aman believed, they would not attack without Egypt and Egypt would not attack until the weaponry they wanted arrived. Despite this belief, Israel sent reinforcements to the Golan Heights. These forces were to prove critical during the early days of the war.[108]:'Š190''91,'Š208'Š
On September 27 to 30, two batches of reservists were called up by the Egyptian army to participate in these exercises. Two days before the outbreak of the war, on October 4, the Egyptian command publicly announced the demobilization of part of the reservists called up during September 27 to lull Israeli suspicions. Around 20,000 troops were demobilized, and subsequently some of these men were given leave to perform the Umrah (pilgrimage) to Mecca.[109][110] Reports were also given instructing cadets in military colleges to resume their courses on October 9.[107]
On October 1, an Aman researcher, Lieutenant Binyamin Siman-Tov, submitted an assessment arguing that the Egyptian deployments and exercises along the Suez Canal seemed to be a camouflage for an actual crossing of the canal. Siman-Tov sent a more comprehensive assessment on October 3. Both were ignored by his superior.[107]
According to Egyptian General El-Gamasy, "On the initiative of the operations staff, we reviewed the situation on the ground and developed a framework for the planned offensive operation. We studied the technical characteristics of the Suez Canal, the ebb and the flow of the tides, the speed of the currents and their direction, hours of darkness and of moonlight, weather conditions, and related conditions in the Mediterranean and Red sea."[76] He explained further by saying: "Saturday 6 October 1973 (10 Ramadan 1393) was the day chosen for the September''October option. Conditions for a crossing were good, it was a fast day in Israel, and the moon on that day, 10 Ramadan, shone from sunset until midnight."[76] The war coincided that year with the Muslim month of Ramadan, when many Arab Muslim soldiers fast. On the other hand, the fact that the attack was launched on Yom Kippur may have helped Israel to more easily marshal reserves from their homes and synagogues because roads and communication lines were largely open, easing the mobilization and transportation of the military.[111]
Despite refusing to participate, King Hussein of Jordan "had met with Sadat and Assad in Alexandria two weeks before. Given the mutual suspicions prevailing among the Arab leaders, it was unlikely that he had been told any specific war plans. But it was probable that Sadat and Assad had raised the prospect of war against Israel in more general terms to feel out the likelihood of Jordan joining in."[112]
On the night of September 25, Hussein secretly flew to Tel Aviv to warn Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir of an impending Syrian attack. "Are they going to war without the Egyptians, asked Mrs. Meir. The king said he didn't think so. 'I think they [Egypt] would cooperate.'"[113] This warning was ignored, and Aman concluded that the king had not told anything that was not already known. Throughout September, Israel received eleven warnings of war from well-placed sources. However, Mossad Director-General Zvi Zamir continued to insist that war was not an Arab option, even after Hussein's warning.[114] Zamir would later remark that "We simply didn't feel them capable [of war]."[114]
On the day before the war, General Ariel Sharon was shown aerial photographs and other intelligence by Yehoshua Saguy, his divisional intelligence officer. General Sharon noticed that the concentration of Egyptian forces along the canal was far beyond anything observed during the training exercises, and that the Egyptians had amassed all of their crossing equipment along the canal. He then called General Shmuel Gonen, who had replaced him as head of Southern Command, and expressed his certainty that war was imminent.[115]
Zamir's concern grew on October 4''5, as additional signs of an impending attack were detected. Soviet advisers and their families left Egypt and Syria, transport aircraft thought to be laden with military equipment landed in Cairo and Damascus, and aerial photographs revealed that Egyptian and Syrian concentrations of tanks, infantry, and surface-to-air (SAM) missiles were at an unprecedented high. According to declassified documents from the Agranat Commission, Brigadier General Yisrael Lior, Prime Minister Golda Meir's military secretary/attach(C), claimed that Mossad knew from Ashraf Marwan that an attack was going to occur under the guise of a military drill a week before it occurred, but the process of passing along the information to the Prime Minister's office failed. The information ended up with Mossad head Zvi Zamir's aide, who passed it along to Zamir at 12:30 am on October 5. According to the claim, an unfocused and groggy Zamir thanked the aide for the information and said he would pass it along to the Prime Minister's office in the morning.[106] On the night of October 5/6, Zamir personally went to Europe to meet with Marwan at midnight. Marwan informed him that a joint Syrian-Egyptian attack was imminent,[107] but incorrectly said that the attack would take place at sunset.[116]
It was this warning in particular, combined with the large number of other warnings, that finally goaded the Israeli High Command into action. Just hours before the attack began, orders went out for a partial call-up of the Israeli reserves.[117]
The attack by the Egyptian and Syrian forces caught the United States by surprise. According to future CIA Director and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, he was briefing an American arms negotiator on the improbability of armed conflict in the region when he heard the news of the outbreak of war on the radio. On the other hand, the KGB learned about the attack in advance, probably from its intelligence sources in Egypt.[118]
Lack of Israeli pre-emptive strikes The Israeli strategy was, for the most part, based on the precept that if war was imminent, Israel would launch a pre-emptive strike. It was assumed that Israel's intelligence services would give, in the worst case, about 48 hours notice prior to an Arab attack.
Prime Minister Golda Meir, Minister of Defense Moshe Dayan and Chief of General Staff David Elazar met at 8:05 am on the morning of Yom Kippur, six hours before the war began. Dayan opened the meeting by arguing that war was not a certainty. Elazar then presented his argument in favor of a pre-emptive attack against Syrian airfields at noon, Syrian missiles at 3:00 pm, and Syrian ground forces at 5:00 pm:
When the presentations were done, the prime minister hemmed uncertainly for a few moments but then came to a clear decision. There would be no preemptive strike. Israel might be needing American assistance soon and it was imperative that it would not be blamed for starting the war. 'If we strike first, we won't get help from anybody,' she said.[119]
Prior to the war, Kissinger and Nixon consistently warned Meir that she must not be responsible for initiating a Middle East war.[120] On October 6, 1973, the war opening date, Kissinger told Israel not to go for a preemptive strike, and Meir confirmed to him that Israel would not.[121]
Other developed nations,[who? ] being more dependent on OPEC oil, took more seriously the threat of an Arab oil embargo and trade boycott, and had stopped supplying Israel with munitions. As a result, Israel was totally dependent on the United States for military resupply, and particularly sensitive to anything that might endanger that relationship. After Meir had made her decision, at 10:15 am, she met with American ambassador Kenneth Keating in order to inform the United States that Israel did not intend to preemptively start a war, and asked that American efforts be directed at preventing war. An electronic telegram with Keating's report on the meeting was sent to the United States at 16:33 GMT (6:33 pm local time).[77][122]
A message arrived later from United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger saying, "Don't preempt."[123] At the same time, Kissinger also urged the Soviets to use their influence to prevent war, contacted Egypt with Israel's message of non-preemption, and sent messages to other Arab governments to enlist their help on the side of moderation. These late efforts were futile.[124] According to Henry Kissinger, had Israel struck first, it would not have received "so much as a nail".[125][126]
David Elazar proposed a mobilization of the entire air force and four armored divisions, a total of 100,000 to 120,000 troops, while Dayan favored a mobilization of the air force and two armored divisions, totaling around 70,000 troops. Meir chose Elazar's proposal.[127]
Course of the war Sinai Front Egyptian forces crossing the Suez Canal
The Sinai was once again the arena of conflict between Israel and Egypt. The Egyptians had prepared for an assault across the canal and deployed five divisions totaling 100,000 soldiers, 1,350 tanks and 2,000 guns and heavy mortars for the onslaught. Facing them were 450 soldiers of the Jerusalem Brigade, spread out in 16 forts along the length of the canal. There were 290 Israeli tanks in all of Sinai, divided into three armored brigades,[128] only one of which was deployed near the canal when hostilities commenced.[129]
Large bridgeheads were established on the east bank on October 6. Israeli armoured forces launched counterattacks from October 6 to 8, but they were often piecemeal and inadequately supported and were beaten back principally by Egyptians using portable anti-tank missiles. Between October 9 and 12, the American response was a call for a cease-fire in place.[130] The Egyptian units generally would not advance beyond a shallow strip for fear of losing the protection of their SAM batteries, which were situated on the west bank of the canal. In the Six-Day War, the Israeli Air Force had pummeled the defenseless Arab armies. Egypt (and Syria) had heavily fortified their side of the ceasefire lines with SAM batteries provided by the Soviet Union, against which the Israeli Air Force had no time to execute a Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses operation, due to the element of surprise.[131][132] Israel, which had invested much of its defense budget building the region's strongest air force, would see the effectiveness of its air force curtailed in the initial phases of the conflict by the SAM presence.
On October 9, the IDF chose to concentrate its reserves and build up its supplies while the Egyptians remained on the strategic defensive. Nixon and Kissinger held back on a full-scale resupply of arms to Israel. Short of supplies, the Israeli government reluctantly accepted a cease-fire in place on October 12, but Sadat refused to do so.[133] The Soviets started an airlift of arms to Syria and Egypt. The American global interest was to prove that Soviet arms could not dictate the outcome of the fighting, by supplying Israel. With an airlift in full swing, Washington was prepared to wait until Israeli success on the battlefield might persuade the Arabs and the Soviets to bring the fighting to an end.[134] The Israelis decided to counterattack once Egyptian armor attempted to expand the bridgehead beyond the protective SAM umbrella. The riposte, codenamed Operation Gazelle, was launched on October 15. IDF forces spearheaded by Ariel Sharon's division broke through the Tasa corridor and crossed the Suez Canal to the north of the Great Bitter Lake.
After intense fighting, the IDF progressed towards Cairo and advanced southwards on the east bank of the Great Bitter Lake and in the southern extent of the canal right up to Port Suez. It was important for the Americans that the fighting should be ended, when all parties could still emerge from the conflict with their vital interests and self-esteem intact. Hence they indicated an acceptance of Israeli advance while violating the ceasefire, but the United States would not accept the destruction of the Egyptian 3rd Army Corps.[135] Israeli progress towards Cairo was brought to a halt when the ceasefire was declared on October 24.
Egyptian attack The 1973 War in the Sinai, October 6''15
Anticipating a swift Israeli armored counterattack by three armored divisions,[136] the Egyptians had armed their assault force with large numbers of man-portable anti-tank weapons'--rocket-propelled grenades and the less numerous but more advanced Sagger guided missiles, which proved devastating to the first Israeli armored counterattacks. Each of the five infantry divisions that were to cross the canal had been equipped with RPG-7 rockets and RPG-43 grenades and reinforced with an anti-tank guided missile battalion, as they would not have any armor support for nearly 12 hours.[137]
In addition, the Egyptians had built separate ramps at the crossing points, reaching as high as 21 metres (69 ft) to counter the Israeli sand wall, provide covering fire for the assaulting infantry and to counter the first Israeli armored counterattacks.[138] The scale and effectiveness of the Egyptian strategy of deploying these anti-tank weapons coupled with the Israelis' inability to disrupt their use with close air support (due to the SAM shield) greatly contributed to Israeli setbacks early in the war.
The Egyptian Army put great effort into finding a quick and effective way of breaching the Israeli defenses. The Israelis had built large 18-metre (59 foot) high sand walls with a 60-degree slope and reinforced with concrete at the water line. Egyptian engineers initially experimented with explosive charges and bulldozers to clear the obstacles, before a junior officer proposed using high pressure water cannons. The idea was tested and found to be a sound one, and several high pressure water cannons were imported from Britain and East Germany. The water cannons effectively breached the sand walls using water from the canal.[139]
Wreckage of an Israeli
A-4 Skyhawk on display in Egypt's war museum.
At 2:00 pm on October 6, Operation Badr began with a large airstrike. More than 200 Egyptian aircraft conducted simultaneous strikes against three airbases, Hawk missile batteries, three command centers, artillery positions, and several radar installations.[140] Airfields at Refidim and Bir Tamada were temporarily put out of service, and damage was inflicted on a Hawk battery at Ophir. The aerial assault was coupled with a barrage from more than 2,000 artillery pieces for a period of 53 minutes against the Bar Lev Line and rear area command posts and concentration bases.[141]
Author Andrew McGregor claimed that the success of the first strike negated the need for a second planned strike.[142][143][144] Egypt acknowledged the loss of five aircraft during the attack. Kenneth Pollack wrote that 18 Egyptian aircraft were shot down, and that these losses prompted the cancellation of the second planned wave.[145] In one notable engagement during this period, a pair of Israeli F-4E Phantoms challenged 28 Egyptian MiGs over Sharm el-Sheikh and within half an hour, shot down seven or eight MiGs with no losses.[146][147] One of the Egyptian pilots killed was Captain Atef Sadat, President Sadat's half-brother.[148]
Simultaneously, 14 Egyptian Tupolev Tu-16 bombers attacked Israeli targets in the Sinai with Kelt missiles, while another two Egyptian Tupolevs fired two Kelt missiles at a radar station in central Israel.[146] One missile was shot down by a patrolling Israeli Mirage fighter, and the second fell into the sea. The attack was an attempt to warn Israel that Egypt could retaliate if it bombed targets deep within Egyptian territory.[149]
An Israeli
Mirage III shot down by an Egyptian MiG-21
Under cover of the initial artillery barrage, the Egyptian assault force of 32,000 infantry began crossing the canal in twelve waves at five separate crossing areas, from 14:05 to 17:30, in what became known as The Crossing.[150] The Egyptians prevented Israeli forces from reinforcing the Bar Lev Line and proceeded to attack the Israeli fortifications. Meanwhile, engineers crossed over to breach the sand wall.[151][152] The Israeli Air Force conducted air interdiction operations to try to prevent the bridges from being erected, but took losses from Egyptian SAM batteries. The air attacks were ineffective overall, as the sectional design of the bridges enabled quick repairs when hit.[153]
Despite fierce resistance, the Israeli reserve brigade garrisoning the Bar-Lev forts was overwhelmed. According to Shazly, within six hours, fifteen strongpoints had been captured as Egyptian forces advanced several kilometres into the Sinai. Shazly's account was disputed by Kenneth Pollack, who noted that for the most part, the forts only fell to repeated assaults by superior forces or prolonged sieges over many days.[154] The northernmost fortification of the Bar Lev Line, code-named 'Fort Budapest', withstood repeated assaults and remained in Israeli hands throughout the war. Once the bridges were laid, additional infantry with the remaining portable and recoilless anti-tank weapons began to cross the canal, while the first Egyptian tanks started to cross at 20:30.[155]
The Egyptians also attempted to land several heli-borne commando units in various areas in the Sinai to hamper the arrival of Israeli reserves. This attempt met with disaster as the Israelis shot down up to 20 helicopters, inflicting heavy casualties.[156][157] Israeli Major General (res.) Chaim Herzog placed Egyptian helicopter losses at 14.[158] Other sources claim that "several" helicopters were downed with "total loss of life" and that the few commandos that did filter through were ineffectual and presented nothing more than a "nuisance".[159] Kenneth Pollack asserted that despite their heavy losses, the Egyptian commandos fought exceptionally hard and created considerable panic, prompting the Israelis to take precautions that hindered their ability to concentrate on stopping the assault across the canal.[160]
Egyptian forces advanced approximately 4 to 5 km (2 + 1 ' 2 to 3 mi) into the Sinai Desert with two armies (both corps-sized by western standards, included the 2nd Infantry Division in the northern Second Army). By the following morning, some 850 tanks had crossed the canal.[141] In his account of the war, Saad El Shazly noted that by the morning of October 7, the Egyptians had lost 280 soldiers and 20 tanks, though this account is disputed.[161][162]
Most Israeli soldiers defending the Bar Lev Line became casualties, and some 200 were taken prisoner.[42][163][164] In the subsequent days, some defenders of the Bar Lev Line managed to break through the Egyptian encirclement and return to their lines or were extracted during later Israeli counterattacks. For the next several days, the IAF played a minimal role in the fighting, largely because it was needed to deal with the simultaneous, and ultimately more threatening, Syrian invasion of the Golan Heights.[165]
Egyptian forces then consolidated their initial positions. On October 7, the bridgeheads were enlarged an additional 4 km (2 + 1 ' 2 mi), at the same time repulsing Israeli counterattacks. In the north, the Egyptian 18th Division attacked the town of El-Qantarah el-Sharqiyya, engaging Israeli forces in and around the town. The fighting there was conducted at close quarters, and was sometimes hand-to-hand. The Egyptians were forced to clear the town building by building. By evening, most of the town was in Egyptian hands. El-Qantarah was completely cleared by the next morning.[166]
Meanwhile, the Egyptian commandos airdropped on October 6 began encountering Israeli reserves the following morning. Both sides suffered heavy losses, but the commandos were at times successful in delaying the movement of Israeli reserves to the front. These special operations often led to confusion and anxiety among Israeli commanders, who commended the Egyptian commandos.[167][168] This view was contradicted by another source that stated that few commandos made it to their objectives, and were usually nothing more than a nuisance.[169] According to Abraham Rabinovich, only the commandos near Baluza and those blocking the road to Fort Budapest had measurable success. Of the 1,700 Egyptian commandos inserted behind Israeli lines during the war, 740 were killed'--many in downed helicopters'--and 330 taken prisoner.[170]
Failed Israeli counter-attack An Israeli
M60 Patton tank destroyed in the Sinai.
On October 7, David Elazar visited Shmuel Gonen, commander of the Israeli Southern Command'--who had only taken the position three months before at the retirement of Ariel Sharon'--and met with Israeli commanders. The Israelis planned a cautious counterattack for the following day by Avraham Adan's 162nd Armored Division.[171] The same day, the IAF carried out Operation Tagar, aiming to neutralize Egyptian Air Force bases and its missile defense shield.[172][173]
Seven Egyptian airbases were damaged, with the loss of two A-4 Skyhawks and their pilots. Two more planned attacks were called off because of the increasing need for air power on the Syrian front. The IAF carried out additional air attacks against Egyptian forces on the east bank of the canal, reportedly inflicting heavy losses. Israeli jets had carried out hundreds of sorties against Egyptian targets by the following day, but the Egyptian SAM shield inflicted heavy losses. IAF aircraft losses mounted to three aircraft for every 200 sorties, an unsustainable rate. The Israelis responded by rapidly devising new tactics to thwart the Egyptian air defenses.[172][173]
On October 8, after Elazar had left, Gonen changed the plans on the basis of unduly optimistic field reports. Adan's division was composed of three brigades totaling 183 tanks. One of the brigades was still en route to the area, and would participate in the attack by noon, along with a supporting mechanized infantry brigade with an additional 44 tanks.[174][175] The Israeli counterattack was in the direction of the Bar Lev strongpoints opposite the city of Ismailia, against entrenched Egyptian infantry. In a series of ill-coordinated attacks which were met by stiff resistance from Egyptian tanks, artillery, and infantry armed with anti-tank rockets, the Israelis were repulsed with heavy losses. An initial Israeli attack by some 25 tanks broke through the first Egyptian troops and managed to come within 800 metres (2,600 ft) of the canal before coming under withering fire. The Israelis lost 18 tanks within minutes and most of the commanders were killed or wounded. This was followed by a second attack by elements of two Israeli brigades, which had communication and coordination problems. The Egyptians allowed the Israelis to advance and then encircled them in a prepared kill zone before opening fire, wiping out most of the Israeli force within 13 minutes. The Egyptians destroyed over 50 Israeli tanks and captured eight intact.[176]
That afternoon, Egyptian forces advanced once more to deepen their bridgeheads, and as a result the Israelis lost several strategic positions. Further Israeli attacks to regain the lost ground proved futile.[176] Towards nightfall, an Egyptian counterattack was repulsed with the loss of 50 Egyptian tanks by the Israeli 143rd Armored Division, which was led by Ariel Sharon, who had been reinstated as a division commander at the outset of the war. Garwych, citing Egyptian sources, documented Egyptian tank losses up to October 13 at 240.[177]
Temporary stabilization According to Herzog, by October 9 the front lines had stabilized. The Egyptians were unable to advance further,[178] and Egyptian armored attacks on October 9 and 10 were repulsed with heavy losses. However, this claim was disputed by Shazly, who claimed that the Egyptians continued to advance and improve their positions well into October 10. He pointed to one engagement, which involved elements of the 1st Infantry Brigade, attached to the 19th Division, which captured Ayoun Mousa, south of Suez.[179]
The Egyptian 1st Mechanized Brigade launched a failed attack southward along the Gulf of Suez in the direction of Ras Sudar. Leaving the safety of the SAM umbrella, the force was attacked by Israeli aircraft and suffered heavy losses.[179][180] Shazly cited this experience as a basis to resist pressure by the Minister of War, General Ahmad Ismail Ali, to attack eastward toward the Mitla and Gidi Passes.
Between October 10 and 13, both sides refrained from any large-scale actions, and the situation was relatively stable. Both sides launched small-scale attacks, and the Egyptians used helicopters to land commandos behind Israeli lines. Some Egyptian helicopters were shot down, and those commando forces that managed to land were quickly destroyed by Israeli troops. In one key engagement on October 13, a particularly large Egyptian incursion was stopped and close to a hundred Egyptian commandos were killed.[115][unreliable source? ]
Failed Egyptian attack General Shazly strongly opposed any eastward advance that would leave his armor without adequate air cover. He was overruled by General Ismail and Sadat, whose aims were to seize the strategic Mitla and Gidi Passes and the Israeli nerve centre at Refidim, which they hoped would relieve pressure on the Syrians (who were by now on the defensive) by forcing Israel to shift divisions from the Golan to the Sinai.[181][182]
The 1973 War in the Sinai, October 15''24
The 2nd and 3rd Armies were ordered to attack eastward in six simultaneous thrusts over a broad front, leaving behind five infantry divisions to hold the bridgeheads. The attacking forces, consisting of 800[183]''1,000 tanks[184] would not have SAM cover, so the Egyptian Air Force (EAF) was tasked with their defense against Israeli aerial attacks. Armored and mechanized units initiated the attack on October 14 with artillery support. They were up against 700[183]''750[184] Israeli tanks.
Preparatory to the tank attack, Egyptian helicopters set down 100 commandos near the Lateral Road to disrupt the Israeli rear. An Israeli reconnaissance unit quickly subdued them, killing 60 and taking numerous prisoners. Still bruised by the extensive losses their commandos had suffered on the opening day of the war, the Egyptians were unable or unwilling to implement further commando operations that had been planned in conjunction with the armored attack.[185] The Egyptian armored thrust suffered heavy losses. Instead of concentrating forces of maneuvering, except for the wadi thrust, Egyptian units launched head-on-attacks against the waiting Israeli defenses.[186]
The Egyptian attack was decisively repelled. At least 250 Egyptian tanks[187][188][189][190] and some 200 armored vehicles[188] were destroyed. Egyptian casualties exceeded 1,000.[190][191] Fewer than 40 Israeli tanks were hit, and all but six of them were repaired by Israeli maintenance crews and returned to service,[188] while Israeli casualties numbered 665.[192]
Kenneth Pollack credited a successful Israeli commando raid early on October 14 against an Egyptian signals-intercept site at Jebel Ataqah with seriously disrupting Egyptian command and control and contributing to its breakdown during the engagement.[193]
Israeli planned counter-attack considerations With the situation on the Syrian front stabilizing, the Israeli High Command agreed that the time was ripe for an Israeli counterattack and strike across the canal.
General Sharon advocated an immediate crossing at Deversoir at the northern edge of Great Bitter Lake. On October 9, a reconnaissance force attached to Colonel Amnon Reshef's Brigade detected a gap between the Egyptian Second and Third Armies in this sector.[184] According to General Gamasy, the gap had been spotted by an American SR-71 spy plane.[194] Chief of Staff Elazar and General Chaim Bar-Lev, who had by now replaced Gonen as Chief of Southern Command, agreed that this was the ideal spot for a crossing. However, given the size of the Egyptian armored reserves, the Israelis chose to wait for an opportunity that would allow them to weaken Egyptian armored strength before initiating any crossing.
The opportunity arrived on October 12, when Israeli intelligence detected signs that the Egyptians were gearing up for a major armored thrust.[195] This was precisely the moment the Israelis had been waiting for. They could finally utilize their advantages in speed, maneuver and tank gunnery, areas in which they excelled. Once Egyptian armored strength was sufficiently degraded, the Israelis would commence their own canal crossing.
Israeli breakthrough and crossing of the Suez Canal Israeli tanks crossing the Suez Canal
The Israelis immediately followed the Egyptian failed attack of October 14 with a multidivisional counterattack through the gap between the Egyptian Second and Third Armies. Sharon's 143rd Division, now reinforced with a paratroop brigade commanded by Colonel Danny Matt, was tasked with establishing bridgeheads on the east and west banks of the canal. The 162nd and 252nd Armored Divisions, commanded by Generals Avraham Adan and Kalman Magen, respectively, would then cross through the breach to the west bank of the canal and swing southward, encircling the 3rd Army.[196] The offensive was code-named Operation Stouthearted Men or alternatively, Operation Valiant.
On the night of October 15, 750 of Colonel Matt's paratroopers crossed the canal in rubber dinghies.[197] They were soon joined by tanks, ferried on motorized rafts, and additional infantry. The force encountered no resistance initially and fanned out in raiding parties, attacking supply convoys, SAM sites, logistic centers and anything else of military value, with priority given to the SAMs. Attacks on SAM sites punched a hole in the Egyptian anti-aircraft screen and enabled the IAF to strike Egyptian ground targets more aggressively.[198]
On the night of October 15, 20 Israeli tanks and seven APCs under the command of Colonel Haim Erez crossed the canal and penetrated 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) into Egypt, taking the Egyptians by surprise. For the first 24 hours, Erez's force attacked SAM sites and military columns with impunity, including a major raid on Egyptian missile bases on October 16, in which three Egyptian missile bases were destroyed, along with several tanks, for no Israeli losses. On the morning of October 17, the force was attacked by the 23rd Egyptian Armored Brigade, but managed to repulse the attack. By this time, the Syrians no longer posed a credible threat and the Israelis were able to shift their air power to the south in support of the offensive.[199] The combination of a weakened Egyptian SAM umbrella and a greater concentration of Israeli fighter-bombers meant that the IAF was capable of greatly increasing sorties against Egyptian military targets, including convoys, armor and airfields. The Egyptian bridges across the canal were damaged in Israeli air and artillery attacks.[2]
Israeli jets began attacking Egyptian SAM sites and radars, prompting General Ismail to withdraw much of the Egyptians' air defense equipment. This in turn gave the IAF still greater freedom to operate in Egyptian airspace. Israeli jets also attacked and destroyed underground communication cables at Banha in the Nile Delta, forcing the Egyptians to transmit selective messages by radio, which could be intercepted. Aside from the cables at Banha, Israel refrained from attacking economic and strategic infrastructure following an Egyptian threat to retaliate against Israeli cities with Scud missiles. Israeli aircraft bombed Egyptian Scud batteries at Port Said several times. The Egyptian Air Force attempted to interdict IAF sorties and attack Israeli ground forces, but suffered heavy losses in dogfights and from Israeli air defenses, while inflicting light aircraft losses. The heaviest air battles took place over the northern Nile Delta, where the Israelis repeatedly attempted to destroy Egyptian airbases.[2][200] Although the Israelis tended to come out on top in aerial battles, one notable exception was the air battle of Mansoura, when an Israeli raid against the Egyptian airbases of Tanta and Mansoura was repulsed by Egyptian fighter aircraft.
Securing the bridgehead Despite the success the Israelis were having on the west bank, Generals Bar-Lev and Elazar ordered Sharon to concentrate on securing the bridgehead on the east bank. He was ordered to clear the roads leading to the canal as well as a position known as the Chinese Farm, just north of Deversoir, the Israeli crossing point. Sharon objected and requested permission to expand and break out of the bridgehead on the west bank, arguing that such a maneuver would cause the collapse of Egyptian forces on the east bank. But the Israeli high command was insistent, believing that until the east bank was secure, forces on the west bank could be cut off. Sharon was overruled by his superiors and relented.[201]
On October 16, he dispatched Amnon Reshef's Brigade to attack the Chinese Farm. Other IDF forces attacked entrenched Egyptian forces overlooking the roads to the canal. After three days of bitter and close-quarters fighting, the Israelis succeeded in dislodging the numerically superior Egyptian forces. The Israelis lost about 300 dead, 1,000 wounded, and 56 tanks. The Egyptians suffered heavier casualties, including 118 tanks destroyed and 15 captured.[202][203][204][205][206][207]
Egyptian response to the Israeli crossing The Egyptians, meanwhile, failed to grasp the extent and magnitude of the Israeli crossing, nor did they appreciate its intent and purpose. This was partly due to attempts by Egyptian field commanders to obfuscate reports concerning the Israeli crossing[208] and partly due to a false assumption that the canal crossing was merely a diversion for a major IDF offensive targeting the right flank of the Second Army.[209] Consequently, on October 16 General Shazly ordered the 21st Armored Division to attack southward and the T-62-equipped 25th Independent Armored Brigade to attack northward in a pincer action to eliminate the perceived threat to the Second Army.[210]
The Egyptians failed to scout the area and were unaware that by now, Adan's 162nd Armored Division was in the vicinity. Moreover, the 21st and 25th failed to coordinate their attacks, allowing General Adan's Division to meet each force separately. Adan first concentrated his attack on the 21st Armored Division, destroying 50''60 Egyptian tanks and forcing the remainder to retreat. He then turned southward and ambushed the 25th Independent Armored Brigade, destroying 86 of its 96 tanks and all of its APCs, while losing three tanks.[210]
Destroyed Israeli
M48 Patton tanks on the banks of the Suez Canal
Egyptian artillery shelled the Israeli bridge over the canal on the morning of October 17, scoring several hits. The Egyptian Air Force launched repeated raids, some with up to 20 aircraft, to take out the bridge and rafts, damaging the bridge. The Egyptians had to shut down their SAM sites during these raids, allowing Israeli fighters to intercept the Egyptians. The Egyptians lost 16 planes and seven helicopters, while the Israelis lost six planes.[211]
The bridge was damaged, and the Israeli Paratroop Headquarters, which was near the bridge, was also hit; its commander and his deputy were wounded. During the night, the bridge was repaired, but only a trickle of Israeli forces was able to cross. According to Chaim Herzog, the Egyptians continued attacking the bridgehead until the ceasefire, using artillery and mortars to fire tens of thousands of shells into the area of the crossing. Egyptian aircraft attempted to bomb the bridge every day, and helicopters launched suicide missions, making attempts to drop barrels of napalm on the bridge and bridgehead. The bridges were damaged multiple times, and had to be repaired at night. The attacks caused heavy casualties, and many tanks were sunk when their rafts were hit. Egyptian commandos and frogmen with armored support launched a ground attack against the bridgehead, which was repulsed with the loss of 10 tanks. Two subsequent Egyptian counterattacks were also beaten back.[2]
After the failure of the October 17 counterattacks, the Egyptian General Staff slowly began to realize the magnitude of the Israeli offensive. Early on October 18, the Soviets showed Sadat satellite imagery of Israeli forces operating on the west bank. Alarmed, Sadat dispatched Shazly to the front to assess the situation first-hand. He no longer trusted his field commanders to provide accurate reports.[212] Shazly confirmed that the Israelis had at least one division on the west bank and were widening their bridgehead. He advocated withdrawing most of Egypt's armor from the east bank to confront the growing Israeli threat on the west bank. Sadat rejected this recommendation outright and even threatened Shazly with a court martial.[213] Ahmad Ismail Ali recommended that Sadat push for a ceasefire so as to prevent the Israelis from exploiting their successes.[212]
Israeli forces across the Suez A knocked-out Egyptian tank
Israeli forces were by now pouring across the canal on two bridges, including one of Israeli design, and motorized rafts. Israeli engineers under Brigadier-General Dan Even had worked under heavy Egyptian fire to set up the bridges, and over 100 were killed and hundreds more wounded.[214] The crossing was difficult because of Egyptian artillery fire, though by 4:00 am, two of Adan's brigades were on the west bank of the canal. On the morning of October 18, Sharon's forces on the west bank launched an offensive toward Ismailia, slowly pushing back the Egyptian paratroop brigade occupying the sand rampart northward to enlarge the bridgehead.[2][215] Some of his units attempted to move west, but were stopped at the crossroads in Nefalia. Adan's division rolled south toward Suez City while Magen's division pushed west toward Cairo and south toward Adabiya.[216][217] On October 19, one of Sharon's brigades continued to push the Egyptian paratroopers north towards Ismailia until the Israelis were within 8 or 10 km (5 or 6 mi) of the city. Sharon hoped to seize the city and thereby sever the logistical and supply lines for most of the Egyptian Second Army. Sharon's second brigade began to cross the canal. The brigade's forward elements moved to the Abu Sultan Camp, from where they moved north to take Orcha, an Egyptian logistics base defended by a commando battalion. Israeli infantrymen cleared the trenches and bunkers, often engaging in hand-to-hand combat, as tanks moved alongside them and fired into the trench sections to their front. The position was secured before nightfall. More than 300 Egyptians were killed and 50 taken prisoner, while the Israelis lost 16 dead. The fall of Orcha caused the collapse of the Egyptian defensive line, allowing more Israeli troops to get onto the sand rampart. There, they were able to fire in support of Israeli troops facing Missouri Ridge, an Egyptian-occupied position on the Bar-Lev Line that could pose a threat to the Israeli crossing. On the same day, Israeli paratroopers participating in Sharon's drive pushed the Egyptians back far enough for the Israeli bridges to be out of sight of Egyptian artillery observers, though the Egyptians continued shelling the area.[218]
As the Israelis pushed towards Ismailia, the Egyptians fought a delaying battle, retreating into defensive positions further north as they came under increasing pressure from the Israeli ground offensive, coupled with airstrikes. On October 21, one of Sharon's brigades was occupying the city's outskirts, but facing fierce resistance from Egyptian paratroopers and commandos. The same day, Sharon's last remaining unit on the east bank attacked Missouri Ridge. Shmuel Gonen had demanded Sharon capture the position, and Sharon had reluctantly ordered the attack. The assault was preceded by an air attack that caused hundreds of Egyptian soldiers to flee and thousands of others to dig in. One battalion then attacked from the south, destroying 20 tanks and overrunning infantry positions before being halted by Sagger rockets and minefields. Another battalion attacked from the southwest and inflicted heavy losses on the Egyptians, but its advance was halted after eight tanks were knocked out. The surviving Israeli soldiers managed to hold off an Egyptian infantry assault while losing two soldiers before surrendering. Two of the Israeli soldiers managed to hide and escape back to Israeli lines. The Israelis managed to occupy one-third of Missouri Ridge. Defense Minister Moshe Dayan countermanded orders from Sharon's superiors to continue the attack.[219][220] However, the Israelis continued to expand their holdings on the east bank. According to the Israelis, the IDF bridgehead was 40 km (25 mi) wide and 32 km (20 mi) deep by the end of October 21.[221]
On October 22, Ismailia's Egyptian defenders were occupying their last line of defense, but managed to repel an Israeli attempt to get behind Ismailia and encircle the city, then push some of Sharon's forward troops back to the Sweetwater Canal. The Israeli advance on Ismailia was stopped 10 km (6 mi) south of the city. Both sides had suffered heavy losses.
On the northern front, the Israelis also attacked Port Said, facing Egyptian troops and a 900-strong Tunisian unit, who fought a defensive battle.[222] The Egyptian government claimed that the city was repeatedly bombed by Israeli jets, and that hundreds of civilians were killed or wounded.[223]
Adan and Magen moved south, decisively defeating the Egyptians in a series of engagements, though they often encountered determined Egyptian resistance, and both sides suffered heavy casualties.[215] Adan advanced towards the Sweetwater Canal area, planning to break out into the surrounding desert and hit the Geneifa Hills, where many SAM sites were located. Adan's three armored brigades fanned out, with one advancing through the Geneifa Hills, another along a parallel road south of them, and the third advancing towards Mina. Adan's brigades met resistance from dug-in Egyptian forces in the Sweetwater Canal area's greenbelt. Adan's other brigades were also held by a line of Egyptian military camps and installations. Adan was also harassed by the Egyptian Air Force. The Israelis slowly advanced, bypassing Egyptian positions whenever possible. After being denied air support due to the presence of two SAM batteries that had been brought forward, Adan sent two brigades to attack them. The brigades slipped past the dug-in Egyptian infantry, moving out from the greenbelt for more than 8 km (5 mi), and fought off multiple Egyptian counterattacks. From a distance of 4 km (2 + 1 ' 2 mi), they shelled and destroyed the SAMs, allowing the IAF to provide Adan with close air support.[224] Adan's troops advanced through the greenbelt and fought their way to the Geneifa Hills, clashing with scattered Egyptian, Kuwaiti and Palestinian troops. The Israelis clashed with an Egyptian armored unit at Mitzeneft and destroyed multiple SAM sites. Adan also captured Fayid Airport, which was subsequently prepared by Israeli crews to serve as a supply base and to fly out wounded soldiers.[225]
Sixteen kilometres (10 mi) west of the Bitter Lake, Colonel Natke Nir's brigade overran an Egyptian artillery brigade that had been participating in the shelling of the Israeli bridgehead. Scores of Egyptian artillerymen were killed and many more taken prisoner. Two Israeli soldiers were also killed, including the son of General Moshe Gidron. Meanwhile, Magen's division moved west and then south, covering Adan's flank and eventually moving south of Suez City to the Gulf of Suez.[226] The Israeli advance southward reached Port Suez, on the southern boundary of the Suez Canal.
The ceasefire and further battles When the ceasefire came into effect, Israel had lost territory on the east side of the Suez Canal to Egypt ''
, but gained territory west of the canal and in the Golan Heights ''
.
An Israeli soldier on the road to
IsmailiaThe United Nations Security Council passed (14''0) Resolution 338 calling for a ceasefire, largely negotiated between the U.S. and Soviet Union, on October 22. It called upon the belligerents to immediately cease all military activity. The cease-fire was to come into effect 12 hours later at 6:52 pm Israeli time.[227] Because this was after dark, it was impossible for satellite surveillance to determine where the front lines were when the fighting was supposed to stop.[228] U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger intimated to Prime Minister Meir that he would not object to offensive action during the night before the ceasefire was to come into effect.[229]
Several minutes before the ceasefire came into effect, three Scud missiles were fired at Israeli targets by either Egyptian forces or Soviet personnel in Egypt. This was the first combat use of Scud missiles. One Scud targeted the port of Arish and two targeted the Israeli bridgehead on the Suez Canal. One hit an Israeli supply convoy and killed seven soldiers.[230] When the time for the ceasefire arrived, Sharon's division had failed to capture Ismailia and cut off the Second Army's supply lines, but Israeli forces were just a few hundred metres short of their southern goal'--the last road linking Cairo and Suez.[231]
Adan's drive south had left Israeli and Egyptian units scattered throughout the battlefield, with no clear lines between them. As Egyptian and Israeli units tried to regroup, regular firefights broke out. During the night, Elazar reported that the Egyptians were attacking in an attempt to regain land at various locations, and that nine Israeli tanks had been destroyed. He asked permission from Dayan to respond to the attacks and Dayan agreed. Israel then resumed its drive south.[232]
It is unclear which side fired first[233] but Israeli field commanders used the skirmishes as justification to resume the attacks. When Sadat protested alleged Israeli truce violations, Israel said that Egyptian troops had fired first. William B. Quandt noted that regardless of who fired the first post-ceasefire shot, it was the Israeli Army that was advancing beyond the October 22 ceasefire lines.[234]
Adan resumed his attack on October 23.[235][236] Israeli troops finished the drive south, captured the last ancillary road south of the port of Suez, and encircled the Egyptian Third Army east of the Suez Canal.[237] The Israelis then transported enormous amounts of military equipment across the canal, which Egypt claimed was in violation of the ceasefire.[233] Egyptian aircraft launched repeated attacks in support of the Third Army, sometimes in groups of up to 30 planes, but took severe losses.[13]
Israeli armor and paratroopers also entered Suez in an attempt to capture the city, but they were confronted by Egyptian soldiers and hastily raised local militia forces. They were surrounded, but towards night the Israeli forces managed to extricate themselves. The Israelis had lost 80 dead and 120 wounded, with an unknown number of Egyptian casualties, for no tactical gain (see Battle of Suez).[236][238]
The next morning, October 23, a flurry of diplomatic activity occurred. Soviet reconnaissance flights had confirmed that Israeli forces were moving south, and the Soviets accused the Israelis of treachery. Kissinger called Meir in an effort to persuade her to withdraw a few hundred metres and she indicated that Israel's tactical position on the ground had improved.
Egypt's trapped Third Army Kissinger found out about the Third Army's encirclement shortly thereafter.[239] Kissinger considered that the situation presented the United States with a tremendous opportunity and that Egypt was dependent on the United States to prevent Israel from destroying its trapped army. The position could be parlayed later into allowing the United States to mediate in the dispute and wean Egypt from Soviet influence. As a result, the United States exerted tremendous pressure on the Israelis to refrain from destroying the trapped army, even threatening to support a UN resolution demanding that the Israelis withdraw to their October 22 positions if they did not allow non-military supplies to reach the army. In a phone call with Israeli ambassador Simcha Dinitz, Kissinger told the ambassador that the destruction of the Egyptian Third Army "is an option that does not exist."[240]
Despite being surrounded, the Third Army managed to maintain its combat integrity east of the canal and keep up its defensive positions, to the surprise of many.[241] According to Trevor N. Dupuy, the Israelis, Soviets and Americans overestimated the vulnerability of the Third Army at the time. It was not on the verge of collapse, and he wrote that while a renewed Israeli offensive would probably overcome it, this was not a certainty.[242] According to David Elazar, Chief of Israeli headquarters staff, on December 3, 1973: "As for the third army, in spite of our encircling them they resisted and advanced to occupy in fact a wider area of land at the east. Thus, we can not say that we defeated or conquered them."
David T. Buckwalter agrees that despite the isolation of the Third Army, it was unclear if the Israelis could have protected their forces on the west bank of the canal from a determined Egyptian assault and still maintain sufficient strength along the rest of the front.[243] This assessment was challenged by Patrick Seale, who stated that the Third Army was "on the brink of collapse".[244] Seale's position was supported by P.R. Kumaraswamy, who wrote that intense American pressure prevented the Israelis from annihilating the stranded Third Army.[245]
Herzog noted that given the Third Army's desperate situation, in terms of being cut off from re-supply and reassertion of Israeli air superiority, the destruction of the Third Army was inevitable and could have been achieved within a very brief period.[246] Shazly himself described the Third Army's plight as "desperate" and classified its encirclement as a "catastrophe that was too big to hide".[247] He further noted that, "the fate of the Egyptian Third Army was in the hands of Israel. Once the Third Army was encircled by Israeli troops every bit of bread to be sent to our men was paid for by meeting Israeli demands."[248]
Shortly before the ceasefire came into effect, an Israeli tank battalion advanced into Adabiya, and took it with support from the Israeli Navy. Some 1,500 Egyptian prisoners were taken, and about a hundred Egyptian soldiers assembled just south of Adabiya, where they held out against the Israelis. The Israelis also conducted their third and final incursion into Suez. They made some gains, but failed to break into the city center. As a result, the city was partitioned down the main street, with the Egyptians holding the city center and the Israelis controlling the outskirts, port installations and oil refinery, effectively surrounding the Egyptian defenders.[2][249]
Post-war battles On the morning of October 26, the Egyptian Third Army violated the ceasefire by attempting to break through the surrounding Israeli forces. The attack was repulsed by Israeli air and ground forces.[250] The Egyptians also made minor gains in attacks against Sharon's forces in the Ismailia area.[2] The Israelis reacted by bombing and shelling priority targets in Egypt, including command posts and water reserves.[251] The front was quieter in the Second Army's sector in the northern canal area, where both sides generally respected the ceasefire.[2]
Though most heavy fighting ended on October 28, the fighting never stopped until January 18, 1974. Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan stated that:
The cease-fire existed on paper, but the continued firing along the front was not the only characteristic of the situation between October 24, 1973 and January 18, 1974. This intermediate period also held the ever-present possibility of a renewal of full-scale war. There were three variations on how it might break out, two Egyptian and one Israeli. One Egyptian plan was to attack Israeli units west of the canal from the direction of Cairo. The other was to cut off the Israeli canal bridgehead by a link-up of the Second and Third Armies on the east bank. Both plans were based on massive artillery pounding of Israeli forces, who were not well fortified and who would suffer heavy casualties. It was therefore thought that Israel would withdraw from the west bank, since she was most sensitive on the subject of soldier's lives. Egypt, at the time had a total of 1,700 first-line tanks on both sides of the canal front, 700 on the east bank and 1,000 on the west bank. Also on the west bank, in the second line, were an additional 600 tanks for the defense of Cairo. She had some 2,000 artillery pieces, about 500 operational aircraft, and at least 130 SAM missile batteries positioned around our forces so as to deny us air support.[252]
The IDF acknowledged the loss of 14 soldiers during this postwar period. Egyptian losses were higher, especially in the sector controlled by Ariel Sharon, who ordered his troops to respond with massive firepower to any Egyptian provocation.[253] Some aerial battles took place, and the Israelis also shot down several helicopters attempting to resupply the Third Army.[14]
Final situation on the Egyptian front By the end of the war, the Israelis had advanced to positions some 101 kilometres from Egypt's capital, Cairo, and occupied 1,600 square kilometres west of the Suez Canal.[254] They had also cut the Cairo-Suez road and encircled the bulk of Egypt's Third Army. The Israelis had also taken many prisoners after Egyptian soldiers, including many officers, began surrendering in masses towards the end of the war.[255] The Egyptians held a narrow strip on the east bank of the canal, occupying some 1,200 square kilometres of the Sinai.[255] One source estimated that the Egyptians had 70,000 men, 720 tanks and 994 artillery pieces on the east bank of the canal.[256] However, 30,000 to 45,000 of them were now encircled by the Israelis.[257][258]
Despite Israel's tactical successes west of the canal, the Egyptian military was reformed and organized. Consequently, according to Gamasy, the Israeli military position became "weak" for different reasons:
One, Israel now had a large force (about six or seven brigades) in a very limited area of land, surrounded from all sides either by natural or man-made barriers, or by the Egyptian forces. This put it in a weak position. Moreover, there were the difficulties in supplying this force, in evacuating it, in the lengthy communication lines, and in the daily attrition in men and equipment. Two, to protect these troops, the Israeli command had to allocate other forces (four or five brigades) to defend the entrances to the breach at the Deversoir. Three, to immobilize the Egyptian bridgeheads in Sinai the Israeli command had to allocate ten brigades to face the Second and Third army bridgeheads. In addition, it became necessary to keep the strategic reserves at their maximum state of alert. Thus, Israel was obliged to keep its armed force - and consequently the country - mobilized for a long period, at least until the war came to an end, because the ceasefire did not signal the end of the war. There is no doubt that this in total conflict with its military theories.[259]
For those reasons and according to Dayan, "It was therefore thought that Israel would withdraw from the west bank, since she was most sensitive on the subject of soldier's lives." The Egyptian forces didn't pull to the west and held onto their positions east of the canal controlling both shores of the Suez Canal. None of the Canal's main cities were occupied by Israel; however, the city of Suez was surrounded.
Egypt wished to end the war when it realized that the IDF canal crossing offensive could result in a catastrophe.[260] The Egyptians' besieged Third Army could not hold on without supply.[35][248] The Israeli Army advanced to 100 km from Cairo, which worried Egypt.[35] The Israeli army had open terrain and no opposition to advance further to Cairo; had they done so, Sadat's rule might have ended.[261]
Golan Heights front Initial Syrian attacks A map of the fighting on the Golan Heights
In the Golan Heights, the Syrians attacked two Israeli armored brigades, an infantry brigade, two paratrooper battalions and eleven artillery batteries with five divisions (the 7th, 9th and 5th, with the 1st and 3rd in reserve) and 188 batteries. At the onset of the battle, the Israeli brigades of some 3,000 troops, 180 tanks and 60 artillery pieces faced off against three infantry divisions with large armor components comprising 28,000 Syrian troops, 800 tanks and 600 artillery pieces. In addition, the Syrians deployed two armored divisions from the second day onwards.[45][46][262][263] To fight the opening phase of a possible battle, before reserves arrived, Israeli high command had, conforming to the original plan, allocated a single armored brigade, the 188th, accepting a disparity in tank numbers of eighteen to one.[264] When the warning by King Hussein of an imminent Syrian attack was conveyed, Elazar at first only assigned two additional tank companies from 7th Armored Brigade: "We'll have one hundred tanks against their eight hundred. That ought to be enough".[265] Eventually, his deputy, Israel Tal, ordered the entire 7th Armored Brigade to be brought up.[266] Efforts had been made to improve the Israeli defensive position. The "Purple Line" ran along a series of low dormant volcanic cones, "tels", in the north and deep ravines in the south. It was covered by a continuous tank ditch, bunker complexes and dense minefields. Directly west of this line a series of tank ramps were constructed: earthen platforms on which a Centurion tank could position itself with only its upper turret and gun visible, offering a substantial advantage when duelling the fully exposed enemy tanks.[267]
The Syrians began their attack at 14:00 with an airstrike by about a hundred aircraft and a fifty-minute artillery barrage. The two forward infantry brigades, with an organic tank battalion, of each of the three infantry divisions then crossed the cease-fire lines, bypassing United Nations observer posts. They were covered by mobile anti-aircraft batteries, and equipped with bulldozers to fill-in anti-tank ditches, bridge-layer tanks to overcome obstacles and mine-clearance vehicles. These engineering vehicles were priority targets for Israeli tank gunners and took heavy losses, but Syrian infantry at points demolished the tank ditch, allowing their armor to cross.[268]
At 14:45, two hundred men from the Syrian 82nd Paratrooper Battalion descended on foot from Mount Hermon and around 17:00 took the Israeli observation base on the southern slope, with its advanced surveillance equipment. A small force dropped by four helicopters simultaneously placed itself on the access road south of the base.[269] Specialised intelligence personnel were captured. Made to believe that Israel had fallen, they disclosed much sensitive information.[270] A first Israeli attempt on October 8 to retake the base from the south was ambushed and beaten off with heavy losses.[271]
During the afternoon 7th Armored Brigade was still kept in reserve and the 188th Armored Brigade held the frontline with only two tank battalions, the 74th in the north and the 53rd in the south.[272] The northern battalion waged an exemplary defensive battle against the forward brigades of the Syrian 7th Infantry Division, destroying fifty-nine Syrian tanks for minimal losses.[273] The southern battalion destroyed a similar number, but facing four Syrian tank battalions from two divisions had a dozen of its own tanks knocked out.[274] At bunker complex 111, opposite Kudne in Syria, the defending company beat off "determined" and "bravely" pressed attacks by the Syrian 9th Infantry Division; by nightfall it was reduced to three tanks, with only sixty-nine anti-tank rounds between them.[275] Further successful resistance by the southern battalion was contingent on reinforcements.[274]
Direct operational command of the Golan had at first been given to the 188 AB commander, Yitzhak Ben-Shoham, who ordered the 7th AB to concentrate at Wasset.[276] The 7th AB commander, Avigdor Ben-Gal, resented obeying an officer of equal rank and went to the Northern Command headquarters at Nafah, announcing he would place his force in the northern sector at the "Quneitra Gap", a pass south of the Hermonit peak and the main access to the Golan Heights from the east. Northern Command was in the process of moving their headquarters to Safed in Galilee and the senior staff officers were absent at this moment, having expected the Syrian attack to start at 18:00. Operations officer Lieutenant-Colonel Uri Simhoni therefore improvised an allocation of the tactical reserves, thereby largely deciding the course of the battle.[277] The Armored School Centurion Tank Battalion (71st TB) was kept in general reserve. The 77th Tank Battalion of 7th AB was sent to Quneitra. Two companies of the 75th Mechanised Infantry Battalion, arrived in the morning, of the same brigade were sent to the southern sector. Also 82nd TB had to reinforce the south. However, Ben-Gal had split off a company of this battalion to serve as a reserve for his own brigade.[278] Another company, soon after arriving in the south, was ambushed by an infiltrated Syrian commando force armed with Sagger missiles and almost entirely wiped out.[279] As a result, effective reinforcement of the southern Golan sector was limited to just a single tank company.[280]
At 16:00, Yitzhak Hofi, head Northern Command, shortly visited Nafah and split command of the Golan front: the north would be the responsibility of 7th AB, to which 53rd TB would be transferred. Command of 188th AB would be limited to the south, taking over 82nd TB.[281] The first wave of the Syrian offensive had failed to penetrate, but at nightfall a second, larger, wave was launched. For this purpose each of the three infantry divisions, also committing their organic mechanised brigade with forty tanks, had been reinforced by an armored brigade of about ninety tanks. Two of these brigades were to attack the northern sector, four the southern sector.[282]
Successful Israeli defense of the Quneitra Gap by the 7th Armored Brigade Over four days of fighting, the 7th Armored Brigade in the north under Avigdor Ben-Gal managed to hold the rocky hill line defending the northern flank of their headquarters in Nafah, inflicting heavy losses on the Syrians. During the night of October 6/7 it beat off an attack of the Syrian 78th Armoured Brigade, attached to the 7th Infantry Division.[284] On October 7, 7th AB had to send part of its reserves to the collapsing southern sector. Replenishment from the Nafah mat(C)riel stock became impossible. Syrian High Command, understanding that forcing the Quneitra Gap would ensure a total victory on the Golan, decided to commit its strategic armored reserves. During the night of October 7/8, the independent 81st Armored Brigade, equipped with modern T-62's and part of the presidential guard, attacked but was beaten off.[285] After this fight, the Israeli brigade would refer to the gap as the "Valley of Tears".[286] Syrian Brigadier-General Omar Abrash, commander of the 7th Infantry Division, was killed on October 8 when his command tank was hit as he was preparing an attempt by 121st Mechanised Brigade to bypass the gap through a more southern route.[287]
Having practiced on the Golan Heights numerous times, Israeli gunners made effective use of mobile artillery.[268] During night attacks, however, the Syrian tanks had the advantage of active-illumination infrared night-vision equipment, which was not a standard Israeli equipment (instead, some Israeli tanks were fitted with large xenon searchlights which were useful in illuminating and locating enemy positions, troops and vehicles). The close distances during night engagements, negated the usual Israeli superiority in long-range duels. 77th Tank Battalion commander Avigdor Kahalani in the Quneitra Gap generally managed to hold a second tank ramp line.[268]
In the afternoon of October 9, Syrian command committed the Republican Guard independent 70th Armored Brigade, equipped with T-62's and BMP-1s.[288] To hold the gap, 7th AB could by now muster only some two dozen tanks, elements from the 77th, 74th, 82nd and 71st Tank Battalion. Israeli command had directed all reserves to the threatened southern sector, trusting that the northern sector was secure. Fighting in daylight proved to be advantageous to the Syrians: the better armored T-62's were hard to destroy at long range and their high-velocity 115 mm smoothbore guns were quite accurate at medium ranges, despite the lack of a rangefinder. Taking losses and hit by an intense artillery barrage, the Israeli Centurions withdrew from their tank ramps. The situation was restored by an ad hoc force of thirteen tanks formed by Lt. Col. Yossi Ben-Hanan from repaired vehicles and stray crews. The Syrians abandoned their last breakthrough attempt, having lost since October 6 some 260 tanks in the Quneitra Gap.[289]
Syrian breakthrough in the Southern Golan In the southern sector, the Israeli Barak Armored Brigade had to defend a much flatter terrain.[290] It also faced two-thirds of the Syrian second wave, while fielding at this time less than a third of the operational Israeli tanks. Beside these objective draw-backs, it suffered from ineffective command. Ben-Shoham initially still had his headquarters in Nafah, far from his sector. He did not realise a full war was in progress and tended to spread the 53rd TB platoons along the entire line, to stop any Syrian incursion. Also, he failed to coordinate the deployment of 82nd TB and 53rd TB.[291] The commander of 53rd TB, Lieutenant-Colonel Oded Eres, sent the two arriving companies of 82nd TB to his right flank and centre.[292] No further reinforcement materialising, he urgently ordered the southern company to the north again; it was ambushed on the way. His left flank at Kudne remained unreinforced, although the defending company had increased the number of operational tanks to eight. This was the main axis of the Syrian 9th Infantry Division and its commander, Colonel Hassan Tourkmani, ordered the remnants of an organic tank battalion to be sacrificed forcing the minefield belt.[293] Subsequently, the Syrian 51st Armored Brigade bypassed bunker complex 111 after dark. It then overran the Israeli supply compound at the Hushniya cross-roads.[294] Parts of the 75th Mechanised Infantry Battalion had been concentrated at Hushniya, but they did not consist of its two organic tank companies; they were M-113 units. Lacking modern antitank weapons, Israeli infantry was ineffective at stopping Syrian armor.[295] The 51st AB passing through the Kudne/Rafid Gap turned northwest to move along the Petroleum Road or "Tapline Road", which provided a diagonal route across the heights, running straight from Hushniya to Nafah, the Israeli Golan headquarters, in the rear of the Quneitra Gap.[296]
Abandoned Syrian
T-62 tanks on the Golan Heights
Israeli command was initially slow to realise that a breakthrough had taken place. Their main concern was that the Syrians would occupy some forward bunker complex or settlement.[297] The fact that the defending tank platoons were still intact was seen as proof that the line had not been broken. Ben-Shoham around 18:30 moved his headquarters to the south. Reports of Syrian radio traffic at Hushniya, of Israeli reserve tanks passing columns of Syrian tanks in the dark and of enemy tanks moving at the rear of the observation post on Tel Saki, were dismissed by him as misidentifications.[298] Only when two tanks parked in the dark near his staff vehicles and were recognised for T-55s when hastily driving away upon being hailed, he understood that a large Syrian tank unit had infiltrated his lines.[299]
As a result, no regular units were directed to block a Syrian advance to Nafah. Ben-Shoham had ordered Lieutenant Zvika Greengold, who, about to be trained as a tank company commander, had arrived at Nafah unattached to any combat unit, to gather some crews and follow him to the south with a few tanks to take command of the bunker complex 111 and 112 tank forces which had lost all officers. Five kilometres (three miles) south of Nafah base, Greengold was warned by a truck convoy that there were Syrian tanks ahead.[300] These belonged to the 452st Tank Battalion, hurrying north to surprise Nafah. Confronted at short range with a first group of three T-55's, Greengold's Centurion destroyed them in quick succession. He then moved parallel to the road to the south, hitting advancing Syrian tanks in the flank and destroying another ten until he approached Hushniya. From this the commander of 452st TB, Major Farouk Ismail, concluded that he had been ambushed by a strong Israeli tank unit and concentrated his remaining vehicles in a defensive position at Hushniya.[301] Greengold decided not to reveal how precarious the Israeli situation was, in radio contact with Ben-Shoham hiding the fact that his "Force Zvika" consisted of only a single tank.[302]
The next 9th Infantry Division unit to participate in the second wave, the 43rd Mechanised Infantry Brigade, entered the Golan at Kudne, but then sharply turned to the right advancing over the lateral "Reshet" road behind the Purple Line in the direction of Quneitra. Israeli 1st Infantry Brigade elements warned 7th Armored Brigade of the danger. Ben Gal then released the 82nd TB company he had held back, commanded by Captain Meir "Tiger" Zamir, and sent it to the south to cover his flank. Zamir ambushed the Syrian brigade; directing their fire with the xenon light projector on one of his tanks his company destroyed a dozen vehicles.[303] At dawn he surprised the enemy column from the rear and dispersed the remnants of 43 MIB, having knocked-out all of its forty tanks.[304]
Israeli strategic response Around midnight, Hofi, at Safed, began to understand the magnitude of the Syrian breakthrough. He warned chief-of-staff Elazar that the entire Golan might be lost. Overhearing this message, an alarmed Dayan decided to personally visit the Northern Command headquarters.[305] In the late night, Hofi informed Dayan that an estimated three hundred Syrian tanks had entered the southern Golan. No reserves were available to stop a Syrian incursion into Galilee. Visibly shaken by this news, the Israeli minister of defence ordered the Jordan bridges to be prepared for detonation.[306] Next, he contacted Benjamin Peled, commander of the Israeli Air Force. He shocked Peled by announcing that the Third Temple was about to fall. The IAF had just made a successful start with Operation Tagar, a very complex plan to neutralise the Egyptian AA-missile belt. Overruling objections by Peled, Dayan ordered to immediately carry out Operation Doogman 5 instead, the destruction of the Syrian SAM-belt, to allow the IAF to halt the Syrian advance.[307] As there was no time to obtain recent information on the location of the batteries,[308] the attempt was a costly failure. The Israelis destroyed only one Syrian missile battery but lost six Phantom II aircraft.[309] As a result, the IAF was unable to make a significant contribution to the defensive battle on the Golan. Over both fronts together, on October 7 only 129 bombardment sorties were flown.[310] It also proved impossible to restart Tagar, curtailing IAF operations on the Sinai front for the duration of the war.[311]
Less pessimistic than Dayan, Elazar was not ready yet to abandon the Golan Heights.[312] Israeli High Command had a strategic reserve, consisting of the 146th Ugda that was earmarked for Central Command, controlling the eastern border with Jordan. In the evening of October 6, Elazar had considered sending this division to the collapsing Sinai front in view of the initial defensive success at the Golan. The unexpected crisis led to an about-face. Priority was given to the north because of its proximity to Israeli population centers at Tiberias, Safed, Haifa and Netanya. Elazar ordered that, after mobilisation, the 146th Ugda was to reconquer the southern Golan.[313] This division would take some time to deploy. Some smaller units could be quickly mobilised to bolster the defenses. The Syrians had expected it to take at least twenty-four hours for Israeli reserves to reach the front lines; in fact, they began to join the fight only nine hours after the war began, twelve hours after the start of the mobilisation.[314] The Golan position had been at only 80% of its planned strength for the defensive phase of a full war with Syria.[315] Northern Command had a headquarters reserve consisting of a unnumbered rapid deployment Centurion tank battalion. Also, the 71st Mechanised Infantry Battalion, with two organic tank companies, of the 188th AB had not yet been activated. During the night of October 6/7 these two battalions were gradually brought up.[316]
Around 01:00 on October 7, the 36th Ugda was activated as a divisional headquarters under Brigadier Rafael Eitan, to take direct command of the northern front.[317] The 7th AB did not have this division as its original destination. It was an elite active General Headquarters reserve, moved from the Sinai to the Golan in reaction to the Syrian build-up. Under the original mobilisation Plan Gir ("Chalk"), the 36th Ugda was to be expanded by the 179th Armored Brigade. In the evening of October 6, it was considered to send this brigade to the Sinai instead but this option was abandoned after the Syrian breakthrough. To speed up the relocation of 7th AB to the north, this brigade had left its tanks at Tasa, the main mobilisation complex of the Sinai, and used the stocked vehicles of the 179th AB to rebuild itself at Nafah. In turn, the 179th AB began to mobilise in eastern Galilee, from the mobilisation complex at the foot of the Golan Heights, using the stocked vehicles of the 164th Armoured Brigade. This latter brigade was earmarked for the 240th Ugda, a division to be held in reserve. Assuming that a sustained Syrian offensive would have led to crippling Arab tank losses, 36th Ugda and 240th Ugda were in the prewar planning intended to execute an advance in the direction of Damascus, Operation Ze'ev Aravot ("Desert Wolf"). All remaining stocked Centurions in the north were eventually used to rebuild 7th and 188th AB in the night of October 9/10. The 164th AB was ultimately sent to the Sinai, to activate itself using the old 7th AB mat(C)riel.[318] Also the 679th Armored Brigade was intended to join the 240th Ugda and ordered to mobilise at noon October 6.[319] Reservists of both brigades arriving at the Galilee army depots were quickly assigned to tanks and sent to the front, without waiting for the crews they trained with to arrive,[320] machine guns to be installed, or the tank guns to be calibrated, a time-consuming process known as bore-sighting.[321] Elements of such larger units were during October 7 fed into the battle piece-meal.[322]
Collapse of the Israeli 188th Armored Brigade The Syrian first and second wave had in total numbered about six hundred tanks, half of which had been lost by the morning of October 7. By this time, the Israelis had committed about 250 tanks to battle.[323] Of the initially arriving reserves, the 71 MIB was used to block an advance by the westernmost elements of the Syrian 9th Infantry Division towards the Bnot Yaacov Bridge, the crucial connection between Galilee and Nafah. During the late evening of October 6, the NCTB advanced from Nafah towards Hushniya, attempting to seal the breakthrough point. The attack, running into prepared positions occupied by a superior force of T-55s, was a dismal failure, leaving all of its officers dead or wounded. Greengold incorporated the remnants of the unit into his "Force Zvika".[324]
By the early morning of October 7, all attempts to patch the breach in the main defensive line of the southern sector became futile because also the center and right flank of the 188th AB had started to collapse.[325] During the night, it had largely managed to hold its ground against continuous attacks, inflicting severe losses on the Syrians with accurate cannon fire, hoping to buy time for reserve forces to reach the front lines. Some tank crews sacrificed themselves rather than voluntarily give ground.[263] Gradually, the fighting subsided.[326] Dawn revealed that the Syrian 5th Infantry Division under the cover of darkness had at numerous points bridged the tank ditch and cleared corridors through the minefield belt. The situation of 188th AB was rendered even more hazardous by the presence in its rear of the Syrian 9th Infantry Division. It was decided to abandon the southern Golan. In the night, many artillery and logistic units had already withdrawn, some slipping through the columns of 9th ID, others being destroyed by them. Civilian Jewish settlements had been evacuated. The same now happened with most fortifications,[327] except bunker complex 116.[328] Ben-Shoham with his staff outflanked the Syrian penetration via a western route and reached the north.[329] The 82nd TB company that had reinforced the center, commanded by Eli Geva, had the previous evening destroyed about thirty Syrian tanks. It now successfully crossed the axis of 9th ID to the north.[330] Of the originally thirty-six tanks of 53rd TB, twelve remained. Eres hid them in the crater of Tel Faris,[325] where a surveillance base was located. During the late evening of October 7, he would successfully break out to the west.[331]
An abandoned Syrian
T-55 tank on the Golan Heights
The Syrian 5th ID subsequently occupied the plateau of the southern Golan. Ben-Shoham tried to maintain a foothold on the access roads by small groups of APCs manned by the 50th Paratrooper Battalion,[332] but these were easily brushed aside. The Syrian 47th Armored Brigade advanced along the escarpment to the north, in the direction of the Bnot Yaacov Bridge. The 132nd Mechanised Infantry Brigade positioned itself east of El Al, on the road along the Jordan border, running to the south of Lake Tiberias. Israeli General Dan Lener in the late night activated the divisional headquarters of the 210th Ugda to take control over the sector between the lake and the Bnot Yaacov Bridge but he had no regular units to hold this line.[333] For the moment, he could do little more than personally halt retreating troops and vehicles on the more southern Arik Bridge and send them over the River Jordan again. Israeli command feared that the Syrians would quickly exploit this situation by advancing into Galilee. Dayan in the morning of October 7 called Shalhevet Freier, the director-general of the Israel Atomic Energy Commission, to a meeting with Golda Meir to discuss the possible arming of nuclear weapons. Meir rejected this option.[334] The Syrian mechanised brigades in this area did not continue the offensive but began to entrench themselves in strong defensive positions. They had been forbidden by Al-Assad to approach the River Jordan, for fear of triggering an Israeli nuclear response.[335]
The original Syrian offensive plan Al-Aouda ("The Return"), devised by Major-General Adul Habeisi, had emphasized the element of tactical surprise. It was known to the Syrians that the 188th AB normally rotated its two tank battalions on the Purple Line, so that on any given moment just thirty-three tanks were guarding the tank ditch. Infiltrations by commando teams armed with Saggers were planned to quickly isolate these ten tank platoons from reinforcement by tactical reserves.[336] Simultaneously, helicopter-borne commando attacks at the Jordan bridges, landing during conditions of dusk to avoid the IAF, would isolate the Golan Heights from strategic reinforcements. Night attacks by the three Syrian infantry divisions would then fragment the weakly-held forward Israeli defensive positions. To conclude the operation and deter any Israeli attempt to reconquer the Golan, the Syrian 1st and 3rd Armored Division would advance onto the plateau. This way, it was hoped to take the Golan within thirty hours.[337] Coordination with Egypt forced a change of plans. The Egyptians wanted hostilities to start at noon;[338] in the end they agreed to a compromise time of 14:00.[339] The Syrian helicopter attacks were cancelled.[340] Now uncertain of a successful outcome, the Syrians became less committed to the attack. They decided to keep one armored division as a strategic reserve, together with the two presidential guard independent armored brigades, which fielded the most modern tank mat(C)riel.[341]
Greengold fought running battles in this area with Syrian armor for twenty hours, sometimes with his single tank and at other times as part of a larger unit, changing tanks half a dozen times as they were knocked out. Greengold suffered burn injuries, but stayed in action and repeatedly showed up at critical moments from an unexpected direction to change the course of a skirmish.[296] For his actions, he received Israel's highest decoration, the Medal of Valor.
Brigade Commander Colonel Shoham was killed on the second day, along with his second-in-command and operations officer, as the Syrians desperately tried to advance towards the Sea of Galilee and Nafah. At this point, the Barak Brigade was no longer a cohesive force, although surviving tanks and crewmen continued fighting independently. The Syrians were close to reaching the Israeli defenders at Nafah, yet stopped the advance on Nafah's fences at 1700; the pause lasted all night, allowing Israeli forces to form a defensive line.[263] It is surmised that the Syrians had calculated estimated advances, and the commanders in the field did not want to diverge from the plan.
Israel retakes the southern Golan The tide in the Golan began to turn as arriving Israeli reserve forces were able to contain the Syrian advance. Beginning on October 8, the Israelis began pushing the Syrians back towards the pre-war ceasefire lines, inflicting heavy tank losses. Another Syrian attack north of Quneitra was repulsed. The tiny Golan Heights were too small to act as an effective territorial buffer, unlike the Sinai Peninsula in the south, but it proved to be a strategic geographical stronghold and was a crucial key in preventing the Syrians from bombarding the cities below. The Israelis, who had suffered heavy casualties during the first three days of fighting, also began relying more heavily on artillery to dislodge the Syrians at long-range.
The aftermath of an Israeli airstrike on the Syrian General Staff headquarters in
DamascusOn October 9, Syrian FROG-7 surface-to-surface missiles struck the Israeli Air Force base of Ramat David, killing a pilot and injuring several soldiers. Additional missiles struck civilian settlements. In retaliation, seven Israeli F-4 Phantoms flew into Syria and struck the Syrian General Staff Headquarters in Damascus. The jets struck from Lebanese airspace to avoid the heavily defended regions around the Golan Heights, attacking a Lebanese radar station along the way. The upper floors of the Syrian GHQ and the Air Force Command were badly damaged. A Soviet cultural center, a television station, and other nearby structures were also mistakenly hit. One Israeli Phantom was shot down.[342][better source needed ] The strike prompted the Syrians to transfer air defense units from the Golan Heights to the home front, allowing the IAF greater freedom of action.[268]
On October 9, as the last Syrian units were being driven from the Golan Heights, the Syrians launched a counterattack north of Quneitra. As part of the operation, they attempted to land heli-borne troops in the vicinity of El Rom. The counterattack was repulsed, and four Syrian helicopters were shot down with total loss of life.[343] By October 10, the last Syrian unit in the central sector was pushed back across the Purple Line, the pre-war ceasefire line. After four days of intense and incessant combat, the Israelis had succeeded in ejecting the Syrians from the entire Golan.[268]
Israeli advance towards Damascus A decision now had to be made'--whether to stop at the post-1967 border or to continue advancing into Syrian territory. The Israeli High Command spent all of October 10 debating well into the night. Some favored disengagement, which would allow soldiers to be redeployed to the Sinai (Shmuel Gonen's defeat at Hizayon in the Sinai had taken place two days earlier). Others favored continuing the attack into Syria, towards Damascus, which would knock Syria out of the war; it would also restore Israel's image as the supreme military power in the Middle East and would give Israel a valuable bargaining chip once the war ended.[344]
Others countered that Syria had strong defenses'--antitank ditches, minefields, and strongpoints'--and that it would be better to fight from defensive positions in the Golan Heights (rather than the flat terrain deeper in Syria) in the event of another war with Syria. However, Prime Minister Golda Meir realized the most crucial point of the whole debate:
It would take four days to shift a division to the Sinai. If the war ended during this period, the war would end with a territorial loss for Israel in the Sinai and no gain in the north'--an unmitigated defeat. This was a political matter and her decision was unmitigating'--to cross the purple line. ... The attack would be launched tomorrow, Thursday, October 11.[344]
Quneitra village after Israeli shelling, showing a church and an elevated car
On October 11, Israeli forces pushed into Syria and advanced towards Damascus along the Quneitra-Damascus road until October 14, encountering stiff resistance by Syrian reservists in prepared defenses. Three Israeli divisions broke the first and second defensive lines near Sasa, and conquered a further 50 square kilometres of territory in the Bashan salient. From there, they were able to shell the outskirts of Damascus, only 40 km away, using M107 heavy artillery.
On October 12, Israeli paratroopers from the elite Sayeret Tzanhanim reconnaissance unit launched Operation Gown, infiltrating deep into Syria and destroying a bridge in the tri-border area of Syria, Iraq, and Jordan. The operation disrupted the flow of weapons and troops to Syria. During the operation, the paratroopers destroyed a number of tank transports and killed several Syrian soldiers. There were no Israeli casualties.[345]
Arab military intervention As the Syrian position deteriorated, Jordan sent an expeditionary force into Syria. King Hussein, who had come under intense pressure to enter the war, told Israel of his intentions through U.S. intermediaries, in the hope that Israel would accept that this was not a casus belli justifying an attack on Jordan. Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan declined to offer any such assurance, but said that Israel had no intention of opening another front.[346] Iraq also sent an expeditionary force to Syria, consisting of the 3rd and 6th Armoured Divisions, some 30,000 men, 250''500 tanks, and 700 APCs.[6][47][347] Israeli jets attacked Iraqi forces as they arrived in Syria.[348]
The Iraqi divisions were a strategic surprise for the IDF, which had expected 24-hour-plus advance intelligence of such moves. This turned into an operational surprise, as the Iraqis attacked the exposed southern flank of the advancing Israeli armor, forcing its advance units to retreat a few kilometres in order to prevent encirclement. Combined Syrian, Iraqi and Jordanian counterattacks prevented any further Israeli gains. However, they were unable to push the Israelis back from the Bashan salient, and suffered heavy losses in their engagements with the Israelis. The most effective attack took place on October 20, though Arab forces lost 120 tanks in that engagement.[348]
The Syrian Air Force attacked Israeli columns, but its operations were highly limited because of Israeli air superiority, and it suffered heavy losses in dogfights with Israeli jets. On October 23, a large air battle took place near Damascus during which the Israelis shot down 10 Syrian aircraft. The Syrians claimed a similar toll against Israel.[349] The IDF also destroyed the Syrian missile defense system. The Israeli Air Force utilized its air superiority to attack strategic targets throughout Syria, including important power plants, petrol supplies, bridges and main roads. The strikes weakened the Syrian war effort, disrupted Soviet efforts to airlift military equipment into Syria, and disrupted normal life inside the country.[350]
On October 22, the Golani Brigade and Sayeret Matkal commandos recaptured the outpost on Mount Hermon, after a hard-fought battle that involved hand-to-hand combat and Syrian sniper attacks. An unsuccessful attack two weeks prior had cost the Israelis 23 dead and 55 wounded and the Syrians 29 dead and 11 wounded, while this second attack cost Israel an additional 55 dead and 79 wounded.[351] An unknown number of Syrians were also killed and some were taken prisoner. An IDF D9 bulldozer supported by infantry forced its way to the peak. An Israeli paratroop force landing by helicopter took the corresponding Syrian Hermon outposts on the mountain, killing more than a dozen Syrians while losing one dead and four wounded. Seven Syrian MiGs and two Syrian helicopters carrying reinforcements were shot down as they attempted to intercede.[352]
Northern front de-escalation The Syrians prepared for a massive counteroffensive to drive Israeli forces out of Syria, scheduled for October 23. A total of five Syrian divisions were to take part, alongside the Iraqi and Jordanian expeditionary forces. The Soviets had replaced most of the losses Syria's tank forces had suffered during the first weeks of the war.
However, the day before the offensive was to begin, the United Nations imposed its ceasefire (following the acquiescence of both Israel and Egypt). Abraham Rabinovich claimed that:
The acceptance by Egypt of the cease-fire on Monday [October 22] created a major dilemma for Assad. The cease-fire did not bind him, but its implications could not be ignored. Some on the Syrian General Staff favored going ahead with the attack, arguing that if it did so Egypt would feel obliged to continue fighting as well ... Others, however, argued that continuation of the war would legitimize Israel's efforts to destroy the Egyptian Third Army. In that case, Egypt would not come to Syria's assistance when Israel turned its full might northward, destroying Syria's infrastructure and perhaps attacking Damascus.[5]
Ultimately, Syrian President Hafez al-Assad decided to cancel the offensive. On October 23, the day the offensive was to begin, Syria announced that it had accepted the ceasefire, and ordered its troops to cease fire, while the Iraqi government ordered its forces home.
Following the UN ceasefire, there were constant artillery exchanges and skirmishes, and Israeli forces continued to occupy positions deep within Syria. According to Syrian Foreign Minister Abdel Halim Khaddam, Syria's constant artillery attacks were "part of a deliberate war of attrition designed to paralyse the Israeli economy", and were intended to pressure Israel into yielding the occupied territory.[353] Some aerial engagements took place, and both sides lost several aircraft. In the spring of 1974, the Syrians attempted to retake the summit of Mount Hermon. The fighting lasted for more than a month and saw heavy losses on both sides, but the Israelis held their positions.[14] The situation continued until a May 1974 disengagement agreement.
Jordanian participation The U.S. pressed King Hussein to keep Jordan out of the war.[354] Though King Hussein initially refrained from entering the conflict, on the night of October 12''13 Jordanian troops deployed to the Jordanian-Syrian frontier to buttress Syrian troops, and Jordanian forces joined Syrian and Iraqi assaults on Israeli positions on October 16 and 19. Hussein sent a second brigade to the Golan front on October 21.[355] According to historian Assaf David, declassified U.S. documents show that the Jordanian participation was only a token to preserve King Hussein's status in the Arab world.[356] The documents reveal that Israel and Jordan had a tacit understanding that the Jordanian units would try to stay out of the fighting and Israel would try to not attack them.[356]
Final situation on the Syrian front The Israeli Army advanced to a 30 km distance from Damascus.[35]
Naval war On the first day of the war, Egyptian missile boats bombarded the Sinai Mediterranean coast, targeting Rumana and Ras Beyron, Ras Masala and Ras Sudar on the Gulf of Suez and Sharm el-Sheikh. Egyptian naval frogmen also raided the oil installations at Bala'eem, disabling the massive driller.[357]
The Battle of Latakia, between the Israeli and Syrian navies, took place on October 7, the second day of the war. Five Israeli missile boats heading towards the Syrian port of Latakia, sank a Syrian torpedo boat and minesweeper before encountering five Syrian missile boats. The Israelis used electronic countermeasures and chaff to evade Syrian missiles, then sank all five Syrian missile boats. This revolutionary engagement, the first between missile boats using surface-to-surface missiles, proved the potency of small, fast missile boats equipped with advanced ECM packages. The battle also established the Israeli Navy, long derided as the "black sheep" of the Israeli military, as a formidable and effective force in its own right. The port of Latakia was the site of another engagement between October 10''11, when Israeli missile boats fired into the port, targeting two Syrian missile boats spotted maneuvering among merchant ships. Both Syrian vessels were sunk, and two merchant ships were mistakenly hit and sunk.
A Syrian Styx missile fired at an Israeli missile boat
October 7 also witnessed the Battle of Marsa Talamat. Two Israeli Dabur class patrol boats patrolling in the Gulf of Suez encountered two Egyptian Zodiac boats loaded with Egyptian naval commandos as well as a patrol boat that was backed up by coastal guns. The Israeli patrol boats sank both Zodiacs and the patrol boat, although both suffered damage during the battle.[358]
The Battle of Baltim, which took place on October 8''9 off the coast of Baltim and Damietta, ended in a decisive Israeli victory. Six Israeli missile boats heading towards Port Said encountered four Egyptian missile boats coming from Alexandria. In an engagement lasting about forty minutes, the Israelis evaded Egyptian Styx missiles using electronic countermeasures and sank three of the Egyptian missile boats with Gabriel missiles and gunfire.[359][360][361][362][363] The Battles of Latakia and Baltim "drastically changed the operational situation at sea to Israeli advantage".[364]
Five nights after the Battle of Baltim, five Israeli patrol boats entered the Egyptian anchorage at Ras Ghareb, where over fifty Egyptian small patrol craft and armed fishing boats mobilized for the war effort and loaded with troops, ammunition, and supplies bound for the Israeli side of the Gulf were based. In the battle that followed, 19 Egyptian boats were sunk, while others remained bottled up in port.[249]
The Israeli Navy had control of the Gulf of Suez during the war, which made possible the continued deployment of an Israeli SAM battery near an Israeli naval base close to the southern end of the Suez Canal, depriving the Egyptian Third Army of air support and preventing it from moving southward and attempting to capture the southern Sinai.[365]
Israeli commandos from Shayetet 13, the Israeli Navy's elite special unit, infiltrated the Egyptian port of Hurghada on the night of October 9''10 and sank a Komar-class missile boat after four previous attempts had failed. After another infiltration attempt failed, the commandos successfully infiltrated Hurghada again on the night of October 21''22 and heavily damaged a missile boat with M72 LAW rockets. During one of the raids, the commandos also blew up the port's main docking pier. On October 16, Shayetet 13 commandos infiltrated Port Said in two Hazir mini-submarines to strike Egyptian naval targets. During the raid, the commandos sank a torpedo boat, a coast guard boat, a tank landing craft, and a missile boat. Two frogmen went missing during the operation.[366][unreliable source? ] On October 18, Israeli frogmen set off an explosion that severed two underwater communications cables off Beirut, one of which led to Alexandria and the other to Marseilles. As a result, telex and telecommunications between the West and Syria were severed, and were not restored until the cables were repaired on October 27. The cables had also been used by the Syrians and Egyptians to communicate with each other in preference to using radio, which was monitored by Israeli, U.S. and Soviet intelligence. Egypt and Syria resorted to communicating via a Jordanian radio station in Ajloun, bouncing the signals off a U.S. satellite.[367]
On October 11, Israeli missile boats sank two Syrian missile boats in an engagement off Tartus. During the battle, a Soviet merchant ship was hit by Israeli missiles and sank.[368]
Having decisively beaten the Egyptian and Syrian navies, the Israeli Navy had the run of the coastlines. Israeli missile boats utilized their 76 mm cannons and other armaments to strike targets along the Egyptian and Syrian coastlines, including wharves, oil tank farms, coastal batteries, radar stations, airstrips, and other targets of military value. The Israeli Navy even attacked some of Egypt's northernmost SAM batteries.[369][370] The Israeli Navy's attacks were carried out with minimal support from the IAF (only one Arab naval target was destroyed from the air during the entire war).[249]
The Egyptian Navy managed to enforce a blockade at Bab-el-Mandeb. Eighteen million tons of oil had been transported yearly from Iran to Israel through the straits of Bab-el-Mandeb. The blockade was enforced by two Egyptian destroyers and two submarines, supported by ancillary craft. Shipping destined for Israel through the Gulf of Eilat was halted by the Egyptians. The Israeli Navy had no means of lifting the blockade due to the long range involved, and the Israeli Air Force, apparently also incapable of lifting the blockade, did not challenge it. The blockade was lifted on November 1, after Israel used the surrounded Egyptian Third Army as a bargaining chip. The Egyptians unsuccessfully attempted to blockade the Israeli Mediterranean coastline, and mined the Gulf of Suez to prevent the transportation of oil from the Bala'eem and Abu Rudeis oil fields in southwestern Sinai to Eilat in southern Israel. Two oil tankers, of 48,000 ton and 2,000 ton capacity, sank after hitting mines in the Gulf.[371][372] According to Admiral Ze'ev Almog, the Israeli Navy escorted tankers from the Gulf to Eilat throughout the war, and Israeli tankers sailing from Iran were directed to bypass the Red Sea. As a result of these actions and the failure of Egypt's Mediterranean blockade, the transport of oil, grain and weapons to Israeli ports was made possible throughout nearly the entire war. A post-war survey found that during the entire war period, Israel suffered no oil shortages, and even sold oil to third parties affected by the Arab oil embargo.[249] This claim was disputed by Edgar O'Ballance, who claimed that no oil went to Israel during the blockade, and the Eilat-Ashdod pipeline was empty by the end of the war.[373]
Israel responded with a counter-blockade of Egypt in the Gulf of Suez. The Israeli blockade was enforced by naval vessels based at Sharm el-Sheikh and the Sinai coast facing the Gulf of Suez. The Israeli blockade substantially damaged the Egyptian economy. According to historian Gammal Hammad, Egypt's principal ports, Alexandria and Port Safaga, remained open to shipping throughout the war.[357] Throughout the war, the Israeli Navy enjoyed complete command of the seas both in the Mediterranean approaches and in the Gulf of Suez.[374]
During the last week of the war, Egyptian frogmen carried out three or four raids on Eilat. The attacks caused minor damage, but created some alarm.[367]
According to Israeli and Western sources, the Israelis lost no vessels in the war.[359][360][375][376] Israeli vessels were "targeted by as many as 52 Soviet-made anti-ship missiles", but none hit their targets.[377] According to historian Benny Morris, the Egyptians lost seven missile boats and four torpedo boats and coastal defense craft, while the Syrians lost five missile boats, one minesweeper, and one coastal defense vessel.[375] All together, the Israeli Navy suffered three dead or missing and seven wounded.
Atrocities against Israeli prisoners Syrian atrocities Syria ignored the Geneva Conventions and many Israeli prisoners of war were tortured or killed.[378] Advancing Israeli forces, re-capturing land taken by the Syrians early in the war, came across the bodies of 28 Israeli soldiers who had been blindfolded with their hands bound and summarily executed.[379] In a December 1973 address to the National Assembly, Syrian Defense Minister Mustafa Tlass stated that he had awarded one soldier the Medal of the Republic for killing 28 Israeli prisoners with an axe, decapitating three of them and eating the flesh of one of his victims.[380][381] The Syrians employed brutal interrogation techniques utilizing electric shocks to the genitals. A number of Israeli soldiers taken prisoner on Mount Hermon were executed. Near the village of Hushniye, the Syrians captured 11 administrative personnel from the Golan Heights Force, all of whom were later found dead, blindfolded, and with their hands tied behind their backs. Within Hushniye, seven Israeli prisoners were found dead, and another three were executed at Tel Zohar. Syrian prisoners who fell into Israeli captivity confirmed that their comrades killed IDF prisoners.[382] A soldier from the Moroccan contingent fighting with Syrian forces was found to be carrying a sack filled with the body parts of Israeli soldiers which he intended to take home as souvenirs. The bodies of Israeli prisoners who were killed were stripped of their uniforms and found clad only in their underpants, and Syrian soldiers removed their dog tags to make identification of the bodies more difficult.[383]
Some Israeli POWs reported having their fingernails ripped out while others were described as being turned into human ashtrays as their Syrian guards burned them with lit cigarettes.[384] A report submitted by the chief medical officer of the Israeli army notes that, "the vast majority of (Israeli) prisoners were exposed during their imprisonment to severe physical and mental torture. The usual methods of torture were beatings aimed at various parts of the body, electric shocks, wounds deliberately inflicted on the ears, burns on the legs, suspension in painful positions and other methods."[385] Following the conclusion of hostilities, Syria would not release the names of prisoners it was holding to the International Committee of the Red Cross and in fact, did not even acknowledge holding any prisoners despite the fact they were publicly exhibited by the Syrians for television crews.[386] The Syrians, having been thoroughly defeated by Israel, were attempting to use their captives as their sole bargaining chip in the post-war negotiations.[387] One of the most famous Israeli POWs was Avraham Lanir, an Israeli pilot who bailed out over Syria and was taken prisoner.[388] Lanir died under Syrian interrogation.[146][389][390] When his body was returned in 1974, it exhibited signs of torture.[389]
Egyptian atrocities Israeli historian Aryeh Yitzhaki estimated that the Egyptians killed about 200 Israeli soldiers who had surrendered. Yitzhaki based his claim on army documents. In addition, dozens of Israeli prisoners were beaten and otherwise mistreated in Egyptian captivity.[391]
Individual Israeli soldiers gave testimony of witnessing comrades killed after surrendering to the Egyptians, or seeing the bodies of Israeli soldiers found blindfolded with their hands tied behind their backs. Avi Yaffe, a radioman serving on the Bar-Lev Line, reported hearing calls from other soldiers that the Egyptians were killing anyone who tried to surrender, and also obtained recordings of soldiers who were saved from Egyptian firing squads. Issachar Ben-Gavriel, an Israeli soldier who was captured at the Suez Canal, claimed that out of his group of 19 soldiers who surrendered, 11 were shot dead. Another soldier claimed that a soldier in his unit was captured alive but beaten to death during interrogation.[392] Photographic evidence of such executions exists, though some of it has never been made public. Photos were also found of Israeli prisoners who were photographed alive in Egyptian captivity, but were returned to Israel dead.[391][393]
The order to kill Israeli prisoners came from General Shazly, who, in a pamphlet distributed to Egyptian soldiers immediately before the war, advised his troops to kill Israeli soldiers even if they surrendered.[391]
In 2013, the Israeli government declassified documents detailing Egyptian atrocities against prisoners of war, recording the deaths of at least 86 Israeli POWS at the hands of Egyptian forces. In an interview Israeli major general Herzl Shafir recalled instances of these accounts, including that of an injured prisoner who was murdered when an Egyptian doctor "disconnected him from the oxygen and kept him from getting an intravenous drip." He noted that statistics on the number of people killed was still unclear.[394]
Participation by other states The U.S. intelligence community, including the CIA, failed to predict in advance the Egyptian-Syrian attack on Israel. A U.S. intelligence report as late as October 4 still stated that "We continue to believe that an outbreak of major Arab''Israeli hostilities remains unlikely for the immediate future".[395] However, one U.S. government source that was able to predict the approaching war was Roger Merrick, an analyst working for the INR (Bureau of Intelligence and Research in the State Department), but his conclusions were ignored at the time, and the report he had written to that effect was only rediscovered by U.S. government archive officials in 2013.[396]
U.S. aid to Israel Based on intelligence estimates at the commencement of hostilities, American leaders expected the tide of the war to quickly shift in Israel's favor, and that Arab armies would be completely defeated within 72 to 96 hours.[397] On October 6, Secretary of State Kissinger convened the National Security Council's official crisis management group, the Washington Special Actions Group, which debated whether the U.S. should supply additional arms to Israel. High-ranking representatives of the Defense and State Departments opposed such a move. Kissinger was the sole dissenter; he said that if the U.S. refused aid, Israel would have little incentive to conform to American views in postwar diplomacy. Kissinger argued the sending of U.S. aid might cause Israel to moderate its territorial claims, but this thesis raised a protracted debate whether U.S. aid was likely to make it more accommodating or more intransigent toward the Arab world.[398]
By October 8, Israel had encountered military difficulties on both fronts. In the Sinai, Israeli efforts to break through Egyptian lines with armor had been thwarted, and while Israel had contained and begun to turn back the Syrian advance, Syrian forces were still overlooking the Jordan River and their air defense systems were inflicting a high toll on Israeli planes.[399][400][401] It became clear by October 9 that no quick reversal in Israel's favor would occur and that IDF losses were unexpectedly high.[402]
During the night of October 8''9, an alarmed Dayan told Meir that "this is the end of the third temple."[400] He was warning of Israel's impending total defeat, but "Temple" was also the code word for Israel's nuclear weapons.[401] Dayan raised the nuclear topic in a cabinet meeting, warning that the country was approaching a point of "last resort".[403] That night, Meir authorized the assembly of thirteen 20-kiloton-of-TNT (84 TJ) tactical nuclear weapons for Jericho missiles at Sdot Micha Airbase and F-4 Phantom II aircraft at Tel Nof Airbase.[401] They would be used if absolutely necessary to prevent total defeat, but the preparation was done in an easily detectable way, likely as a signal to the United States.[403] Kissinger learned of the nuclear alert on the morning of October 9. That day, President Nixon ordered the commencement of Operation Nickel Grass, an American airlift to replace all of Israel's material losses.[404] Anecdotal evidence suggests that Kissinger told Sadat that the reason for the U.S. airlift was that the Israelis were close to "going nuclear".[401] However, subsequent interviews with Kissinger, Schlesinger, and William Quandt suggested that the nuclear aspect was not a major factor in the decision to re-supply. These officials cited the ongoing Soviet re-supply effort and Sadat's early rejection of a ceasefire as the primary motivators.[405] European countries refused to allow U.S. airplanes carrying supplies for Israel to refuel at their bases, fearing an Arab oil embargo, with the exception of Portugal and the Netherlands. Portugal permitted the United States to use a leased base in the Azores,[406] and the defence minister of the Netherlands, apparently acting without consulting his cabinet colleagues, secretly authorised the use of Dutch airfields.[407]
Israel began receiving supplies via U.S. Air Force cargo airplanes on October 14,[408] although some equipment had arrived on planes from Israel's national airline El Al before this date. By that time, the IDF had advanced deep into Syria and was mounting a largely successful invasion of the Egyptian mainland from the Sinai, but had taken severe material losses. According to Abraham Rabinovich, "while the American airlift of supplies did not immediately replace Israel's losses in equipment, it did allow Israel to expend what it did have more freely".[409] By the end of Nickel Grass, the United States had shipped 22,395 tons of mat(C)riel to Israel. 8,755 tons of it arrived before the end of the war.[410] American C-141 Starlifter and C-5 Galaxy aircraft flew 567 missions throughout the airlift.[411] El Al planes flew in an additional 5,500 tons of mat(C)riel in 170 flights.[412][413] The airlift continued after the war until November 14. The United States delivered approximately 90,000 tons of materiel to Israel by sealift by the beginning of December, using 16 ships.[410] 33,210 tons of it arrived by November.[414]
By the beginning of December, Israel had received between 34 and 40 F-4 fighter-bombers, 46 A-4 attack airplanes, 12 C-130 cargo airplanes, 8 CH-53 helicopters, 40 unmanned aerial vehicles, 200 M-60/M-48A3 tanks, 250 APCs, 226 utility vehicles, 12 MIM-72 Chaparral surface-to-air missile systems, three MIM-23 Hawk SAM systems, 36 155 mm artillery pieces, seven 175 mm artillery pieces, and large quantities of 105 mm, 155 mm and 175 mm ammunition. State of the art equipment, such as the AGM-65 Maverick missile and the BGM-71 TOW, weapons that had only entered production one or more years prior, as well as highly advanced electronic jamming equipment, was also sent. Most of the combat airplanes arrived during the war, and many were taken directly from USAF units. Most of the large equipment arrived after the ceasefire. The total cost of the equipment was approximately US$800 million (US$4.88 billion today).[412][413][415][416]
On October 13 and 15, Egyptian air defense radars detected an aircraft at an altitude of 25,000 metres (82,000 ft) and a speed of Mach 3 (3,700 km/h; 2,300 mph), making it impossible to intercept either by fighter or SAM missiles. The aircraft proceeded to cross the whole of the canal zone, the naval ports of the Red Sea (Hurghada and Safaga), flew over the airbases and air defenses in the Nile delta, and finally disappeared from radar screens over the Mediterranean Sea. The speed and altitude were those of the U.S. SR-71 Blackbird. According to Egyptian commanders, the intelligence provided by the reconnaissance flights helped the Israelis prepare for the Egyptian attack on October 14 and assisted it in conducting Operation Stouthearted Men.[417][418][419]
Aid to Egypt and Syria Soviet supplies A Syrian
BMP-1 captured by Israeli forces
Starting on October 9, the Soviet Union began supplying Egypt and Syria by air and by sea. The Soviets airlifted 12,500''15,000 tons of supplies, of which 6,000 tons went to Egypt, 3,750 tons went to Syria and 575 tons went to Iraq. General Shazly, the former Egyptian chief of staff, claimed that more than half of the airlifted Soviet hardware actually went to Syria. According to Ze'ev Schiff, Arab losses were so high and the attrition rate so great that equipment was taken directly from Soviet and Warsaw Pact stores to supply the airlift.[420] Antonov An-12 and AN-22 aircraft flew over 900 missions during the airlift.[421]
The Soviets supplied another 63,000 tons, mainly to Syria, by means of a sealift by October 30.[422][423] Historian Gamal Hammad asserts that 400 T-55 and T-62 tanks supplied by the sealift were directed towards replacing Syrian losses, transported from Odessa on the Black Sea to the Syrian port of Latakia. Hammad claimed that Egypt did not receive any tanks from the Soviets,[424] a claim disputed by Schiff, who stated that Soviet freighters loaded with tanks and other weapons reached Egyptian, Algerian and Syrian ports throughout the war.[citation needed ] The sealift may have included Soviet nuclear weapons, which were not unloaded but kept in Alexandria harbor until November to counter the Israeli nuclear preparations, which Soviet satellites had detected (Soviet intelligence informed Egypt that Israel had armed three nuclear weapons).[425] American concern over possible evidence of nuclear warheads for the Soviet Scud missiles in Egypt contributed to Washington's decision to go to DEFCON 3.[401] According to documents declassified in 2016, the move to DEFCON 3 was motivated by CIA reports indicating that the Soviet Union had sent a ship to Egypt carrying nuclear weapons along with two other amphibious vessels.[426] Soviet troops never landed, though the ship supposedly transporting nuclear weapons did arrive in Egypt. Further details are unavailable and may remain classified.
Soviet active aid On the Golan front, Syrian forces received direct support from Soviet technicians and military personnel. At the start of the war, there were an estimated 2,000 Soviet personnel in Syria, of whom 1,000 were serving in Syrian air defense units. Soviet technicians repaired damaged tanks, SAMs and radar equipment, assembled fighter jets that arrived via the sealift, and drove tanks supplied by the sealift from ports to Damascus. On both the Golan and Sinai fronts, Soviet military personnel retrieved abandoned Israeli military equipment for shipment to Moscow.[427]
Soviet advisors were reportedly present in Syrian command posts "at every echelon, from battalion up, including supreme headquarters". Some Soviet military personnel went into battle with the Syrians, and it was estimated that 20 were killed in action and more were wounded. In July 1974, Israeli Defense Minister Shimon Peres informed the Knesset that high-ranking Soviet officers had been killed on the Syrian front during the war. There were strong rumors that a handful were taken prisoner, but this was denied. However, it was noted that certain Soviet Jews were allowed to emigrate just after the war, leading to suspicions of a covert exchange. The Observer wrote that seven Soviets in uniform were taken prisoner after surrendering when the Israelis overran their bunker. The Israelis reportedly took the prisoners to Ramat David Airbase for interrogation, and treated the incident with great secrecy.[428][429]
Soviet fighter pilots stationed in Egypt as advisors and instructors may have participated in combat operations. There are several references to Soviet personnel being captured which were never officially confirmed, including a US State Department mention of a report from an Israeli Air Force pilot which claimed that two Soviet MiG pilots had been captured, and the account of an Israeli paratrooper reservist who claimed that while mopping up bunkers near Suez City, his force captured four or five Soviet officers. Israeli officers who reported great difficulty in command and control due to jamming of their radio frequencies attributed the improved jamming capabilities they were facing to the Soviets. According to Gideon Remez and Isabella Ginor, Soviet Spetsnaz commandos twice conducted raids behind Israeli lines on the Egyptian front in the early days of the war and captured two Israeli Centurion tanks after killing their crews so that their upgraded guns could be studied.[430]
Israeli military intelligence reported that Soviet-piloted MiG-25 Foxbat interceptor/reconnaissance aircraft overflew the Canal Zone.[431]
Soviet threat of intervention October 24. A UN-arranged meeting between IDF Lt. Gen.
Haim Bar-Lev and Egyptian Brigadier General Bashir Sharif in Sinai.
[432]On October 9, the Soviet cultural center in Damascus was damaged during an IAF airstrike, and two days later, the Soviet merchant ship Ilya Mechnikov was sunk by the Israeli Navy during a battle off Syria. The Soviets condemned Israeli actions, and there were calls within the government for military retaliation. The Soviets ultimately reacted by deploying two destroyers off the Syrian coast. Soviet warships in the Mediterranean were authorized to open fire on Israeli combatants approaching Soviet convoys and transports. There were several recorded instances of Soviet ships exchanging fire with Israeli forces. In particular, the Soviet minesweeper Rulevoi and the medium landing ship SDK-137, guarding Soviet transport ships at the Syrian port of Latakia, fired on approaching Israeli jets.[368]
During the cease-fire, Henry Kissinger mediated a series of exchanges with the Egyptians, Israelis and the Soviets. On October 24, Sadat publicly appealed for American and Soviet contingents to oversee the ceasefire; it was quickly rejected in a White House statement. Kissinger also met with Soviet Ambassador Dobrynin to discuss convening a peace conference with Geneva as the venue. Later in the evening (9:35 pm) of October 24''25, Brezhnev sent Nixon a "very urgent" letter. In that letter, Brezhnev began by noting that Israel was continuing to violate the ceasefire and it posed a challenge to both the U.S. and USSR. He stressed the need to "implement" the ceasefire resolution and "invited" the U.S. to join the Soviets "to compel observance of the cease-fire without delay". He then threatened "I will say it straight that if you find it impossible to act jointly with us in this matter, we should be faced with the necessity urgently to consider taking appropriate steps unilaterally. We cannot allow arbitrariness on the part of Israel."[433][434] The Soviets were threatening to militarily intervene in the war on Egypt's side if they could not work together to enforce the ceasefire.
Kissinger immediately passed the message to White House Chief of Staff Alexander Haig, who met with Nixon for 20 minutes around 10:30 pm, and reportedly empowered Kissinger to take any necessary action.[433] Kissinger immediately called a meeting of senior officials, including Haig, Defense Secretary James Schlesinger and CIA Director William Colby. The Watergate scandal had reached its apex, and Nixon was so agitated and discomposed that they decided to handle the matter without him:
When Kissinger asked Haig whether [Nixon] should be wakened, the White House chief of staff replied firmly 'No.' Haig clearly shared Kissinger's feelings that Nixon was in no shape to make weighty decisions.[435]
The meeting produced a conciliatory response, which was sent (in Nixon's name) to Brezhnev. At the same time, it was decided to increase the DEFCON from four to three. Lastly, they approved a message to Sadat (again, in Nixon's name) asking him to drop his request for Soviet assistance, and threatening that if the Soviets were to intervene, so would the United States.[435]
The Soviets placed seven airborne divisions on alert and airlift was marshaled to transport them to the Middle East. An airborne command post was set up in the southern Soviet Union, and several air force units were also alerted. "Reports also indicated that at least one of the divisions and a squadron of transport planes had been moved from the Soviet Union to an airbase in Yugoslavia".[436] The Soviets also deployed seven amphibious warfare craft with some 40,000 naval infantry in the Mediterranean.
The Soviets quickly detected the increased American defense condition, and were astonished and bewildered at the response. "Who could have imagined the Americans would be so easily frightened," said Nikolai Podgorny. "It is not reasonable to become engaged in a war with the United States because of Egypt and Syria," said Premier Alexei Kosygin, while KGB chief Yuri Andropov added that "We shall not unleash the Third World War."[437] The letter from the U.S. cabinet arrived during the meeting. Brezhnev decided that the Americans were too nervous, and that the best course of action would be to wait to reply.[438] The next morning, the Egyptians agreed to the American suggestion, and dropped their request for assistance from the Soviets, bringing the crisis to an end.
Other countries In total, Arab countries added up to 100,000 troops to Egypt and Syria's frontline ranks, and about 20,000 troops stationed in Jordanian territory.[37] Besides Egypt, Syria, Jordan, and Iraq, several other Arab states were also involved in this war, providing additional weapons and financing. In addition to its forces in Syria, Iraq sent a single Hawker Hunter squadron to Egypt. The squadron quickly gained a reputation amongst Egyptian field commanders for its skill in air support, particularly in anti-armor strikes.[439]
However, nearly all Arab reinforcements came with no logistical plan or support, expecting their hosts to supply them, and in several cases causing logistical problems. On the Syrian front, a lack of coordination between Arab forces led to several instances of friendly fire.[6][3]
Algeria sent a squadron each of MiG-21s and Su-7s to Egypt, which arrived at the front between October 9 and 11. It also sent an armored brigade of 150 tanks, the advance elements of which began to arrive on October 17, but reached the front only on October 24, too late to participate in the fighting. After the war, during the first days of November, Algeria deposited around US$200 million with the Soviet Union to finance arms purchases for Egypt and Syria.[3] Algerian fighter jets, however, did participate in attacks together with Egyptians and Iraqis.[440]Cuba sent approximately 4,000 troops, including tank and helicopter crews to Syria, and they reportedly engaged in combat operations against the IDF.[8][441][442]East German Communist Party leader Erich Honecker directed the shipment of 75,000 grenades, 30,000 mines, 62 tanks and 12 fighter jets to Syria.[10]20 North Korean pilots and 19 non-combat personnel were sent to Egypt.[11] According to Shlomo Aloni, the last aerial engagement on the Egyptian front, which took place on December 6, saw Israeli F-4s engage North Korean-piloted MiG-21s.[12] The Israelis shot down one MiG, and another was mistakenly shot down by Egyptian air defenses. Egyptian sources said that the North Koreans suffered no losses but claimed no aerial victories in their engagements.[13][14][11]According to Chengappa, several Pakistan Air Force pilots flew combat missions in Syrian aircraft, and shot down one Israeli fighter.[15][16][17]Libya, which had forces stationed in Egypt before the outbreak of the war, provided one armored brigade and two squadrons of Mirage V fighters, of which one squadron was to be piloted by the Egyptian Air Force and the other by Libyan pilots. Only Egyptian-manned squadrons participated in the war.[440] The Libyan armored brigade stationed in Egypt never took an active part in the war.[440] Libya also sent financial aid.[443]Saudi Arabia had a force of 20,000 Saudi soldiers that remained in Jordanian territory since 1967 to provide support and assistance as needed for a total of 10 years.[50][49][51] Additionally, the Saudis sent 3,000 soldiers to Syria, bolstered by a light armored battalion of Panhard AML-90 vehicles.[5] One of the AMLs was later captured by the Israelis near Golan Heights and displayed to the media as proof of Saudi involvement.[2] The Saudi armor was deployed primarily in rearguard actions[2] but also performed active reconnaissance for the Iraqi and Jordanian expeditionary forces between October 16 and 19.[444] During that time, it participated in two major engagements and the IDF claimed that most of the armoured car battalion was destroyed.[444] The Saudis acknowledged only minor losses, including the loss of 4 AMLs.[2]Kuwait dispatched 3,000 soldiers to Syria.[5] These arrived with additional Jordanian and Iraqi reinforcements in time for a new Syrian offensive scheduled for October 23, which was later cancelled.[5] Kuwaiti troops were also sent to Egypt.[445][better source needed ][446] Kuwait also provided financial aid.[447]Morocco sent one infantry brigade to Egypt and one armored regiment to Syria.[439][447] Six Moroccan troops were taken prisoner in the war.Tunisia sent 1,000''2,000 soldiers to Egypt, where they were stationed in the Nile Delta and some of them were stationed to defend Port Said.[6]Lebanon sent radar units to Syria for air defense.[448][better source needed ] Lebanon however did not take part in the war.[449]Sudan deployed a 3,500-strong infantry brigade to Egypt. It arrived on October 28, too late to participate in the war.Non-state participants:
An infantry brigade composed of Palestinians was in Egypt before the outbreak of the war.[6][447] U.S.''Soviet naval standoff The war saw the largest naval confrontation between the United States Navy and Soviet Navy of the entire Cold War. As the United States and Soviet Union supported their respective allies, their fleets in the Mediterranean became increasingly hostile toward each other. The Soviet 5th Operational Squadron had 52 ships in the Mediterranean when the war began, including 11 submarines, some of which carried cruise missiles with nuclear warheads, while the United States Sixth Fleet had 48, including two aircraft carriers, a helicopter carrier, and amphibious vessels carrying 2,000 marines. As the war continued, both sides reinforced their fleets. The Soviet squadron grew to 97 vessels including 23 submarines, while the US Sixth Fleet grew to 60 vessels including 9 submarines, 2 helicopter carriers, and 3 aircraft carriers. Both fleets made preparations for war, and US aircraft conducted reconnaissance over the Soviet fleet. The two fleets began to disengage following the ceasefire.[450][451]
Palestinian attacks from the Lebanese border During the course of the war, Palestinian militias from southern Lebanon launched several attacks on Israeli border communities. All of the attempts to infiltrate Israel failed, and 23 militants were killed and four were captured during the clashes. Most of the activity was focused on Katyusha rocket and anti-tank missile fire on Israeli border communities. In the attacks some civilians were injured, mostly lightly and damage was made to property. On October 10, after Palestinian militants fired some 40 rockets on Israeli communities, Chief of Staff David Elazar and chief of the Northern Command Yitzhak Hofi requested to deploy a force which would expel Palestinian militants from Lebanese villages, but the request was declined by Defense Minister Moshe Dayan.[452]
Weapons The Arab armies (with the exception of the Jordanians), were equipped with predominantly Soviet-made weapons while Israel's armaments were mostly Western-made. The Arabs' T-54/55s and T-62s were equipped with night vision equipment, which the Israeli tanks lacked, giving them an advantage in fighting at night, while Israel tanks had better armor and/or better armament.[citation needed ] Israeli tanks also had a distinct advantage while on the ramps, in the "hull-down" position where steeper angles of depression resulted in less exposure. The main guns of Soviet tanks could only depress 4 degrees. By contrast, the 105 mm guns on Centurion and Patton tanks could depress 10 degrees.[453]
TypeArab armiesIDFAFVsEgypt, Syria, Iraq and Jordan used T-34, T-54, T-55, T-62, PT-76 and M48 Patton, as well as SU-100/152 World War II vintage self-propelled guns.M50 and M51 Shermans with upgraded engines, M48 Patton, M60, Centurion, M32 Tank Recovery Vehicle, M74 Armored Recovery Vehicle, PT-76 and T-54/55. All tanks were upgraded with the British 105 mm L7 gun, prior to the war.APCs/IFVsBTR-40, BTR-152, BTR-50, BTR-60 APC's & BMP 1 IFV'sM2 /M3 Half-track, M113Artillery152 mm howitzer-gun M1937 (ML-20), BM-21, D-30 (2A18) Howitzer, M1954 field gun, 152 mm towed gun-howitzer M1955 (D-20)M109 self-propelled howitzer, M107 self-propelled gun, M110 self-propelled howitzer, M50 self-propelled howitzer and Makmat 160 mm self-propelled mortar, Obusier de 155 mm Mod¨le 50, Soltam M-68 and 130 mm towed field gun M1954 (M-46)AircraftMiG-21, MiG-19, MiG-17, Dassault Mirage 5, Su-7B, Hawker Hunter, Tu-16, Il-28, Il-18, Il-14, An-12, Aero L-29Douglas A-4 Skyhawk, McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, Dassault Mirage III, Dassault Super Myst¨re, IAI NesherHelicoptersMi-6, Mi-8Super Frelon, Sea Stallion, AB-205AAWSA-6 Gainful, SA-3 Goa, SA-2 Guideline, ZSU-23-4, Strela 2MIM-23 Hawk, MIM-72 Chaparral, Bofors 40 mm gunInfantry weaponsAK-47, AKM, Hakim, Rasheed, RPK, RPD, PKM, SVD, Port Said, Browning Hi-Power, Beretta M1951, TT-33, Makarov PM, F1 grenade, RGD-5 grenade, RPG-43 anti-tank grenade, RKG-3 anti-tank grenade, DShK HMG, RPG-7, AT-3 Sagger and B-11 recoilless rifleFN FAL, Uzi, M16, CAR-15, M14, AK-47, Karabiner 98k, Lee-Enfield, FN MAG, Browning Hi-Power, Beretta M1951, M26A2 grenade, M2HB Browning, Super Bazooka, SS.11, M72 LAW (only received during the war), BGM-71 TOW (received during the war), RL-83 Blindicide and M40 recoilless rifleSea-to-Sea MissilesP-15 TermitGabrielAir-to-Air MissilesK-13Shafrir 2, AIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-7 SparrowAir-to-Ground MissilesAGM-45 Shrike anti radiation missileHome front during the war The war created a state of emergency in the countries involved in fighting. Upon the outbreak of war, air raid sirens sounded throughout Israel. During the war, blackouts were enforced in major cities. The Egyptian government began to evacuate foreign tourists, and on October 11, 1973, the Egyptian ship Syria left Alexandria to Piraeus with a load of tourists wishing to exit Egypt. The U.S. Interest Section in Cairo also requested U.S. government assistance in removing U.S. tourists to Greece.[454] On October 12, Kissinger ordered the U.S. Interest Section in Cairo to speed up preparations for the departure of U.S. tourists staying in Egypt, while notifying such actions to the IDF in order to avoid accidental military operations against them.[455]
Casualties An Israeli Air Force Mirage IIIC. Flag markings on the nose credit this particular aircraft with 13 aerial kills.
Israel suffered between 2,521[21][54][61] and 2,800 killed in action.[55] An additional 7,250[456] to 8,800[55] soldiers were wounded. Some 293 Israelis were captured.[62] Approximately 400 Israeli tanks were destroyed. Another 600 were disabled but returned to service after repairs.[58] A major Israeli advantage, noted by many observers, was their ability to quickly return damaged tanks to combat.[191][457] The Israeli Air Force lost 102 airplanes: 32 F-4s, 53 A-4s, 11 Mirages and 6 Super Mysteres. Two helicopters, a Bell 205 and a CH-53, were also lost.[59] According to Defense Minister Moshe Dayan, nearly half of these were shot down during the first three days of the war.[67] IAF losses per combat sortie were less than in the Six-Day War of 1967.[458]
Arab casualties were known to be much higher than Israel's, though precise figures are difficult to ascertain as Egypt and Syria never disclosed official figures. The lowest casualty estimate is 8,000 (5,000 Egyptian and 3,000 Syrian) killed and 18,000 wounded.[55] The highest estimate is 18,500 (15,000 Egyptian and 3,500 Syrian) killed.[61] Most estimates lie somewhere in between the two, with the Insight Team of London's The Sunday Times putting combined Egyptian and Syrian losses at 16,000 killed[21] and yet another source citing a figure of some 15,000 dead and 35,000 wounded.[65] U.S. estimates placed Egyptian casualties at 13,000.[459] Iraq lost 278 killed and 898 wounded, while Jordan suffered 23 killed and 77 wounded.[63] Some 8,372 Egyptians, 392 Syrians, 13 Iraqis and 6 Moroccans were taken prisoner.[62][460]
Arab tank losses amounted to 2,250[65][461] though Garwych cites a figure of 2,300.[66] 400 of these fell into Israeli hands in good working order and were incorporated into Israeli service.[65] Between 341[55] and 514[67] Arab aircraft were shot down. According to Herzog, 334 of these aircraft were shot down by the IAF in air-to-air combat for the loss of only five Israeli planes.[67] The Sunday Times Insight Team notes Arab aircraft losses of 450.[21] 19 Arab naval vessels, including 10 missile boats, were sunk for no Israeli losses.[68]
Post-ceasefire Kissinger pushes for peace 1974 news report about warfare on the Golan prior to the May disengagement accords
On October 24, the UNSC passed Resolution 339, serving as a renewed call for all parties to adhere to the ceasefire terms established in Resolution 338. Most heavy fighting on the Egyptian front ended by October 26, but clashes along the ceasefire lines and a few airstrikes on the Third Army took place. With some Israeli advances taking place, Kissinger threatened to support a UN withdrawal resolution, but before Israel could respond, Egyptian national security advisor Hafez Ismail sent Kissinger a stunning message'--Egypt was willing to enter into direct talks with Israel, provided that it agree to allow non-military supplies to reach the Third Army and to a complete ceasefire.
About noon on October 25, Kissinger appeared before the press at the State Department. He described the various stages of the crisis and the evolution of U.S. policy. He reviewed the first two weeks of the crisis and the nuclear alert, reiterated opposition to U.S. and Soviet troops in the area and more strongly opposed unilateral Soviet moves. He then reviewed the prospects for a peace agreement, which he termed "quite promising", and had conciliatory words for Israel, Egypt and even the USSR. Kissinger concluded his remarks by spelling out the principles of a new U.S. policy toward the Arab''Israeli conflict saying:[462]
Our position is that ... the conditions that produced this war were clearly intolerable to the Arab nations and that in the process of negotiations it will be necessary to make substantial concessions. The problem will be to relate the Arab concern for the sovereignty over the territories to the Israeli concern for secure boundaries. We believe that the process of negotiations between the parties is an essential component of this.
Quandt considers, "It was a brilliant performance, one of his most impressive." One hour later the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 340. This time the ceasefire held, and the fourth Arab''Israeli war was over.
Disengagement agreement UN Emergency Forces at Kilometre 101
Disengagement talks took place on October 28, 1973, at "Kilometre 101" between Israeli Major General Aharon Yariv and Egyptian Major General Abdel Ghani el-Gamasy. Ultimately, Kissinger took the proposal to Sadat, who agreed. United Nations checkpoints were brought in to replace Israeli ones, nonmilitary supplies were allowed to pass, and prisoners-of-war were to be exchanged.
A summit conference in Geneva followed in December 1973. All parties to the war'--Israel, Syria, Jordan and Egypt'--were invited to a joint effort by the Soviet Union and the United States to finally usher peace between the Arabs and Israelis. This conference was recognized by UN Security Council Resolution 344 and was based on the Resolution 338, calling for a "just and durable peace". Nevertheless, the conference was forced to adjourn on January 9, 1974, as Syria refused attendance.[463]
After the failed conference Henry Kissinger started conducting shuttle diplomacy, meeting with Israel and the Arab states directly. The first concrete result of this was the initial military disengagement agreement, signed by Israel and Egypt on January 18, 1974. The agreement commonly known as Sinai I had the official name of Sinai Separation of Forces Agreement. Under its terms, Israel agreed to pull back its forces from the areas West of Suez Canal, which it had occupied since the end of hostilities. Moreover, Israeli forces were also pulled back on the length of the whole front to create security zones for Egypt, UN and Israel, each roughly ten kilometres wide. Thus Israel gave up its advances reaching beyond the Suez canal, but it still held nearly all of Sinai. It became the first of many such Land for Peace agreements where Israel gave up territory in exchange for treaties.[464]
On the Syrian front, skirmishes and artillery exchanges continued taking place. Shuttle diplomacy by Henry Kissinger eventually produced a disengagement agreement on May 31, 1974, based on exchange of prisoners-of-war, Israeli withdrawal to the Purple Line and the establishment of a UN buffer zone. The agreement ended the skirmishes and exchanges of artillery fire that had occurred frequently along the Israeli-Syrian ceasefire line. The UN Disengagement and Observer Force (UNDOF) was established as a peacekeeping force in the Golan.
The peace discussion at the end of the war was the first time that Arab and Israeli officials met for direct public discussions since the aftermath of the 1948 war.
Response in Israel Though the war reinforced Israel's military deterrence, it had a stunning effect on the population in Israel. Following their victory in the Six-Day War, the Israeli military had become complacent. The shock and sudden reversals that occurred at the beginning of the war inflicted a terrible psychological blow to the Israelis, who had hitherto experienced no serious military challenges.[465]
A protest against the Israeli government started four months after the war ended. It was led by Motti Ashkenazi, commander of Budapest, the northernmost of the Bar-Lev forts and the only one during the war not to be captured by the Egyptians.[466] Anger against the Israeli government (and Dayan in particular) was high. Shimon Agranat, President of the Israeli Supreme Court, was asked to lead an inquiry, the Agranat Commission, into the events leading up to the war and the setbacks of the first few days.[467]
The Agranat Commission published its preliminary findings on April 2, 1974. Six people were held particularly responsible for Israel's failings:
Though his performance and conduct during the war was lauded,[468] IDF Chief of Staff David Elazar was recommended for dismissal after the Commission found he bore "personal responsibility for the assessment of the situation and the preparedness of the IDF".Aman Chief, Aluf Eli Zeira, and his deputy, head of Research, Brigadier-General Aryeh Shalev, were recommended for dismissal.Lt. Colonel Bandman, head of the Aman desk for Egypt, and Lt. Colonel Gedelia, chief of intelligence for the Southern Command, were recommended for transfer away from intelligence duties.Shmuel Gonen, commander of the Southern front, was recommended by the initial report to be relieved of active duty.[469] He was forced to leave the army after the publication of the Commission's final report, on January 30, 1975, which found that "he failed to fulfill his duties adequately, and bears much of the responsibility for the dangerous situation in which our troops were caught."[470]Rather than quieting public discontent, the report'--which "had stressed that it was judging the ministers' responsibility for security failings, not their parliamentary responsibility, which fell outside its mandate"'--inflamed it. Although it had absolved Meir and Dayan of all responsibility, public calls for their resignations (especially Dayan's) intensified.[469] In the December 1973 legislative election, Meir's Alignment party lost five Knesset seats.
On April 11, 1974, Golda Meir resigned. Her cabinet followed suit, including Dayan, who had previously offered to resign twice and was turned down both times by Meir. A new government was seated in June and Yitzhak Rabin, who had spent most of the war as an advisor to Elazar in an unofficial capacity, became Prime Minister.[471]
In 1999, the issue was revisited by the Israeli political leadership to prevent similar shortcomings from being repeated. The Israeli National Security Council was created to improve coordination between the different security and intelligence bodies, and the political branch of government.
Response in Egypt For the Arab states (and Egypt in particular), Arab successes during the war healed the psychological trauma of their defeat in the Six-Day War, allowing them to negotiate with the Israelis as equals. Because of the later setbacks in the war (which saw Israel gain a large salient on African soil and even more territory on the Syrian front),[failed verification ] some believe that the war helped convince many in the Arab world that Israel could not be defeated militarily, thereby strengthening peace movements and delaying the Arab ambition of destroying Israel by force.[472]
General Shazly had angered Sadat for advocating the withdrawal of Egyptian forces from Sinai to meet the Israeli incursion on the West Bank of the Canal. Six weeks after the war, he was relieved of command and forced out of the army, ultimately going into political exile for years. Upon his return to Egypt, he was placed under house arrest.[473] Following his release, he advocated the formation of a "Supreme High Committee" modeled after Israel's Agranat Commission in order to "probe, examine and analyze" the performance of Egyptian forces and the command decisions made during the war, but his requests were completely ignored.[474] He published a book, banned in Egypt, that described Egypt's military failings and the sharp disagreements he had with Ismail and Sadat in connection with the prosecution of the war.[475]
The commanders of the Second and Third Armies, Generals Khalil and Wasel, were also dismissed from the army.[473] The commander of the Egyptian Second Army at the start of the war, General Mamoun, suffered a heart attack,[191] or, alternatively, a breakdown, after the Egyptian defeat during the October 14 Sinai tank battle, and was replaced by General Khalil.[476][477]
Response in Syria In Syria, Colonel Rafik Halawi, the Druze commander of an infantry brigade that had collapsed during the Israeli breakthrough, was executed before the war even ended.[473] He was given a quick hearing and sentenced to death; his execution was immediate.[478] Military historian Zeev Schiff referred to him as Syria's "sacrificial lamb".[478] The Syrians however offered vehement denials that Halawi was executed and expended great efforts trying to debunk the allegation.[479] They claimed he was killed in battle with Israel and threatened severe punishment to anyone repeating the allegation of execution.[479] Their concern stemmed from a desire to maintain Syrian Druze loyalty to Assad's regime and prevent Syrian Druze from siding with their co-religionists in Israel.[479] On July 7, 1974, Halawi's remains were removed from a Syrian military hospital and he was interred in Damascus at the "Cemetery of the Martyrs of the October War" in the presence of many Syrian dignitaries.[479] One analyst noted that the presence of so many high-level officials was unusual and attributed it to Syrian efforts to quell any suggestion of execution.[479]
Response in the Soviet Union According to Chernyaev, on November 4, 1973, Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev said:
We have offered them (the Arabs) a sensible way for so many years. But no, they wanted to fight. Fine! We gave them technology, the latest, the kind even Vietnam didn't have. They had double superiority in tanks and aircraft, triple in artillery, and in air defense and anti-tank weapons they had absolute supremacy. And what? Once again they were beaten. Once again they scrammed [sic]. Once again they screamed for us to come save them. Sadat woke me up in the middle of the night twice over the phone, "Save me!" He demanded to send Soviet troops, and immediately! No! We are not going to fight for them.[480]
Arab oil embargo In response to U.S. support of Israel, the Arab members of OPEC, led by Saudi Arabia, decided to reduce oil production by 5% per month on October 17. On October 19, President Nixon authorized a major allocation of arms supplies and $2.2 billion in appropriations for Israel. In response, Saudi Arabia declared an embargo against the United States, later joined by other oil exporters and extended against the Netherlands and other states, causing the 1973 energy crisis.[481]
Long-term effects Egyptian''Israeli disengagement agreement Another Egyptian''Israeli disengagement agreement, the Sinai Interim Agreement, was signed in Geneva on September 4, 1975, and was commonly known as Sinai II. This agreement led Israel to withdraw from another 20''40 km with UN forces buffering the vacated area. After the agreement, Israel still held more than two-thirds of Sinai, which would prove to be a valuable bargaining chip in the coming negotiations.[482]
Egyptian''Israeli Camp David Accords The Yom Kippur War upset the status quo in the Middle East, and the war served as a direct antecedent of the 1978 Camp DavidAccords.[243] The Accords resulted in the Egypt''Israel peace treaty, the first ever between Israel and an Arab state. According to George Friedman, the war gave the Israelis increased respect for the Egyptian military and decreased their confidence in their own, and caused the Israelis to be uncertain whether they could defeat Egypt in the event of another war. At the same time, the Egyptians recognized that despite their improvements, they were defeated in the end, and became doubtful that they could ever defeat Israel militarily. Therefore, a negotiated settlement made sense to both sides.[483]
Rabin's government was hamstrung by a pair of scandals, and he was forced to step down in 1977. In the elections that followed, the right-wing Likud party won a majority in the Knesset and Menachem Begin, the party's founder and leader, was appointed Prime Minister. This marked a historic change in the Israeli political landscape: for the first time since Israel's founding, a coalition not led by the Labor Party was in control of the government.
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister
Menachem Begin acknowledge applause during a joint session of Congress in Washington, D.C., during which President
Jimmy Carter announced the results of the
Camp David Accords, September 18, 1978.
Sadat, who had entered the war in order to recover the Sinai from Israel, grew frustrated at the slow pace of the peace process. In a 1977 interview with CBS News anchorman Walter Cronkite, Sadat admitted under pointed questioning that he was open to a more constructive dialog for peace, including a state visit. This seemed to open the floodgates, as in a later interview with the same reporter, the normally hard-line Begin'--perhaps not wishing to be compared unfavorably to Sadat'--said he too would be amenable to better relations. On November 9, 1977, Sadat stunned the world when he told parliament that he would be willing to visit Israel and address the Knesset. Shortly afterward, the Israeli government cordially invited him to address the Knesset. Thus, in November of that year, Sadat took the unprecedented step of visiting Israel, becoming the first Arab leader to do so, and so implicitly recognized Israel.
The act jump-started the peace process. United States President Jimmy Carter invited both Sadat and Begin to a summit at Camp David to negotiate a final peace. The talks took place from September 5''17, 1978. Ultimately, the talks succeeded, and Israel and Egypt signed the Egypt''Israel Peace Treaty in 1979. Israel subsequently withdrew its troops and settlers from the Sinai, in exchange for normal relations with Egypt and a lasting peace, with last Israeli troops exiting on April 26, 1982.[484] There is still no formal peace agreement between Israel and Syria to this day.
Many in the Arab world were outraged at Egypt's peace with Israel. Sadat, in particular, became deeply unpopular both in the Arab world and in his own country. Egypt was suspended from the Arab League until 1989. Until then, Egypt had been "at the helm of the Arab world".[485] Egypt's tensions with its Arab neighbors culminated in 1977 in the short-lived Libyan''Egyptian War.
Sadat was assassinated two years later on October 6, 1981, while attending a military parade marking the eighth anniversary of the start of the war, by Islamist army members who were outraged at his negotiations with Israel.
Commemorations A destroyed Syrian T-62 stands as part of an Israeli memorial commemorating the battle of the 'Valley of Tears', Northern Golan Heights.
October 6 is a national holiday in Egypt called Armed Forces Day. It is a national holiday in Syria as well, where it is called "Tishreen Liberation Day".[486] Marking the 35th anniversary in 2008, Hosni Mubarak said that the conflict "breathed new life" into Egypt. He said Egypt and Syria's initial victories in the conflict eased Arab bitterness over Israel's victory in the 1967 Six-Day War and ultimately put the two nations on a path of peaceful coexistence.[487]
In Egypt, many places were named after the date of October 6 and Ramadan 10th, which is the equivalent day in the Islamic calendar. Examples of these commemorations are 6th October Bridge in Cairo and the cities of 6th of October and 10th of Ramadan.
In addition, the Museum of the October 6 War was built in 1989 in the Heliopolis district of Cairo. The center of the museum is occupied by a rotunda housing a panoramic painting of the struggle between Egyptian and Israeli armed forces. The panorama, the creation of which was outsourced to a group of North Korean artists and architects, is equipped with engines to rotate it 360° during a 30-minutes presentation accompanied by commentary in various languages.[488] A similar museum, which was also built with North Korean assistance'--the October War Panorama'--operates in Damascus.[489]
Another Yom Kippur War exhibit can be found at The Armored Corps Museum at Latrun.[490]
See also Corrective Movement (Syria)List of modern conflicts in the Middle EastLeninsky Komsomol class cargo ships '' Seven Soviet Union Leninsky Komsomol class of cargo ships carried out military cargo in Syria and Egypt in October and November 1973:[491]SS Fizik Kurchatov visited Alexandria twice and Latakia onceSS Bratstvo (1963) arrived in Latakia on October 20, 1973SDK 137 '' One Soviet Union Polnocny-class landing ship (built in Gdansk) that participated in open hostilities against Israelites and downed at least one Israeli F-4 PhantomOperation Spark (1973)References Notes ^ Kumaraswamy, P. R. (2013). Revisiting the Yom Kippur War. Routledge. p. 235. ISBN 978-1136328954. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Edgar O'Ballance (1979). No Victor, No Vanquished: The Yom Kippur War (1979 ed.). Barrie & Jenkins. pp. 28''370. ISBN 978-0214206702. ^ a b c Shazly, p. 278. ^ "An unknown story from the Yom Kippur war: Israeli F-4s vs North Korean MiG-21s". The Aviationist. 24 June 2013 . Retrieved 27 June 2015 . ^ a b c d e f Rabinovich, pp. 464''65. ^ a b c d e Hussain, Hamid (November 2002). "Opinion: The Fourth round '' A Critical Review of 1973 Arab''Israeli War". Defence Journal. Archived from the original on 16 January 2009. ^ Mahjoub Tobji (2006). Les officiers de Sa Majest(C): Les d(C)rives des g(C)n(C)raux marocains 1956''2006. 107: Fayard. ISBN 978-2213630151. {{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link) ^ a b c Perez, Cuba, Between Reform and Revolution, pp. 377''79. Gott, Cuba, A New History, p. 280. ^ Israelyan, Victor (2010). Inside the Kremlin During the Yom Kippur War. Pennsylvania State University Press. p. 101. ISBN 978-0271041186. ^ a b Fisher, Marc (28 February 1993). "E. Germany Ran Antisemitic Campaign in West in '60s". The Washington Post. ^ a b c Shazly, pp. 83''84. ^ a b Aviationist, David Cenciotti, The. "Israeli F-4s Actually Fought North Korean MiGs During the Yom Kippur War". Business Insider. ^ a b c Nicolle, David & Cooper, Tom: Arab MiG-19 and MiG-21 units in combat. ^ a b c d Aloni, Shlomo: Arab''Israeli Air Wars, 1947''82. ^ a b Bidanda M. Chengappa (2004). Pakistan: Islamisation Army And Foreign Policy. APH Publishing. p. 42. ISBN 978-81-7648-548-7. ^ a b Simon Dunstan (2003). The Yom Kippur War 1973 (2): The Sinai. Osprey Publishing. p. 39. ISBN 978-1-84176-221-0 . Retrieved 22 February 2013 . ^ a b P. R. Kumaraswamy (2013). Revisiting the Yom Kippur War. Routledge. p. 75. ISBN 978-1-136-32895-4. ^ "Bhutto's foreign policy legacy". DAWN.COM. 5 April 2009 . Retrieved 7 July 2021 . ^ Rabinovich, I. The War for Lebanon, 1970''1985. p.105. ^ Herzog (1975). The War of Atonement . Little, Brown and Company. ISBN 9780316359009. . Foreword. ^ a b c d Insight Team of the London Sunday Times, p. 450. ^ Luttwak; Horowitz (1983). The Israeli Army . Cambridge, MA: Abt Books. ISBN 9780890115855. ^ Rabinovich (2004). The Yom Kippur War. Schocken Books. p. 498. ^ Kumaraswamy, PR (2000). Revisiting The Yom Kippur War . pp. 1''2. ISBN 978-0-7146-5007-4. ^ Johnson; Tierney. Failing To Win, Perception of Victory and Defeat in International Politics. pp. 177, 180. ^ Liebman, Charles (July 1993). "The Myth of Defeat: The Memory of the Yom Kippur war in Israeli Society" (PDF) . Middle Eastern Studies. London: Frank Cass. 29 (3): 411. doi:10.1080/00263209308700958. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2013. ^ "Israel's victory came at the cost of heavy casualties, and Israelis criticized the government's lack of preparedness." Yom Yippur War at history.com ^ "The 1973 war thus ended in an Israeli victory, but at great cost to the United States." The 1973 Arab-Israeli War at website of Office of the Historian ^ Simon Dunstan (18 September 2007). The Yom Kippur War: The Arab-Israeli War of 1973. p. 205. ISBN 978-1846032882. ^ Asaf Siniver (2013). The Yom Kippur War: Politics, Legacy, Diplomacy. Oxford University Press. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-19-933481-0. (p. 6) "For most Egyptians the war is remembered as an unquestionable victory'--militarily as well as politically ... The fact that the war ended with Israeli troops stationed in the outskirts of Cairo and in complete encirclement of the Egyptian third army has not dampened the jubilant commemoration of the war in Egypt." (p. 11) "Ultimately, the conflict provided a military victory for Israel, but it is remembered as 'the earthquake' or 'the blunder'" ^ Ian Bickerton (2012). The Arab-Israeli Conflict: A Guide for the Perplexed. A&C Black. p. 128. ISBN 978-1-4411-2872-0. the Arab has suffered repeated military defeats at the hand of Israel in 1956, 1967, and 1973 ^ P.R. Kumaraswamy (2013). Revisiting the Yom Kippur War. Routledge. p. 184. ISBN 978-1-136-32888-6. (p. 184) "Yom Kippur War ... its final outcome was, without doubt, a military victory ... " (p. 185) " ... in October 1973, that despite Israel's military victory" ^ See[20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32] ^ Loyola, Mario (7 October 2013). "How We Used to Do It '' American diplomacy in the Yom Kippur War". National Review. p. 1 . Retrieved 2 December 2013 . ^ a b c d e Morris, 2011, Righteous Victims, p. 437 ^ Morris, 2011 p. 433, "Bashan ... 500 square kilometers ... which brought it within 20 miles [32 km] of Damascus" ^ a b c d e Rabinovich. The Yom Kippur War. p. 54. ^ Insight Team of the London Sunday Times, pp. 372''73. ^ a b c The number reflects artillery units of caliber 100 mm and up ^ Herzog. p. 239. ^ "Yom Kippur War". globalsecurity.org. ^ a b Shazly, p. 244. ^ Shazly, p. 272. ^ Haber & Schiff, pp. 30''31. ^ a b USMC Major Michael C. Jordan (1997). "The 1973 Arab''Israeli War: Arab Policies, Strategies, and Campaigns". GlobalSecurity.org . Retrieved 20 April 2009 . ^ a b Major George E. Knapp (1992). "4: Antiarmor Operations on the Golan Heights". Combined Arms in battle since 1939. U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. Archived from the original on 7 May 2010 . Retrieved 1 June 2009 . ^ a b c Rabinovich, p. 314. ^ Bar-On, Mordechai (2004). A Never Ending Conflict. Greenwood Publishing. p. 170. ^ a b Neil Partrick (2016). Saudi Arabian Foreign Policy: Conflict and Cooperation. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 183. ISBN 978-0-8577-2793-0. ^ a b "بطÙÙات اÙØ"عÙديين حاضرØ(C).. في اÙحرÙب اÙعربيØ(C)". Okaz. 17 November 2019. Archived from the original on 16 February 2021 . Retrieved 13 August 2021 . ^ a b "Saudi Arabian Military Activity Against Israel". CMU. May 1978. Archived from the original on 20 November 2021 . Retrieved 19 November 2021 . ^ Bourne, Peter G. (1986). Fidel: A Biography of Fidel Castro. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company.[page needed ] ^ a b c "Le jour o¹ Hassan II a bombard(C) Isral". Le Temps. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013 . Retrieved 25 December 2013 . ^ a b Schiff, A History of the Israeli Army, p. 328. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Garwych, p. 243. ^ Journal "اÙأهرام","Al Ahram". October 14, 1974 ^ Rabinovich. The Yom Kippur War. p. 497. ^ a b Rabinovich, p. 496 ^ a b "White House Military Briefing" (PDF) . Retrieved 22 October 2011 . ^ "اÙقÙØ(C) اÙØاÙØØ(C)، تاريخ اÙقÙات اÙجÙيØ(C) اÙمصريØ(C)." Third Power: History of Egyptian Air Force Ali Mohammed Labib. pp. 187 ^ a b c d e Herzog, Encyclopaedia Judaica, Keter Publishing House, 1974, p. 87. ^ a b c d e f "Ministry of Foreign Affairs". Mfa.gov.il . Retrieved 22 October 2011 . ^ a b c Dunstan, p. 200. ^ Rabinovich p. 497 ^ a b c d Rabinovich, pp. 496''97. ^ a b Garwych p. 244 ^ a b c d Herzog, p. 260. ^ a b Herzog, War of Atonement, p. 269. ^ (Hebrew: מ×'חמת ×ו×' ×--כ×פור××' , Milẖemet Yom HaKipurim , or מ×'חמת ×ו×' כ×פור , Milẖemet Yom Kipur ; Arabic: حرب أكتÙبر , Ḥarb ʾUktōbar , or حرب تشرين , Ḥarb TiÅrÄn ), ^ a b Rabinovich, Abraham (2004). The Yom Kippur War: The Epic Encounter That Transformed the Middle East. Schoken Books. p. 260. ISBN 0-8052-1124-1. ^ a b Herzog, Chaim (1998). War of Atonement: The Inside Story of the Yom Kippur War, 1973. Greenhill Books. ISBN 1-85367-307-2. ^ a b James Bean and Craig Girard (2001). "Anwar al-Sadat's grand strategy in the Yom Kippur War" (PDF) . National War College. pp. 1, 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 February 2017 . Retrieved 11 June 2018 . ^ a b c El-Gamasy (1993). The October War: Memoirs of Field Marshal El-Gamasy of Egypt. The American University in Cairo Press. p. 181. ^ a b Quandt, William (2005). Peace Process: American Diplomacy and the Arab''Israeli Conflict Since 1967 (third ed.). California: University of California Press. pp. 104''05. ISBN 978-0520246317. ^ Hammad (2002), pp. 237''76 ^ Gawrych (1996), p. 60 ^ Shlomo Ben-Ami (2005). Scars of War, Wounds of Peace: The Israeli''Arab Tragedy. Phoenix. ISBN 978-0-7538-2104-6. ^ Herzog, Heroes of Israel, p. 253. ^ Seth S. King (30 June 1967). "Israeli aims tied to 6 vital areas". The New York Times . Retrieved 21 September 2015 . ^ Drew Middleton (1 June 1967). "Latin nations bid Israel withdraw". The New York Times . Retrieved 21 September 2015 . ^ Smith, Terrebce (15 August 1967). "A Mediated Peace Rejected by Eban". New York Times . Retrieved 16 September 2015 . ^ Shlaim, Avi (2014). The Iron Wall '' Israel and the Arab World (paperback 2014 ed.). Penguin Books. p. 270. ISBN 978-0-141-03322-8. The decision of 19 June read, "Israel proposes the conclusion of a peace agreement with Egypt based on the international border and the security needs of Israel." The international border placed the Gaza strip within Israel's territory. ... it makes no mention of a request by Eban to transmit these terms to Egypt and Syria. ... One is left with the impression that Eban was more interested in using the cabinet decision of 19 June to impress the Americans than to engage the governments of Egypt and Syria in substantive negotiations ^ Shlomo Ben-Ami (2005). Scars of War, Wounds of Peace: The Israeli''Arab Tragedy. Phoenix. p. 125. ISBN 978-0-7538-2104-6. But was there on 19 June 1967 an Israeli peace overture towards Syria and Egypt? Did the Israeli cabinet end its deliberations on that day with a decision to convey concrete peace proposals to its Arab neighbors along the lines as discussed in the Cabinet, or perhaps ask the American administration to do so on its behalf? Notwithstanding Abba Eban's (Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1967) insistence that this was indeed the case, there seems to be no solid evidence to corroborate his claim. No formal peace proposal was made either directly or indirectly by Israel. The Americans, who were briefed of the Cabinet's decision by Eban, were not asked to convey it to Cairo and Damascus as official peace proposals, nor were they given indications that Israel expected a reply. At the meeting of 19 June the Israeli government developed policy guidelines; it did not discuss a peace initiative, nor did it ever formalise it as such. ^ "Eban rejects aid in settling crisis". The New York Times. 27 June 1967. p. 3 . Retrieved 21 September 2015 . ^ Podeh, Elie (2015). Chances for Peace: Missed Opportunities in the Arab-Israeli Conflict (first ed.). Austin, TX: University of Texas Press. pp. 104''05. ISBN 978-1477305614. ^ Podeh, p. 106. ^ a b Podeh p. 107. ^ "Sinai Pull-Back Rejected". Beaver County Times. 15 February 1971 . Retrieved 4 July 2019 . ^ Rabinovich, p. 13. ^ Hughes, Geraint (11 June 2008). "Britain, the Transatlantic Alliance, and the Arab-Israeli War of 1973". Journal of Cold War Studies. 10 (2): 3''40. doi:10.1162/jcws.2008.10.2.3. ISSN 1531-3298. S2CID 57566713 . Retrieved 2 July 2018 . ^ Henry Kissinger (2011). Years of Upheaval: The Second Volume of His Classic Memoirs. Simon and Schuster. p. 254. ISBN 978-0-85720-718-0. It was in France on May 20, 1973. ... We had a formal meeting on the upper floor and, after lunch, I walked with Ismail in the garden in the spring sunshine. In these beautiful ... Ismail remained cool to my scheme of separating sovereignty and security. He called this 'diluted sovereignty,' but said he would check with Sadat and let me know. I never heard from him. The American official who had found the meeting place reported to me that after I left, Ismail, visibly dispirited and glum, had sat alone in the garden for a long time contemplating the waterfall. ... For Ismail knew that Sadat was determined on war. Only an American guarantee that we would fulfill the entire Arab program in a brief time could have dissuaded him. ^ Morris 2001, p. 390. ^ Heikal, 22. ^ Rabinovich, p. 39. ^ Rabinovich, p. 25. ^ James Bean and Craig Girard (2001). "Anwar al-Sadat's grand strategy in the Yom Kippur war" (PDF) . National War College. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 February 2017 . Retrieved 11 June 2018 . ^ Denis Joseph Sullivan; Kimberly Jones (2008). Global Security Watch '' Egypt: A Reference Handbook. ABC-CLIO. pp. 9''. ISBN 978-0-275-99482-2. Sadat's goals were the` return of Sinai and the reopening of the Suez Canal ... to reengage the U.S in middle east diplomacy ^ Benny Morris (2011). Righteous Victims: A History of the Zionist-Arab Conflict, 1881''1998. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. p. 396. ISBN 978-0-307-78805-4. Sadat and Assad 'sought to regain the territories lost in 1967. Neither aimed to destroy Israel, though during the opening hours of the conflict, its leaders could not be sure of it.' ^ a b Ginsburg, Mitch. "Mossad's tip-off ahead of Yom Kippur War did not reach prime minister, newly released papers show". The Times of Israel. ^ a b c d e "Israeli Intelligence and the Yom Kippur War of 1973". Jewishvirtuallibrary.org . Retrieved 31 May 2012 . ^ a b Bar-Joseph, Uri (2016). The Angel: The Egyptian Spy Who Saved Israel. New York: HarperCollins. pp. 166''76, 221''22. ISBN 978-0062420138. ^ Shazly, p. 207. ^ Gawrych 1996, p. 24. ^ Schiff, p. 12 ^ Rabinovich, p. 51. ^ Rabinovich, p. 50. ^ a b Rabinovich, p. 57. ^ a b Sharon, Gilad: Sharon: The Life of a Leader (2011). ^ Blum, Howard (13 July 2007). "Who killed Ashraf Marwan?". The New York Times. ^ Doron Geller, "Israeli Intelligence and the Yom Kippur War of 1973 November 27, 2005. Archived May 13, 2008, at the Wayback Machine ^ Christopher Andrew and Vasili Mitrokhin, The World Was Going Our Way: The KGB and the Battle for the Third World, Basic Books, 2006.[page needed ] ^ Rabinovich, p. 89. ^ William B. Quandt (1977). Decade of Decisions: American Policy Toward the Arab''Israeli Conflict, 1967''1976 . University of California Press. p. 169. ISBN 978-0-520-03469-3. Kissinger and Nixon consistently warned Israel that she must not be responsible for initiating a Middle East war ^ "The national security archive, declassified archival records, The October War and U.S. Policy" (PDF) . ^ "Government of Israel Concern about possible Syrian and Egyptian attack today". United States Department of State. 6 October 1973 . Retrieved 11 August 2010 . ^ Sachar, Howard M. A History of Israel from the Rise of Zionism to Our Time. Alfred A. Knopf, 2007, p. 755. ^ William B. Quandt, Peace Process, p. 105. ^ Rabinovich, p. 454. ^ Rabinovich, Abraham (12 September 2013). "Three years too late, Golda Meir understood how war could have been avoided". The Times of Israel . Retrieved 15 April 2017 . ^ Gawrych 1996, p. 27. ^ Rabinovich, prologue. ^ Rabinovich, p. 62. ^ William B. Quandt (2005). Peace Process: American Diplomacy and the Arab''Israeli Conflict Since 1967. 109''12. University of California Press. p. 109. ISBN 978-0-520-24631-7. between October 9 and October 12 ... the American response ... call for cease-fire ... in place ... arms for Israel began to flow in modest quantities ^ Abudi, Joseph (1 October 2003). "The missile did not bend the wing". Journal of the Israeli Air Force (in Hebrew). Archived from the original on 13 May 2011 . Retrieved 15 February 2011 . ^ Abudi, Joseph (October 2005). "[What between 'challenge' and 'model']" (PDF) (in Hebrew). The Fisher Institute. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 May 2011 . Retrieved 15 February 2011 . ^ William B. Quandt (2005). Peace Process: American Diplomacy and the Arab''Israeli Conflict Since 1967. 109''12. University of California Press. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-520-24631-7. Nixon and Kissinger held back on a full scale ... resupply effort ... short of supplies, the Israeli government reluctantly accepted a cease-fire in place on October 12 ... but ... Sadat refused ^ William B. Quandt (2005). Peace Process: American Diplomacy and the Arab''Israeli Conflict Since 1967. 114. University of California Press. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-520-24631-7. Soviet arms must not be allowed to dictate the outcome of the fighting. ... Israeli success on the battlefield had become an important factor in persuading the Arabs and the Soviets to bring the fighting to an end. ... With an airlift in full swing, Washington was prepared to wait until ... realities on the battlefield led to a change of Egyptian and Soviet calculations ^ William B. Quandt (2005). Peace Process: American Diplomacy and the Arab''Israeli Conflict Since 1967. 116. University of California Press. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-520-24631-7. it was of prime importance that the fighting should be ended ... when all parties could still emerge from the conflict with their vital interests and self esteem intact ... the airlift ... the Soviets must see that the united states could deliver more than they could; p. 123 the U.S. would not permit the destruction of the 3rd army corps. ^ Shazly, pp. 224''25. ^ Shazly, pp. 225''26. ^ Shazly, p. 189. ^ Shazly, pp. 55''56. ^ Garwych, p. 28. ^ a b Abouseada, Hamdy Sobhy (1980). The Crossing of the Suez Canal, October 6, 1973 (The Ramadan War) (PDF) . USAWC strategy research project. U.S. Army War College. p. 9. ISBN 9780891410430. OCLC 45004992. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 July 2009 . Retrieved 4 October 2008 . ^ Shazly, p. 232 ^ Hammad, pp. 90''92, 108. ^ McGregor, Andrew (2006). A Military History of Modern Egypt: From the Ottoman Conquest to the Ramadan War. Westport, Conn: Praeger Security International. ISBN 978-0-275-98601-8. , p. 278. ^ Arabs at War: Military Effectiveness (Pollack), p. 108. ^ a b c Rabinovich, p. 115. ^ Pollack, p. 125. ^ Gawrych, p. 81. ^ The Yom Kippur War 1973: The Sinai '' Simon Dunstan and Kevin Lyles. ^ Shazly, p. 228. ^ Shazly, p. 229. ^ Nassar, Galal (8''14 October 1998). "Into the breach, dear friends". Al-Ahram Weekly. No. 398. Cairo. para. 10. Archived from the original on 6 May 2003. ^ Cohen, Israel's Best Defense, p. 354. ^ Pollack, p. 11. ^ Shazly, p. 233. ^ Haber & Schiff, p. 32. ^ Schiff, p. 294. ^ Herzog, The War of Atonement, Little, Brown and Company, 1975, p. 156. ^ Insight Team of the London Sunday Times, pp. 169, 170. ^ Pollack, Arabs at War: Military Effectiveness 1948''1991, University of Nebraska Press, p. 110 ^ "Israel Air Force". Iaf.org.il . 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We were now dealing with a well-trained enemy, fighting with skill and dedication." ^ Insight Team of the London Sunday Times, pp. 169''70. ^ Rabinovich, p. 354. ^ Gawrych 1996, pp. 41''42. ^ a b Dunstan and Lyles, p. 64. ^ a b [1] [dead link ] ^ Gawrych, 1996, pp. 43''44. ^ Rabinovich, p. 234. ^ a b Gawrych 1996, pp. 44''52. ^ Gawrych 2000, pp. 192, 208. ^ Herzog, 1982, pp. 255''56. ^ a b Shazly, p. 241. ^ Herzog 1982, p. 256. ^ Herzog, 1982, p. 258. ^ Shazly, p. 317. ^ a b Schiff, A History of the Israeli Army, p. 310. ^ a b c Zabecki, David T. (3 December 2008). "Arab''Israeli Wars: 60 Years of Conflict". Historyandtheheadlines.abc-clio.com. Chinese Farm, Battle of The . Retrieved 28 March 2010 . ^ Rabinovich, p. 353. ^ Rabinovich, p. 355. ^ Haber & Schiff, p. 144. ^ a b c Pollack, p. 117. ^ Van Creveld, Martin (1975). Military Lessons of the Yom Kippur War: Historical Perspectives (PDF) . Sage. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-8039-0562-7. 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Parker (ed.), 2001, The October War '' A Retrospective Gainesville: University of Florida Press, pp. 102''03, 119 ^ Asher & Hammel (1987), p. 55 ^ Asher & Hammel (1987), p. 58 ^ Asher & Hammel (1987), p. 60 ^ Asher & Hammel (1987), p. 64 ^ Asher & Hammel (1987), p. 65 ^ Asher & Hammel (1987), p. 63 ^ "The Air Raid on the Syrian General Command". Jewishvirtuallibrary.org . Retrieved 22 October 2011 . ^ The Daily Telegraph, October 9, 1973 issue, p. 2 ^ a b Rabinovich, p. 304. ^ ×--מ×'חמ×-- ×(C)×'× ×¨×‘-א×'וף ×(C)או×' מופז (מ××'):300 ק××'ומ×ר ב×ומק ×ור××-- (in Hebrew). [unreliable source? ] ^ Rabinovich, p. 433. ^ Pollack, Arabs at War, 2002, p. 167, gives total numbers for the Iraqi force by the end of the conflict as 60,000 men, more than 700 T-55 tanks, 500 APCs, more than 200 artillery pieces, two armored divisions, two infantry brigades, twelve artillery battalions, and a special forces brigade. ^ a b Dunstan, Simon: The Yom Kippur War: The Arab''Israeli War of 1973[page needed ] ^ Situation Report in the Middle East as of 1200 EDT, October 23, 1973, Department of State Operations Center ^ Ophir, Noam (October 2006). ×...××'ו ×--ארוך ×(C)×' ×--×קא×' [The Long Shadow of the Scud] (in Hebrew). Israeli Air Force Official Website. Archived from the original on 1 January 2016. ^ Rabinovich, p. 450 ^ Rabinovich, pp. 450''51. ^ Jonathan B. A. Bailey. Field Artillery and Firepower. Naval Institute Press, 2004, p. 398. ISBN 1-59114-029-3. ^ William B. Quandt (2005). Peace Process: American Diplomacy and the Arab''Israeli Conflict Since 1967. 114. 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Retrieved 4 March 2011 . ^ a b c d e Farr, Warner D. "The Third Temple's Holy of Holies: Israel's Nuclear Weapons". Counterproliferation Paper No. 2, USAF Counterproliferation Center, Air War College, September 1999. ^ October 9, 1973, conversation (8:20''8:40 am) between Israeli Ambassador to the United States Simcha Dinitz, military attach(C) General Mordechai Gur, Henry Kissinger, Brent Scowcroft, and Peter Rodman. Transcript George Washington University National Security Archive. ^ a b Cohen, Avner. "The Last Nuclear Moment" The New York Times, October 6, 2003. ^ Arnon Gutfeld and Boaz Vanetik, "'A Situation That Had to Be Manipulated': The American Airlift to Israel During the Yom Kippur War." Middle Eastern Studies 52.3 (2016): 419''47. ^ Colby, Elbridge; Cohen, Avner; McCants, William; Morris, Bradley; Rosenau, William (April 2013). "The Israeli 'Nuclear Alert' of 1973: Deterrence and Signaling in Crisis" (PDF) . CNA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 October 2014. ^ "A tale of two fleets: a Russian perspective on the 1973 Naval standoff in the Mediterranean". Thefreelibrary.com . Retrieved 31 May 2012 . ^ [2] Archived April 3, 2015, at the Wayback Machine ^ Krisinger, Chris J. "Operation Nickel Grass '' Airlift in Support of National Policy" Archived January 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, Aerospace Power Journal, Spring 1989. ^ Rabinovich, p. 491. ^ a b Haber & Schiff, p. 382. ^ John Lacomia. "Remember When ... Operation Nickel Grass". Travis: Air Force. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011 . Retrieved 28 March 2010 . ^ a b Shazli pp. 275''76 ^ a b Haber & Schiff, p. 282. ^ Shazly. p. 276. "... the USA mounted a seaborne resupply operation of 33,210 tons by October 30." ^ Gawrych 1996, p. 56. ^ "McDonnell F-4 Phantom: Essential Aircraft in the Air Warfare in the Middle East". Historynet.com. 12 June 2006. Archived from the original on 28 April 2011 . Retrieved 28 March 2010 . ^ El Gamasy, The October War, 1973, p. 276. ^ Shazly, pp. 251''52. ^ O'Ballance, p. 182. ^ Schiff, 303 ^ Shazly, p. 275. ^ Shazly, pp. 274''75. Shazly states that " ... the Soviet Union mounted a sea-borne resupply operation: no less than 63,000 tons, mainly to Syria, by October 30" ^ Quandt, 25''26 (pdf pp. 37''38), gives the airlift total as approximately 12,500 tons; Quandt 23 (pdf p. 35) gives the sealift total as approximately 63,000 tons. ^ Hammad, p. 382. ^ "Strategic Doctrine - Israel". nuke.fas.org. ^ Naftali, Tim (26 August 2016). "CIA reveals its secret briefings to Presidents Nixon and Ford". CNN . Retrieved 26 August 2016 . ^ Rabinovich, p. 325. ^ O'Ballance, pp. 165''66. ^ Porter, Bruce D. The USSR in Third World Conflicts, Soviet Arms and Diplomacy in Local Wars, p. 135. ^ Remez, Gideon and Ginor, Isabella: The Soviet-Israeli War, 1967-1973: The USSR's Military Intervention in the Egyptian-Israeli Conflict ^ "White House Military Briefing, October 22" (PDF) . Retrieved 28 March 2010 . ^ Boyne, Walter J. (2002). The Yom Kippur War: And the Airlift Strike That Saved Israel. Macmillan. p. Insert 6. ISBN 978-0312320423 . Retrieved 3 June 2016 . ^ a b William B Quandt, Peace Process, p. 121. ^ Rabinovich, p. 479. ^ a b Rabinovich, p. 480. ^ "Effects-Based Operations: the Yom Kippur War Case Study" (PDF) . Retrieved 28 March 2010 . ^ Rabinovich, p. 484. ^ Rabinovich, p. 485. ^ a b Shazly, pp. 277''78. ^ a b c Kuwaraswamy. p. 60. "On the Egyptian front, the Libyan (manned by Egyptians), Algerian and Iraqi squadrons took part in bombing Israeli targets and providing air assistance to ground operations. Additional Arab forces operating on the Egyptian front were a Libyan armored brigade and a Kuwaiti infantry battalion which had been deployed in Egypt before the war, and an Algerian armored brigade which arrived on 17 October. Neither of these units took an active part in the war. After the cease-fire went into effect, a Sudanese infantry brigade also arrived in the front." ^ Perez, Cuba: Between Reform and Revolution, pp. 377''79. ^ Bourne, Peter G. (1986), Fidel: A Biography of Fidel Castro. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company. ^ Lindsey Hilsum (2015). Sandstorm. Faber & Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-28806-9. ^ a b Asher, Dani (2014). Inside Israel's Northern Command: The Yom Kippur War on the Syrian Border. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. pp. 415''18. ISBN 978-0-8131-6737-4. ^ List of Arab contributions by country; Kuwait Defense Minister, His Highness Sheikh Saad Al-Salim Al-Sabah visiting Egyptian front in 1972 and issues war operation order 3967 to enact Al-Jahra Force ^ "Kuwaiti Ministry of Defense". Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. ^ a b c Rabinovich, p. 464. ^ "The Yom Kippur War". Jewishvirtuallibrary.org. 6 October 1973 . Retrieved 22 October 2011 . ^ Rabinovich, I. The War for Lebanon, 1970''1985. p. 105. "Lebanon was perceived as Israel's one harmless neighbour, a state that since 1949 had not taken part in the Arab''Israeli wars ..." ^ "The war that nearly was". ^ "The little-known US-Soviet confrontation during Yom Kippur War". ^ Wallach, Jehuda (1983). Carta's Atlas of Israel: The Third Decade 1971''1981 (in Hebrew). Carta, Jerusalem, Israel. p. 68. ISBN 965-220-060-3. ^ Dunstan, Simon (2009). Centurion Vs T-55: Yom Kippur War 1973 . Osprey. pp. 28, 69. ISBN 978-1-84603-369-8. ^ "Smith (US Interest Section in Cairo) to Department of State, October 11, 1973" . Retrieved 22 October 2011 . ^ "Kissinger to the US Interest Section in Cairo, October 12, 1973" . Retrieved 22 October 2011 . ^ Rabinovich, 497. ^ Gal, Reuven (1986). A Portrait of the Israeli Soldier. New York: Greenwood Press. p. 161. ISBN 0313243158. ^ John Pimlott, Michael Orr, The Middle East Conflicts: From 1945 to the Present, London: Orbis Publishing (1983), p. 99. ^ O'Ballance, p. 129 ^ "Middle East: Sandstorm at Kilometer 101". Time. 3 December 1973. Archived from the original on 31 October 2007 . Retrieved 21 May 2010 . ^ Military Lessons of the Yom Kippur War: Historical Perspectives, Martin van Creveld, p. 47 Archived May 13, 2014, at the Wayback Machine ^ Quandt 2005, pp. 123''24. ^ Drysdale, A. & Hinnebusch, R.: Syria and the Middle East Peace Process. Council on Foreign Relations Press, New York, 1991. ^ Tristam, P.: The Egyptian-Israeli Disengagement Treaties of 1974 and 1975 Archived May 9, 2013, at the Wayback Machine. About.com, accessed 2012. ^ Rabinovich, pp. 497''98. ^ Rabinovich, p. 499. ^ Rabinovich, p. 501. ^ Rabinovich, p. 503 ^ a b Rabinovich, p. 502. ^ Findings of the Agranat Commission, The Jewish Agency for Israel, see "January 30" on linked page. Retrieved June 9, 2005. Archived December 3, 2008, at the Wayback Machine ^ Rabinovich, p. 237. ^ The Middle East: a glossary of terms. Guardian Unlimited, May 15, 2001. ^ a b c Rabinovich, p. 507. ^ Shazly, p. 331 ^ Shazly, p. 334. ^ Rabinovich, p. 356. ^ Blum, Howard (2007), The Untold Story of the Yom Kippur War, HarperCollins, p. 298. ^ a b Schiff, Zeev (1973), October Earthquake, Yom Kippur 1973, University Publishing Projects, pp. 194''95. ^ a b c d e Macdonald, Scot (2006). Propaganda and Information Warfare in the Twenty-First Century. Routledge. p. 68. ISBN 1135983518. ^ Anatoly Chernyaev. "Diary of Anatoly Chernyaev, 1973" (PDF) . National Security Archive. National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 430. p. 69. ^ Smith, Charles D. (2006), Palestine and the Arab''Israeli Conflict, New York: Bedford, p. 329. ^ Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Interim Agreement with Egypt: 1975. Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2008. ^ Friedman, George: "Israeli''Palestinian peace talks; again." Stratfor, August 23, 2010. ^ Shipler, David: "Israel Completes Pullout, Leaving Sinai to Egypt". The New York Times, April 25, 1982: A1. ^ Karsh, p. 86. ^ Doing Business in Syria: 2010 Country Commercial Guide for U.S. Companies Archived October 16, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, U.S. Commercial Service, United States of America Department of Commerce, retrieved May 21, 2010. ^ "Mubarak reflects on 1973 Yom Kippur War". UPI. 6 October 2008 . Retrieved 20 April 2010 . ^ "Egypt State Information Service". Archived from the original on 22 May 2009 . Retrieved 19 June 2009 . ^ "Lonely Planet". Archived from the original on 21 August 2011. ^ "Yad Lashiryon, Armored Corps Museum". Yadlashiryon.com. Archived from the original on 18 June 2011 . Retrieved 31 May 2012 . ^ Author: Розин АÐ>>ександÑ. Title: Ðоветский ÑÐ>>от в войнах и конÑÐ>>иктах "хоÐ>>одной войны". Это '' ÐеÑсонаÐ>>ьная стÑаница АÐ>>ександÑа Розина >> Ð'ойна ÐудноÐ"о дня>> 1973 Ð". ПÑотивостояние ÑÐ>>отов ÐÐÐРи ÐША на моÑе. >> Chapter 9: КоÑабÐ>>и эскадÑы конвоиÑуют тÑансÐоÑты. Bibliography Asher, Jerry; Hammel, Eric (1987). Duel for the Golan: the 100-hour battle that saved Israel. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc. ISBN 0-688-06911-8. el Badri, Hassan (1979). The Ramadan War, 1973. Fairfax, VA: T. N. Dupuy Associates Books. ISBN 0-88244-600-2. Bar-Joseph, Uri (2012). The Watchman Fell Asleep: The Surprise of Yom Kippur and Its Sources. Albany, NY: SUNY Press. ISBN 978-0-79148-312-1. Boyne, Walter J. "Nickel Grass." Air Force Magazine 81 (Dec 1998): pp. 55''59. onlineBoyne, Walter J. The Two O'Clock War: The 1973 Yom Kippur Conflict and the Airlift that Saved Israel (2002),Bregman, Ahron (2002). Israel's Wars: A History Since 1947. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-28716-2. Bronson, R. Thicker than Oil: America's Uneasy Partnership with Saudi Arabia (2006).Brook, Itzhak (2011). In the Sands of Sinai: a Physician's Account of the Yom Kippur War. Charleston: CreateSpace. ISBN 978-1-4663-8544-3. Dupuy, Trevor Nevitt (1978). Elusive victory: The Arab''Israeli Wars, 1947''1974. San Francisco: Harper & Row. ISBN 0-06-011112-7. Gawrych, George (2000). The Albatross of Decisive Victory: War and Policy Between Egypt and Israel in the 1967 and 1973 Arab-Israeli Wars. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0-313-31302-4. Gawrych, Dr. George W. (1996). The 1973 Arab-Israeli War: The Albatross of Decisive Victory. Combat Studies Institute, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. "Intro" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 June 2007. , "Part I" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2011. , "Part II" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2011. , "Part III" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2011. , "Part IV" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2011. , "Part V" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2011. , "Part VI" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2011. , "Part VII" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 May 2011. , "Notes" (PDF) . Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 March 2009 . Retrieved 28 May 2015 . Haber, Eitan; Schiff, Ze'ev (2003). Yom Kippur War Lexicon (in Hebrew). Or-Yehuda, Israel: Zmora-Bitan-Dvir. ISBN 978-965-517-124-2. Hammad, Gamal (2002). al-MaÊ>>ārik al-ḥarbÄyah Ê>>al al-jabhah al-Miá¹£rÄyah: (Ḥarb UktÅbar 1973, al-Ê>>Äshir min Ramaḍān) [Military Battles on the Egyptian Front] (in Arabic) (first ed.). Dār al-ShurÅq. Heikal, Mohamed (1975). The Road to Ramadan. London: Collins. ISBN 0-8129-0567-9. Herzog, Chaim (2003) [1975]. The War of Atonement: The Inside Story of the Yom Kippur War. London: Greenhill Books. ISBN 978-1-85367-569-0. Herzog, Chaim (1982). the Arab-Israeli Wars. Random House. ISBN 978-0-394-50379-0. Herzog, Chaim (1989). Heroes of Israel. Boston: Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-35901-7. Insight Team of the London Sunday Times (1974). The Yom Kippur War. Garden City, NJ: Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-385-06738-6. Israeli, Raphael (1985). Man of Defiance: A Political Biography of Anwar Sadat. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN 0-389-20579-6. Israelyan, Victor (2003) [1995]. Inside the Kremlin During the Yom Kippur War. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press. ISBN 0-271-01737-6. Karsh, Efraim (2002). The Iran-Iraq War, 1980''1988. Oxford: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-371-3. Lanir, Zvi (2002) [1983]. ha-Hafta'ah ha-basisit: modi'in ba-mashber [Fundamental Surprise: Intelligence in Crisis] (in Hebrew). Tel-Aviv: Hakibbutz Hameuchad. OCLC 65842089. Menshawy, Mustafa. "Turning 'defeat' into 'victory': the power of discourse on the 1973 war in Egypt." Middle Eastern Studies 52.6 (2016): 897''916. Historiography.Morris, Benny (2001). Righteous Victims. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 978-0-679-74475-7. Ma'Oz, Moshe (1995). Syria and Israel: From War to Peacemaking. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-828018-1. Neff, Donald (1988). Warriors against Israel. Brattleboro, Vermont: Amana Books. ISBN 978-0-915597-59-8. Nicolle, David; Cooper, Tom (2004). Arab MiG-19 and MiG-21 units in combat. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-655-0. Edgar O'Ballance (1979). No Victor, No Vanquished: The Yom Kippur War (1979 ed.). Barrie & Jenkins. pp. 28''370. ISBN 978-0214206702. Pape, Robert A (Fall 1997). "Why Economic Sanctions Do Not Work". International Security. 22 (2): 90''136. doi:10.2307/2539368. JSTOR 2539368. OCLC 482431341. Quandt, William (2005). Peace Process: American diplomacy and the Arab''Israeli conflict since 1967. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution / University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-22374-8. Quandt, William B (May 1976). "Soviet Policy in the October 1973 War" (PDF) . Rand Corp. R-1864-ISA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 October 2012. Rabinovich, Abraham (2005) [2004]. The Yom Kippur War: The Epic Encounter That Transformed the Middle East. New York: Schocken Books. ISBN 0-8052-4176-0. Rabinovich, Abraham (2017). The Yom Kippur War: The Epic Encounter That Transformed the Middle East. Revised and Updated Edition. New York: Schocken Books. ISBN 978-0805211245. al Sadat, Muhammad Anwar (1978). In Search of Identity: An Autobiography. London: Collins. ISBN 0-00-216344-6. Shazly, Lieutenant General Saad el (2003). The Crossing of the Suez, Revised Edition (revised ed.). American Mideast Research. ISBN 0-9604562-2-8. Shlaim, Avi (2001). The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World. W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN 0-393-32112-6. Rodman, David (2013). "The Impact of American Arms Transfers to Israel during the 1973 Yom Kippur War" (PDF) . Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs, VII:3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 May 2015. Rodman, David. Israel in the 1973 Yom Kippur War: Diplomacy, Battle and Lessons (Sussex Academic Press, 2016).External links CIA Symposium on the Role of Intelligence in the 1973 Arab''Israeli War, held on January 30, 2013President Nixon and the Role of Intelligence in the 1973 Arab''Israeli War, collection of primary documents at the CIA websiteHourly U.S. diplomatic reporting on the war WikiLeaksA second look, 40 years after the war and The downfall of the Hermon fortification. Israeli TV documentaries broadcast in October 2013, featuring original video footage filmed during the war, interviews with combatants during the war and decades later, etc. Posted on the official YouTube channel of the Israel Broadcasting AuthorityIsraeli Air Force Wing 115 '' experiences during the war, and insights 40 years later. Documentary film released in October 2013, featuring interviews with air force pilots. Posted on the official YouTube channel of the Fisher Institute for the Strategic Study of Air and Space
Strippers say a recession is guaranteed because the strip clubs are suddenly empty | indy100
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:59
Some strippers on Twitter said they think recession is guaranteed - because the strip clubs are suddenly empty.
On Thursday (9 May), a woman who goes by @botticellibimbo on the platform said the following about the clubs: "The strip club is sadly a leading indicator, and I can promise y'all we r in a recession, lmao."
"Me getting stock alerts just to decide whether it's worth it to go to work," she further wrote in a subsequent tweet.
People took to the comment section of her post to confirm her sentiments about the strip clubs, as well as their own experiences in other industries that seemed to be declining.
"Nah fr, reading all these articles journalists and economists are like we're not in a recession we might not even get one this year or next'...like the club is dead babe wym," one wrote.
"The strip club is sadly a leading indicator, and I can promise y'all we r in a recession, lmao."@botticellibimbo/Twitter
"Tbh, I think we've been in a recession since fall 2020," another added.
A third wrote: "It's getting expensive out there. It's probably gonna get worse, unfortunately," another added.
Someone else, who is a "mail carrier," wrote: "' I'm a mail carrier and have noticed the lack of volume of packages coming from one of my customers that has a home business. S****'s gonna get worst smh," someone added.
According to data from the market research group IBISWorld, it estimates that the profit for US strip clubs has declined more than 12 per cent to $1.4bn (£1.2bn) in 2018, which is down from $1.6bn in 2012.
The research group also noted that the annual revenue growth at US strip clubs was 4.9 per cent between 2012 and 2017. It eventually slowed down to 1.9 percent from 2013 to 2018 and is projected to face another decrease at 1.7 per cent by 2023.
Revenue in the industry is also estimated to have decreased 17.4 per cent in 2020.
Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
Major Supermarkets to ban paying with Cash or Card and only accept payments via Digital ID & Facial Recognition Technology '' The Expose
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:59
Breaking News All major supermarkets will very soon no longer accept cash or card payments, and instead, force customers to use their face or fingerprints to pay for essential items, in what is another huge leap toward a dystopian cashless society.
Mastercard recently launched a program for retailers to offer biometric payment methods, like facial recognition and fingerprint scanning. At the checkout, users will be forced to authenticate their payment by showing their face or the palm of their hand instead of being allowed to pay by card or with cash.
The program has already gone live in five St Marche grocery stores in Sao Paulo, Brazil, with more trials also planned for Asia and the Middle East. Mastercard says it plans to roll it out globally later this year.
The payments company wants to roll the programme out worldwide for small and large retailers. Ajay Bhalla, the president of cyber and intelligence at Mastercard, said: ''The way we pay needs to keep pace with the way we live, work and do business, offering choice to consumers with the highest levels of security.
''Our goal with this new programme is to make shopping a great experience for consumers and merchants alike, providing the best of both security and convenience.
''All the research that we've done has told us that consumers love biometrics''.
Did Mastercard only conduct its market research in China? It certainly sounds like it.
The current spin being used to justify using the biometric payment system and forcing the public to live in a dystopian cashless society is that it will ''lead to shorter queues, be more hygienic than tapping in a pin, and be less vulnerable to fraud''.
A spokesman for Mastercard said: ''No more fumbling for your phone or hunting for your wallet when you have your hands full '' the next generation of in-person payments will only need a quick smile or wave of your hand. The trusted technology that uses your face or fingerprint to unlock your phone can now be used to help consumers speed through the checkout. With Mastercard's new Biometric Checkout Programme, all you will need is yourself.''
Mastercard cited a study that claims 74% of the global population has a ''positive attitude'' towards biometrics. That number is highly questionable, but are the 74% aware of the dangers of implementing this kind of technology?
All the systems of Digital ID and data-gathering are vulnerable to security breaches. The Equifax breach, for example, compromised an astonishing 145.5 million Social Security numbers. Because of the potential for cyber breaches, hacks in the future could even larger and put entire systems at risk.
The rise of artificial intelligence also means that, as data from Digital ID systems is gathered, algorithms are being built that may have a major impact on people. These systems, though, like the data itself, are neither transparent in operation nor clear even as to who or what is building them, and for what purposes.
It may be, in the future, that people will find they no longer have consumer options such as low-cost bank loans due to the decisions of algorithms whose workings are not transparent to the public.
The only way to stop the implementation of this Draconian system is to always pay with cash whilst the use of this new technology remains optional.
Categories: Breaking News, Did You Know?, Latest News, The Expose Blog, World News
FEATURE-Nigeria blocks 73 million mobile phones in security clampdown | Reuters
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:58
By Kelechukwu Iruoma, Justice Nwafor, Thomson Reuters Foundation
* Outgoing calls barred on mobile SIMs not linked to NIN database
* One-third of mobile users blocked for failing to comply
* Nigerians raise concerns over privacy, data security, access
OWERRI, Nigeria, April 20 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - C onstance Chioma calls her son every morning to check that he is safe while studying in northeast Nigeria, a region plagued by deadly attacks by Islamist insurgents and armed kidnappings.
Earlier this month, she could not get through.
She later realised her SIM card was one of about 73 million - more than a third of the 198 million in Nigeria - which have been barred from making outgoing calls because they have not been registered in the national digital identity database.
''I could not concentrate at work; I was uneasy and constantly asking myself if he was safe,'' said Chioma, a 57-year-old teacher in Owerri city in southeast Nigeria.
''With the rising insecurity in the north, not speaking with my son makes me afraid.''
Nigeria is among dozens of African countries including Ghana, Egypt and Kenya with SIM registration laws that authorities say are necessary for security purposes, but digital rights experts here say increase surveillance and hurts privacy.
Nigeria has been rolling out 11-digit electronic national identity cards for almost a decade, which record an individual's personal and biometric data, including fingerprints and photo.
The National Identity Number (NIN) is required to open a bank account, apply for a driver's license, vote, get health insurance, and file tax returns.
In 2020, Nigeria's telecommunications regulator said every active mobile phone number must be linked to the user's NIN. It repeatedly extended the deadline until March 31 this year.
The government said outgoing calls were being barred from April 4 here from any mobile phone numbers that had not complied.
Millions of Nigerians have not registered their SIM cards, for reasons ranging from concerns over privacy here to problems reaching registration centres or not having a NIN.
''There have been no reasonable explanations as to why we have to link NIN to our SIM,'' said Nneka Orji, a journalist in southeast Nigeria who has not registered her SIM.
''For that reason, I am not ready to do that,'' she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
She now relies on WhatsApp to make calls, even though not all of her contacts use the messaging service.
The spokesperson for the government's National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), which is overseeing the linkage with NIN, did not respond to requests for comment.
Officials have said the policy is needed to bolster security and identify criminals as the government battles insurgents and armed bandits who have kidnapped hundreds of people for ransom.
Nigeria's 12-year war with insurgent Islamists has spawned one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, killing some 350,000 people here, according to United Nations estimates, including indirect deaths through damage to agriculture and healthcare.
LOSING CUSTOMERSThe push to get citizens to link their mobiles to the national ID database has sparked alarm among privacy activists, who warn that African governments are using new technology and laws to increase surveillance here of citizens and dissidents.
Nigeria's order to bar unregistered phones is ''an infringement on the rights to freedom of expression and privacy'' guaranteed by its constitution, said human rights lawyer Festus Ogun, managing partner at Festus Ogun Legal in Lagos.
''What law empowers them to shut out millions of citizens in this digital economy?'' he said, referring to people relying on their phones for banking, mobile money payments, and accessing government services.
The barring of mobile phones has especially hurt women in rural areas with patchy mobile networks and poor road networks, who may lack the means to go to registration centres, according to human rights groups.
Charity Elem, a street food vendor in Awarra village in southwest Imo state, said she could not afford to travel to the registration centre in Owerri city about 60 kilometres (37 miles) away.
''Some of my regular customers come from Owerri. With my line barred, I cannot call them to find out if they want to place an order,'' she said. ''They will probably go to other vendors.''
There are nearly 800 registration centres in Nigeria - one in each local government office - according to official data. The NIMC did not respond to a question on their accessibility.
Others worry that their personal details will not be secure.
''I don't think the NIMC and telcos have the right infrastructure to protect my data,'' said Favour Akachukwu, a call centre agent in Ibadan in southwest Nigeria, who has not registered his phone.
Akachukwu said he has received numerous calls from fraudsters who had his 11-digit bank verification number - which is required to hold a bank account in Nigeria - and were trying to get further details from him to access his account.
WAR ON CRIMEIn Kenya too, authorities have directed citizens to register their mobile SIM cards, citing security reasons. The East African nation has almost 65 million here mobile subscriptions.
"Financial fraud, kidnapping, terrorism and related crimes prevail in situations of compromised SIM card registration processes," Ezra Chiloba, director general of the Communications Authority of Kenya, said on Twitter here last week.
''How can we win the war against such crimes if we cannot participate by ensuring that we have updated records?''
An April 15 deadline for registration prompted thousands of Kenyans to inundate local telecom outlets in Nairobi, fearing they would be locked out of their phones.
''There have been so many fraudsters, so I guess it's a good thing,'' said Dennis Blessing Wanja, a 31-year-old chef, as he queued outside a Safaricom outlet in Nairobi's Lavington suburb.
Following complaints from the public and telecom companies about the short notice, authorities extended the deadline for registration until Oct. 15.
Back in Nigeria, Chioma is not always able to speak to her son when she calls him via WhatsApp as her connection is poor.
''I never thought my line would be barred and that I cannot speak to him easily,'' she said.
''I feel like my connection with him is not so strong.''
for-phone-only for-tablet-portrait-up for-tablet-landscape-up for-desktop-up for-wide-desktop-up
KLM temporarily halts ticket sales for Amsterdam flights due to airport chaos | Reuters
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:52
KLM airplanes are seen parked at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, Netherlands April 2, 2020. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAMSTERDAM, May 26 (Reuters) - Dutch airline KLM on Thursday said it would largely suspend sales of tickets for all flights leaving from Amsterdam Schiphol airport until Monday as the airport grapples with overcrowding due to a shortage of security staff.
Lines at Schiphol, Europe's third-busiest airport, have often stretched onto the streets in recent weeks, forcing travelers to wait for hours to clear security checks and causing many to miss their flights.
"KLM is putting a brake on ticket sales for flights leaving up until and including Sunday because Schiphol can't get its security problems fixed", KLM spokesperson Gerrie Brand said.
Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comBrand said the cap on ticket sales was needed to accommodate those who had missed their flights due to the chaos at Schiphol.
The Dutch arm of airline group Air France-KLM (AIRF.PA) said it would also offer customers with tickets for flights leaving in the next three days the opportunity to change their flight plans.
Schiphol on Thursday said it had made plans to recruit more security staff before the summer holidays, while it would also work with airlines to guarantee better planning of flights during the busiest weeks.
The airport said it was also in talks with unions about higher wages for security personnel.
Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Paul Simao
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Senator Warren Introduced Price Gouging Prevention Act of 2022
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:50
Two federal price gouging bills were recently introduced in Congress. Senator Elizabeth Warren led the introduction of the Price Gouging Prevention Act of 2022. The bill prohibits ''unconscionably excessive price[s]'' at any point in a supply chain or distribution network during an ''exceptional market shock'' triggered by a range of events '' including public health emergencies. The law would apply to any good or service offered in commerce, and would authorize the Federal Trade Commission and State Attorneys General to enforce the prohibition. Additionally, during ''exceptional market shocks,'' the law would require public companies to disclose and explain changes in pricing and gross margins in quarterly SEC filings'--raising the specter of SEC enforcement with respect to those disclosures.
Under Senator Warren's bill, a defendant would presumptively violate the act if, during an ''exceptional market shock,'' it is shown that they (1) either have ''unfair leverage'' or are using circumstances related to the market shock to increase prices; and (2) sell or offer to sell a good or service at an excessive price compared to the average price during the 120-days prior to the market shock. Unfair leverage is defined as: (1) earning $1 billion in revenue in the last year; (2) discriminating between otherwise equal trading partners; (3) being a critical trading partner; or (4) having a characteristic described in any rule issued by the FTC further defining unfair leverage. Businesses earning less than $100 million in gross U.S. revenue during the preceding year can raise an affirmative defense by showing by a preponderance of evidence the increase in price is directly attributable to additional costs outside of the business's control. Larger business can rebut the presumption of a violation only if they demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence the price increase is directly attributable to additional costs outside of the business's control.
Representative Katie Porter led the introduction of the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, which would prohibit ''unconscionably excessive'' prices, at wholesale or retail, of consumer fuel, including gasoline and home energy fuel. Price controls would be triggered by the President issuing an energy emergency proclamation, as prescribed by the Act. The energy emergency proclamation would specify the covered geographic area, consumer fuel type, and time period, not to exceed 30 consecutive days at a time, though renewable for consecutive periods. An affirmative defense would be available for price increases that reasonably reflect additional costs paid, incurred, or reasonably anticipated, or that reasonably reflect additional risks taken by the seller. The FTC would have enforcement power at the wholesale or retail level, with ''enforcement priority'' for companies that exceed $500 million annually in U.S. consumer fuel sales. State Attorneys General would have authority to enforce the prohibition only at the retail level.
* * *
Elected officials were quick to warn against price gouging stemming from the nationwide infant formula shortage. On May 12, 2022, the White House released a statement asking the FTC and State Attorneys General to investigate price gouging or unfair market practices in the industry. In response to the shortage, on May 18, 2022, the White House invoked provisions of the Defense Production Act (''DPA''), which gives the President broad authority to provide financial incentives and redirect resources to expand productive capacity and supply. The DPA also penalizes hoarding or price gouging of any materials deemed scarce under the Act. However, President Biden had not to date designated infant formula as ''scarce.''
On May 11, 2022, New York Attorney General Leticia James issued a press release warning retailers against price gouging and pointing to existing NY law '' ''[t]he last thing any family needs is to be price gouged on critical nutrition for their little ones, which is why I am putting profiteers seeking to take advantage of this crisis on notice. If New Yorkers see exorbitant price increases for baby formula, I encourage them to report it to my office immediately.'' On May 13, 2022, the House Committee on Oversight and Reform issued a press release publicizing an inquiry into four baby formula companies. In letters sent to each company, Chairwoman Rep. Carolyn Maloney and Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi warned, ''[i]t is critical that your company take all possible steps to increase the supply of formula and prevent price gouging.'' The Chairs requested detailed information and a briefing by May 26, 2022.
* * *
Online Merchants Guild v. Cameron, 3:20-cv-00029-GFVT (E.D.K.Y.)
A seminal case addressing price gouging claims and restrictions during the pandemic has resolved. After Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron initiated civil price gouging investigations into various Kentucky-based merchants in 2020, the Online Merchants Guild (''Guild'') brought suit to enjoin application of the state price gouging laws against its member suppliers. The district court granted a preliminary injunction halting the investigations, predicated on the Dormant Commerce Clause. In April 2021, the Sixth Circuit vacated the preliminary injunction, allowing the investigations to resume. Relying on the Sixth Circuit opinion, the Attorney General moved for judgment on the pleadings arguing that Kentucky's price gouging statute posed ''no extraterritoriality problem.'' On October 12, 2021, the Guild moved to voluntarily dismiss without prejudice, which the Attorney General opposed. On May 2, 2022, the district court issued an order to the Guild to show cause to explain why the case should not be dismissed with prejudice. The Guild responded to the show cause order by withdrawing its opposition to the dismissal with prejudice, noting that the Attorney General had reasonably addressed ''certain concerns underlying this case.''
(C) 2022 Proskauer Rose LLP. National Law Review, Volume XII, Number 140
Cockroach Sex Has Taken a Strange Turn - The New York Times
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:32
Science | Cockroach Reproduction Has Taken a Strange Turn https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/27/science/cockroach-sugar-sex.htmlTrilobites
In response to pesticides, many cockroach females have lost their taste for sweet stuff, which changes how they make the next generation of insects.
Video There are ''the birds and the bees,'' and then there are ''the cockroaches.'' Video by Wada-Katsumata et al.May 27, 2022
When a male cockroach wants to mate with a female cockroach very much, he will scoot his butt toward her, open his wings and offer her a homemade meal '-- sugars and fats squished out of his tergal gland. As the lovely lady nibbles, the male locks onto her with one penis while another penis delivers a sperm package.
If everything goes smoothly, a roach's romp can last around 90 minutes. But increasingly, cockroach coitus is going really, weirdly wrong, and is contributing to roach populations in some places that are more difficult to vanquish with conventional pesticides.
Back in 1993, scientists working at North Carolina State University discovered a trait in the German cockroach, a species that inhabits every continent except Antarctica. Specifically, these new cockroaches seemed to have no affection for a form of sugar called glucose, which was strange because '-- as anyone who has ever battled against a cockroach infestation knows '-- cockroaches normally cannot get enough of the sweet stuff.
So, where did these new, health-conscious cockroaches come from?
It seems we created them by accident, after decades of trying to kill their ancestors with sweet powders and liquids laced with poison. The cockroaches that craved sweets ate the poison and died, while cockroaches less keen on glucose avoided the death traps and survived long enough to breed, thus passing that trait down to the next cockroach generation.
''When we think of evolution, we usually imagine wild animals, but actually, it's also happening with small animals living in our kitchens,'' said Ayako Wada-Katsumata, an entomologist at North Carolina State University.
Dr. Wada-Katsumata and her colleagues have just introduced yet another wrinkle to the cockroach's story: According to a study published this month in the journal Communications Biology, the same trait that might help a female cockroach avoid sweet-tasting poison baits also makes her less likely to stick around and mate with normal cockroach males.
Image A male cockroach, right, attracting a female cockroach with a fat-and-sugar mix extruded from the tergal gland. Some female cockroaches are becoming immune to this practice. Credit... Ayako Wada-Katsumada This is because cockroach saliva is capable of rapidly breaking down complex sugars, like those found in the male's courtship offering, and turning them into simple sugars, such as glucose. So when one of these glucose-averse females takes a bite of the male's nuptial gift, it literally turns bitter in her mouth, and she bolts before he can complete the double barrel lock-and-pop maneuver.
''Great!'' you may be thinking. ''The fewer cockroach hookups, the fewer infestations we'll have.'' Not so fast, said the researchers.
''As to how this will affect the population, it's really complicated,'' said Dr. Wada-Katsumata.
That's because, despite the hang-ups, glucose-averse cockroaches still find ways to do the deed.
In lab experiments, Dr. Wada-Katsumata and her colleagues showed that glucose-averse females are more skittish of males than wild-type cockroaches, which is what the researchers call the roaches without glucose aversion. However, they also found that glucose-averse males seem to compensate for this by more rapidly transitioning into sex after offering his gift.
''The glucose-averse females might spend, say, three seconds feeding on the male's secretion,'' said Coby Schal, distinguished professor of entomology at North Carolina State and an author of the study. ''The wild-type male does not respond in three seconds. The glucose-averse male does.''
The researchers even have evidence that suggests that all of these new pressures are causing changes in the chemistry of the glucose-averse male's nuptial gift potentially so he can continue attracting females.
From a scientific perspective, the German cockroach's sugar saga shows how humans can drive both natural selection '-- the cockroaches that survive our poison traps '-- as well as sexual selection '-- the glucose-averse cockroaches who no longer want to mate with cockroaches that still offer sweet snacks.
''I think that's what makes this so compelling,'' Dr. Schal said. ''The idea that humans impose very strong selection on animals around us, especially inside our home, and that the animals respond not only with physiological changes, but also with behavioral changes.''
The good news for consumers is that pesticide manufacturers share Dr. Wada-Katsumata and Dr. Schal's enthusiasm for understanding cockroach evolution, and they are actively changing their cockroach-killing formulations to move away from glucose. But given how new this research is, it will take some time for those changes to make their way to the products on our shelves.
''The worst thing that you can have as a product is a bait that is not eaten by cockroaches,'' said Dr. Schal.
Women are being sexually assaulted in the Metaverse
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:30
Disturbing accounts of women being sexually assaulted and harassed in the metaverse are racking up, according to online watchdogs.
One 21-year-old woman says she was raped within one hour of being in the metaverse, according to a a new report from SumOfUs, a ''nonprofit advocacy organization and online community that campaigns to hold corporations accountable'' for a variety of alleged infractions.
The report '-- titled ''Metaverse: another cesspool of toxic content'' '-- takes a deep dive into allegations of a woman being ''virtually gang raped,'' hate speech and content moderation issues at Meta, the controversial rebrand of Facebook Inc.
The young woman, who works as a researcher for the group'š was led into a private room at a party on ''Horizon Worlds,'' a metaverse platform released by Meta last December in the US and Canada that allows users to gather with others, play games and build their own virtual worlds.
She has claimed her avatar was then raped by a user while another watched and passed around a virtual bottle of vodka '-- and others could be seen watching through a window.
In a chilling video clip released by SumOfUs, one avatar is recorded saying, ''Check this out. It's a free show. Oh, getting it. Getting down with that gritty, ya heard.'' Meanwhile, the bystander avatar responds with, ''You're gonna need more of this, shorty,'' while passing the virtual booze bottle around. ''Hey a free show!'' the avatar is then heard shouting.
A 21-year-old woman's avatar was raped within an hour of logging into the metaverse. It was one of many reports of sexual harassment and assault in the VR universe. SumOfUs / Horizon Worlds She reported the attack as being ''disorienting'' as the man raped her in the VR world and another watched and cheered him on while passing around a virtual bottle of vodka. SumOfUs / Horizon WorldsWhen a user is touched by another in the metaverse, the hand controllers vibrate, ''creating a very disorienting and even disturbing physical experience during a virtual assault.''
''It happened so fast I kind of disassociated. One part of my brain was like 'WTF is happening,' the other part was like 'this isn't a real body,' and another part was like, 'this is important research,' '' the unnamed researcher said in the report.
The watchdog also noted that ''VR users have long reported problems with sexual harassment, verbal abuse, racial slurs and invasion of personal space on a myriad of apps.''
''Minimal moderation'' in these VR worlds has allowed concerning behavior to ''thrive . . . especially towards female-appearing and female-sounding avatars.''
Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has been expanding into the metaverse in recent months, but reports say that the virtual reality universe is highly unregulated. VIA REUTERSMeta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has waged a high-profile push to shift his company into the metaverse, a fully digital VR environment accessible through headsets or similar technology.
When confronted with the horrific attack that took place in the metaverse, a Meta spokesperson noted that the researcher had turned off the Personal Boundary feature.
The feature was launched in February as a safety tool that's turned on by default and prevents non-friends from coming within 4 feet of your avatar.
Reps for Meta did not immediately respond to The Post's request for comment, but a spokesperson for the company told the Daily Mail: ''We don't recommend turning off the safety feature with people you do not know.''
They also noted several other safety tools intended to help people stay safe while in VR environments, including the Safe Zone button, which allows users to block people who are bothering you and report them or certain inappropriate content.
''We want everyone using our products to have a good experience and easily find the tools that can help in situations like these, so we can investigate and take action,'' the Meta spokesperson added.
The metaverse refers to shared virtual world environments which people can access via the internet or VR technology to interact with other users from across the world. SumOfUs / Horizon WorldsThe SumOfUs report also listed other cases of sexual harassment that have occurred in the metaverse.
An anonymous beta tester for ''Horizon Worlds'' filed a complaint with the app claiming that her ''avatar had been groped by a stranger.''
In 2021, co-founder and VP of metaverse research at Kabuni Nina Jane Patel shared her experience of being ''verbally and sexually harassed'' within 60 seconds of logging onto ''Horizon Worlds.'' She reported that three to four male avatars ''virtually gang raped'' her and took photos shouting crude remarks.
Logging into the ''Population One'' app, which is owned by Meta, Chanelle Siggens reported being approached by another player, who then ''simulated groping and ejaculating onto her avatar.'' Another ''Population One'' user, Mari DeGrazia, reported witnessing harassment more than three times per week while in the app. DeGrazia also experienced abuse herself while wearing a VR vest, when ''another player groped her avatar's chest.''
While exploring the metaverse logged into ''Lone Echo VR,'' another app owned by Meta, Sydney Smith encountered ''lewd, sexist remarks'' as another player claimed to have ''recorded her [voice]'' in order to ''jerk off.'' After the troubling incident, Smith described having difficulty reporting the player in the game.
SumOfUs stated that the harassment and assaults are not isolated to Meta-owned apps but noted that many of the apps are accessible through the Meta Oculus Quest headset.
The report noted three key measures that should be taken to regulate the VR universe.
First, according to the report, ''regulators must address the predatory, anticompetitive practices of Mark Zuckerberg.''Second, it is ''alarming that, to this day, the US has no adequate data protection laws to safeguard consumers against abusive data harvesting practices across platforms, allowing companies like Meta to sell data to 3rd parties with little oversight.''Third, as the Digital Services Act (DSA) gets written into law in Europe, other world governments ''must use this landmark legislation as a blueprint for how to regulate Big Tech companies in their own jurisdictions.''Another report found that incidents of sexual harassment and assault in the metaverse are commonly met with ''dismissive, abusive and misogynistic'' responses, according to MIT Technology Review.
However, on a larger scale, the majority of American adults agree that online harassment is a problem, with 41% saying they have experienced some form of harassment in digital spaces, a Pew Research study found.
Jesse Fox, an associate professor at Ohio State University who researches the social implications of virtual reality, told the MIT outlet, ''People should keep in mind that sexual harassment has never had to be a physical thing. It can be verbal, and yes, it can be a virtual experience as well.''
NYPD puts 4,650 vaccine firings on hold: insiders
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:21
The city's vaccine mandate has been put on ''pause'' for the NYPD so the force can avoid losing nearly 5,000 cops and employees as the weather '-- and crime '-- heats up, The Post has learned.
Currently, 91 percent of the NYPD's uniformed cops and other personnel are vaccinated, City Hall says. That leaves an estimated 4,659 NYPD employees unvaccinated despite a deadline to get the shots by Oct. 29.
''In a nutshell, no decisions will be made, no further members will be forced to leave until further notice,'' said a veteran NYPD sergeant, explaining the unwritten rule. ''There hasn't been any memo, just basically keep everything status quo and if issues arise we will revisit it down the road.''
Last month, an undisclosed number of officers received final notices rejecting their requests for religious or medical exemptions to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for municipal employees.
But an unspecified number of requests remain pending, letting cops and others in a state of limbo keep working.
Currently, 91 percent of the NYPD's uniformed cops and other personnel are vaccinated. Jeenah Moon/Pool via REUTERSOne veteran NYPD cop who works in Brooklyn said he was forced to get the vax last month after his appeal for a religious exemption was denied. ''I got an email saying if I didn't get the shot I would be placed on leave without pay and face termination.''
But he added that he knew cops who called the personnel bureau ''after the newest denials came down this week.'' They were told ''the NYPD is not taking any action against anyone who is not vaccinated at this point.''
Said the officer: ''For anyone who has been fighting up until this point I am happy there seems to be a pause and hopefully it's permanent. I can't undo having to get the shot.''
City Hall denied a slowdown in enforcement.
Municipal workers of the city march across Brooklyn bridge and rally at City Hall Park against vaccination mandate in New York in October 2021. Lev Radin/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images''We have not had any staffing challenges due to the mandate and it remains in effect. Terminations continue on a rolling basis,'' City Hall spokesman Jonah Allon told The Post on Saturday.
Start your day with all you need to knowMorning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.
As of November, NYPD employees had filed 6,170 requests for religious or medical exemptions, the Gothamist reported.
The city on Friday did not give the status of those requests when asked by The Post.
Michael Kane, who heads Teachers for Choice, a group fighting COVID vaccine mandates for Department of Education and other city employees, called it unfair that any such pause would not take effect across the board.
''Why are certain city workers getting treated like they are professional athletes and why are other city workers being treated like they are expendable?'' he asked.
''It seems that they need to do it because there's basically a crime wave in New York City,'' Kane said, suggesting that depleting the troops would handcuff public safety efforts. ''They're going to be laying off cops, firing cops, trying to pressure and coerce them to get a shot? Tons of them are retiring. Especially for this new mayor, who wants to be the law and order Mayor. He's kind of stuck.''
Kane noted the mandates were not Mayor Adams' program, but ''the de Blasio legacy '... I feel like the city's case against us is crumbling.''
In February, Mayor Adams fired 1,430 city employees, including 914 in the DOE and 36 in the NYPD. In March, the city fired another 101 workers, including 42 in the DOE but none in the NYPD.
Buffalo FBI agents tracking people believed to pose shooting threats | Crime News | buffalonews.com
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:21
By Phil Fairbanks
Discreetly, FBI agents in Buffalo are evaluating and watching individuals they believe are on the path to a mass shooting.
Agents say the people they're keeping tabs on '' about six in this region right now '' have shown credible signs of being a threat.
The effort, which involves mental health professionals and school officials, is usually secretive enough that the person being watched doesn't know it.
The goal, of course, is to prevent mass shootings before they happen and to get help for the people they see as a possible threat.
FBI agents will tell you, without hesitation, that the effort has prevented what happened at Virginia Tech or Stoneman Douglas High School from occurring here.
"Absolutely," FBI Special Agent Brent Isaacson said of the dozens of people watched by the Buffalo office over the past seven years. "Not one has gone off the deep end."
Created after the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012, the program is part of a larger FBI response to mass shootings across the country.
On a weekday morning last week, Isaacson stood before a gathering at D'Youville College and gave his primer: "What does an active shooter look like?"
He talked about a pathway to violence and the stages a person goes through before resorting to an attack. He also spoke of the signs of trouble and the wide range of interventions that might follow.
Like all his visits to colleges and houses of worship, Isaacson urged everyone in the lecture hall to have the "courage" to step forward when they see a student or co-worker showing signs of being on that pathway.
"In nearly every single case, there was at least one person who saw concerning behavior," he said of the numerous shootings over the past several decades.
He told the faculty and staff at D'Youville about the dozens of people the FBI in Buffalo and its partners have watched, some for a few weeks, some for years. And to explain why they do it, he told them about a high school student in the region who publicly proclaimed himself to be "the next active shooter."
Already formed in preparation for something like this, a group consisting of the FBI, the local district attorney, school officials and mental health professionals met to assess the threat. They quickly learned the boy had no access to guns and decided he was not an immediate serious threat.
They also discovered he was being bullied at school, lacked a stable home life and was generally a loner.
Instead of arresting him or even confronting him, they discreetly arranged for a transfer to another school. They also ensured that a school counselor would keep in touch with him and that others would engage him in school activities.
Isaacson said the boy is thriving now.
"We're doing a very deep dive," he said of the research they do into the people they're watching. "What's going on in the person's professional life and their personal life? What's going on in their love life?"
In every instance, he said, the goal is to give that person "an off-ramp" from the pathway to violence.
An FBI agent for 22 years, Isaacson believes in the program. He is retiring from the FBI to become chief of university police at SUNY Fredonia.
At least twice in his talk at D'Youville, he told the crowd, "This works."
He also told them about the warning signs, which can range from erratic, unsafe behavior and deep-seated feelings of injustice to sudden changes in work performance.
Isaacson also talked about the hallmark traits of an active shooter, including an infatuation with media that glorifies previous active shooters.
"They want to be something they're not," Isaacson said. "This is the defining moment of their life. This is the crown jewel of their life."
As part of his talk at D'Youville, he took the crowd through a history of mass shootings, including the one most experts recognize as the nation's first, the 1966 shooting at the University of Texas. Charles Whitman, a student and ex-Marine, stood atop the clock tower on campus and shot 45 people, killing 14 of them. He had previously killed his mother, wife and three people inside the tower.
Like many active shooters, Whitman assembled an arsenal, a footlocker full of guns and ammunition, as well as food and water. He also left behind a suicide note detailing his "mental turmoil" and requesting an autopsy after his death.
"These legacy tokens are a way of letting the world know why they're doing what they're doing," Isaacson said.
He said active shooters also share one other trait. They all have a grievance, whether it be at work, at home or at school.
Except for a few common traits, Isaacson will tell you that it is impossible to profile mass shooters: They are not all male, white and young. To make his point, he pointed to the 1979 shooting at a San Diego elementary school that left two people dead and nine others wounded.
The shooter was Brenda Spencer, a 16-year-old girl.
"What we have learned is that profiles don't work," he said.
What does work, he told the gathering at D'Youville, is prevention, including the kind of discreet, nontraditional investigations into potential mass shooters now going on across the nation.
That effort, based on research by the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, focuses on identifying people who may be on the pathway to violence and providing them a different route.
"We're really good at assessing the threat and mitigating it," Isaacson told the crowd at D'Youville.
Good enough, he adds, to have prevented an active shooting in Western New York.
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This Tick Can Make You Allergic to Meat, and It's Spreading - Scientific American
Sun, 29 May 2022 16:19
Kristina Carlson didn't think much about the tick she pulled off her torso while she was hiking in the mountains of North Carolina in September 2020. But back home in Mississippi a month later, Carlson complained to her doctor of aching joints and a bloated feeling in her stomach. Her doctor ruled out rheumatoid arthritis, and a blood test didn't turn up anything definitive. Then Carlson started having eye infections. In February 2021 she suddenly found a strange rash on her face; an urgent-care facility doctor treated her for shingles, but the rash didn't get better.
When she returned to her doctor's office, a nurse practitioner asked, ''Do you remember having a tick bite?'' This led to another blood test that revealed antibodies associated with alpha-gal, a sugar found in the meat and fat of nonprimate mammals.
Alpha-gal syndrome (AGS) is an allergic reaction that can arise after someone is bitten by a lone star tick. Named for the white dot on the back of adult females, the ticks are historically located in the south central and southeastern U.S. They transmit the alpha-gal molecule from mammals they've fed on to people they bite.
Now the ticks are being found in New Jersey and New York State's Long Island, with sporadic reports farther north along the Eastern Seaboard and in parts of the Midwest. The spread is prompting researchers to consider the potential long-term complications of AGS and to further verify the cause of the allergy using genetically modified meat.
Normally, when a person eats meat from nonprimate mammals, such as cows and pigs, their body does not react to alpha-gal. But when a tick bite introduces the molecule, the immune system recognizes it as an invader and produces antibodies known as immunoglobulin E (IgE) tailored against it. IgE antibodies attach to disease-fighting white blood cells called basophils in the bloodstream and mast cells in tissues. The next time those cells come into contact with alpha-gal from any source, including meat, the antibodies recognize it, and the immune system attacks it.
Forming IgE ''can be thought of as loading the gun,'' explains Scott Commins, associate chief for allergy and immunology at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and a leading AGS researcher. ''Eating mammalian meat subsequently pulls the trigger.''
The resulting allergic reactions, which typically begin two to six hours after ingesting alpha-gal, vary from person to person. They can be as mild as a tingling in the mouth or as extreme as anaphylactic shock. Some people with AGS can eat a double cheeseburger and experience only light itching of their palms or scattered hives. Others who consume a trace amount of pork fat in refried beans can go into full anaphylaxis. After eating meat, Carlson would immediately experience tingling and sometimes sores in her mouth. Within 24 hours, she would often suffer eye irritation, joint inflammation, rashes on different parts of her body and swelling in her left arm.
There is currently no treatment or antidote for AGS itself. Epinephrine is the first-line treatment for anaphylaxis, and some other allergic reactions can be managed with medications, including antihistamines and corticosteroids. People with the condition have to try their best to avoid any triggering foods. Eliminating mammalian meat and other products typically allows the symptoms to clear. ''I cut all the hoofed animal products,'' Carlson says, ''and the rash, the infection, the joint [pain], the inflammation all went away.''
One consolation for Carlson and most of the 34,000 other Americans diagnosed with AGS is that the meat sensitivity does not appear to be permanent and often resolves in four to five years. That's because the immune system cells that create the IgE response are immature B cells called plasmablasts. These cells, according to Commins, do not seem to convert to long-term immune memory cells that remain on the lookout during a person's entire life'--the way immune memory cells triggered by certain vaccines watch for invaders for decades.
People who spend a lot of time outdoors, such as park rangers and land surveyors, might get repeated tick bites, however. ''Those patients seem to develop long-lived memory cells,'' Commins says. ''For them, unfortunately, the alpha-gal allergy probably is permanent.''
As the prevalence of lone star ticks increase, however, AGS cases are expected to rise. ''The ticks do appear to be spreading,'' says Richard S. Ostfeld, a disease ecologist and a distinguished senior scientist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. ''Unfortunately, the United States doesn't have any kind of nationwide active tick surveillance program.''* Spotty records suggest the lone star ticks' range is expanding, he says, ''but we lack high-quality rigorous data on where they are and how quickly they're moving.''
Why they are spreading is also hard pin down. The main hypothesis involves climate change, but researchers are hesitant to make that conclusion because it is difficult to test rigorously. ''There are studies that suggest that, as the climate continues to warm, the geographic range of the lone star tick will not expand,'' Ostfeld says, ''although most studies suggest that it will.''
What is clear is that a changing climate is lengthening the active season for at least some ticks, raising the chance that people will cross paths with these arachnids in general. For black-legged ticks in New York State, Ostfeld says, ''we've demonstrated that both the larval and the nymphal stages have been appearing earlier and earlier as the climate warms. To the extent that lone star ticks behave similarly, you would expect that their active season would get longer.''
Lone star ticks are less than an eighth of an inch long and very aggressive. Often found in large groups, they can detect the heat and carbon dioxide given off by humans from a couple of yards away. Then ''they kind of hunt you down,'' Ostfeld says. ''They actually run at you.''
Researchers would like to find out if alpha-gal IgE might contribute to or exacerbate other conditions. In a small 2018 study, Commins and his colleagues associated the antibody with unstable plaques in coronary arteries. In a larger 2022 study that Commins was not part of, researchers associated heart attacks with a positive blood test for alpha-gal allergy. ''We're trying to understand if this alpha-gal immune response is part of a larger picture,'' Commins says.
He is also talking with a biotechnology subsidiary of United Therapeutics called Revivicor, which raises pigs to provide organs for transplant into humans. The animals are genetically modified to be free of alpha-gal because the sugar also causes the human body to reject pig organs. In 2020 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the meat of these ''GalSafe'' pigs for consumption. For the past few months, Revivicor has been sending the meat to people who suffer from the allergy, and it is considering a mail order business.
Commins would like to test people who eat GalSafe pig meat. If the alpha-gal molecule has been eliminated but the people still react to the meat, researchers would have to reconsider the apparent cause of AGS. ''We're confident that it's alpha-gal,'' Commins says, ''but I think this would really prove it.''
*Editor's Note (5/23/22): This sentence was edited after posting to clarify the type of tick surveillance program Richard S. Ostfeld says the U.S. lacks.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)Sara Goudarzi is a Brooklyn, N.Y.''based writer and author of the debut novel The Almond in the Apricot.
Netflix and rivals enter pivotal second act of streaming wars saga
Sun, 29 May 2022 15:22
Reed Hastings, Co-CEO, Netflix speaks at the 2021 Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, U.S. October 18, 2021.
David Swanson | Reuters
The media and entertainment industry prides itself on its mastery of classical storytelling's three acts: the setup, the conflict and the resolution.
It's safe to declare the first act of the streaming video wars over. Barring a surprise late entrant, every major media and technology company that wants to be in the streaming game has planted a flag. Disney+, Apple TV+, Paramount+, Peacock and other new streaming services are spreading around the globe.
"Act one was the land grab phase," said Chris Marangi, a media investor and portfolio manager at Gamco Investors. "Now we're in the middle act."
Last month, the central conflict of the streaming wars came into focus. The industry was thrust into turmoil after Netflix disclosed its first quarterly drop in subscribers in more than a decade and warned subscriber losses would continue in the near term.
Second act problemsNetflix's rapid decline after a pandemic-fueled boom has investors questioning the value of investing in media companies.Streaming is the future of the business, regardless of recent problems, as consumers have gotten used to the flexibility the services offer.There could be more consolidation to come, and streamers are increasingly embracing cheaper, ad-supported tiers.That news set off worries about streaming's future and cast doubt on whether the growing number of platforms could become profitable. At stake are the valuations of the world's largest media and entertainment companies '-- Disney, Comcast, Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery '-- and the tens of billions of dollars being spent each year on new original streaming content.
As recently as October, Netflix, whose hit series "Stranger Things" returned Friday, had a market capitalization more than $300 billion, topping Disney's at $290 billion. But its shares are down over 67% from the start of the year, slashing the company's worth to around $86 billion.
Legacy media companies that followed Netflix's lead and pivoted to streaming video have suffered, too.
Disney shares are among the worst performing stocks on the Dow Jones industrials this year, down about 30%. That's even though series such as "The Book of Boba Fett" and "Moon Knight" helped Disney+ add 20 million subscribers in the past two quarters. The highly anticipated "Obi-Wan Kenobi" premiered on Friday.
Warner Bros. Discovery's HBO and HBO Max services also added 12.8 million subscribers over the past year, bringing total subscribers to 76.8 million globally. But shares are down more than 20% since the company's stock began trading in April following the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery.
Nobody knows whether streaming's final act will reveal a path to profitability or which players might emerge dominant. Not that long ago, the formula for streaming success seemed straightforward: Add subscribers, see stock prices climb. But Netflix's shocking freefall has forced executives to rethink their next moves.
"The pandemic created a boom, with all these new subscribers efficiently stuck at home, and now a bust," said Michael Nathanson, a MoffettNathanson media analyst. "Now all these companies need to make a decision. Do you keep chasing Netflix around the globe, or do you stop the fight?"
David Zaslav
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Stick with streamingThe simplest path for companies could be to wait and see whether their big money bets on exclusive streaming content will pay off with renewed investor enthusiasm.
Disney said late last year it would spend $33 billion on content in 2022, while Comcast CEO Brian Roberts pledged $3 billion for NBCUniversal's Peacock this year and $5 billion for the streaming service in 2023.
The efforts aren't profitable yet, and losses are piling up. Disney reported an operating loss of $887 million related to its streaming services this past quarter '-- widening on a loss of $290 million a year ago. Comcast has estimated Peacock would lose $2.5 billion this year, after losing $1.7 billion in 2021.
Media executives knew it would take time for streaming to start making money. Disney estimated Disney+, its signature streaming service, will become profitable in 2024. Warner Bros. Discovery's HBO Max, Paramount Global's Paramount+ and Comcast's Peacock forecast the same profitability timeline.
What's changed is chasing Netflix no longer appears like a winning strategy because investors have soured on the idea. While Netflix said last quarter that growth will accelerate again in the second half of the year, the precipitous fall in its shares suggests investors no longer view the total addressable market of streaming subscribers as 700 million to 1 billion homes, as CFO Spencer Neumann has said, but rather a number far closer to Netflix's total global tally of 222 million.
That sets up a major question for legacy media chief executives: Does it make sense to keep throwing money at streaming, or is it smarter to hold back to cut costs?
"We're going to spend more on content '-- but you're not going to see us come in and go, 'All right, we're going to spend $5 billion more,'" said Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav during an investor call in February, after Netflix had begun its slide but before it nose-dived. "We're going to be measured, we're going to be smart and we're going to be careful."
Ironically, Zaslav's philosophy may echo that of former HBO chief Richard Plepler, whose streaming strategy was rejected by former WarnerMedia CEO John Stankey. Plepler generally argued "more is not better, better is better," choosing to focus on prestige rather than volume.
While Zaslav has preliminarily outlined a streaming strategy of putting HBO Max together with Discovery+, and then potentially adding CNN news and Turner sports on top of that, he's now faced with a market that doesn't appear to support streaming growth at all costs. That may or may not slow down his efforts to push all of his best content into his new flagship streaming product.
That has long been Disney's choice of approach; it has purposefully held ESPN's live sports outside of streaming to support the viability of the traditional pay TV bundle '-- a proven moneymaker for Disney.
Holding back content from streaming services could have downsides. Simply slowing down the inevitable deterioration of cable TV probably isn't an achievement many shareholders would celebrate. Investors typically flock to growth, not less rapid decline.
Brian Roberts, chief executive officer of Comcast, arrives for the annual Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference, July 9, 2019 in Sun Valley, Idaho.
Drew Angerer | Getty Images
Traditional TV also lacks the flexibility of streaming, which many viewers have come to prefer. Digital viewing allows for mobile watching on multiple devices at any time. A la carte pricing gives consumers more choices, compared with having to spend nearly $100 a month on a bundle of cable networks, most of which they don't watch.
More dealsConsolidation is another prospect, given the growing number of players vying for viewers. As it stands, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, Disney+, HBO Max/Discovery+, Netflix, Paramount+ and Peacock all have global ambitions as profitable streaming services.
Media executives largely agree that some of those services will need to combine, quibbling only about how many will survive.
One major acquisition could alter how investors view the industry's potential, said Gamco's Marangi. "Hopefully the final act is growth again," he said. "The reason to stay invested is you don't know when act three will begin."
U.S. regulators may make any deal among the largest streamers difficult. Amazon bought MGM, the studio behind the James Bond franchise, for $8.5 billion, but it's unclear whether it would want to buy anything much larger.
Government restrictions around broadcast station ownership would almost certainly doom a deal that put, say, NBC and CBS together. That likely eliminates a straight merger between parent companies NBCUniversal and Paramount Global without divesting one of the two broadcast networks, and its owned affiliates, in a separate, messier transaction.
But if streaming continues to take over as the dominant form of viewership, it's possible regulators will eventually soften to the idea that broadcast network ownership is anachronistic. New presidential administrations may be open to deals current regulators may try to deny.
Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger press conference at the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting, April 30, 2022.
CNBC
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway said this month it bought 69 million shares of Paramount Global '-- a sign Buffett and his colleagues either believe the company's business prospects will improve or the company will get acquired with an M&A premium to boost shares.
Advertising hopesEvan Spiegel, CEO of SNAP Inc.
Stephen Desaulniers | CNBC
"Advertising is an inherently volatile business," said Patrick Steel, former CEO of Politico, the political digital media company. "The slowdown which started in the fall has accelerated in the last few months. We are now in a down cycle."
Offering cheaper, ad-supported subscription won't matter unless Netflix and Disney give consumers a reason to sign up with consistently good shows, said Bill Smead, chief investment officer at Smead Capital Management, whose funds own shares of Warner Bros. Discovery.
The shift in the second act of the streaming wars could see investors rewarding the best content rather than the most powerful model of distribution. Netflix co-founder and co-CEO Reed Hastings told the New York Times his company "is continuing to have some of the most popular shows in America and around the world." But it remains to be seen if Netflix can compete with legacy media's established content engines and intellectual property when the market isn't rewarding ever-ballooning budgets.
"Netflix broke the moat of traditional pay TV, which was a very good, profitable business, and investors followed," said Smead. "But Netflix may have underestimated how hard it is to consistently come up with great content, especially when capital markets stop supporting you and the Fed stops giving away free money."
Try something elseThe major problem with staying the course is it's not an exciting new opportunity for investors who have soured on the streaming wars.
"The days of getting a tech multiple on these companies are probably over," said Andrew Walker, a portfolio manager at Rangeley Capital, whose fund also owns Warner Bros. Discovery. "But maybe you don't need a tech multiple to do well at these prices? That's what we're all trying to figure out right now."
Offering a new storyline is one way to change the stale investment narrative. Media analyst Rich Greenfield advocates Disney acquire Roblox, a gaming company based on digital multiplayer interactive worlds, to show investors it's leaning into creating experiential entertainment.
"I just keep thinking about Bob Iger," Greenfield said of the former Disney CEO, who departed the company in December. "When he came in, he made his mark by buying Pixar. That transformative transaction was doing something big and bold early on."
Bob Chapek, Disney CEO at the Boston College Chief Executives Club, November 15, 2021.
Charles Krupa | AP
Given the extreme pullback on Roblox shares, Greenfield noted Disney CEO Bob Chapek has an opportunity to make a transformative deal that could alter the way investors view his company. Roblox's enterprise value is about $18 billion, down from about $60 billion at the start of the year.
But media companies have historically shied away from gaming and other out-of-the-box acquisitions. Under Iger, Disney shut down its game development division in 2016. Acquisitions can help companies diversify and help them plant a flag in another industry, but they can also lead to mismanagement, culture clash, and poor decision making (see: AOL-Time Warner, AT&T-DirecTV, AT&T-Time Warner). Comcast recently rejected a deal to merge NBCUniversal with video game company EA, according to a person familiar with the matter. Puck was first to report the discussions.
Yet big media companies are no longer compelling products on their own, said Eric Jackson, founder and president of EMJ Capital, who focuses on media and technology investing.
Apple and Amazon have developed streaming services to bolster their services offerings around their primary businesses. Apple TV+ is compelling as an added reason for consumers to buy Apple phones and tablets, Jackson said, but it's not special as an individual stand-alone service. Amazon Prime Video amounts to a benefit making a Prime subscription more compelling, though the primary reason to subscribe to Prime continues to be free shipping for Amazon's enormous e-commerce business.
There's no obvious reason the business will suddenly be valued differently, Jackson said. The era of the stand-alone pure-play media company may be over, he said.
"Media/streaming is now the parsley on the meal '-- not the meal," he said.
Disclosure: CNBC is part of NBCUniversal, which is owned by Comcast.
WATCH: 'Snap was a leading indicator of the beginning of the weakness in internet advertising in Q1'
Abba Voyage: The band's virtual concert needs to be seen to be believed - BBC News
Sun, 29 May 2022 14:42
By Mark SavageBBC Music Correspondent
Media caption, Watch: All four members of the Swedish band Abba reunite ahead of Voyage concert
The four members of Abba made their first public appearance in 14 years as they attended the premiere of their Abba Voyage show in London.
Agnetha, Frida, Benny and Bjorn reunited for the opening night of the concert, which features digital versions of the band.
Frida watched the show with a wide grin across her face, while Benny stood up and clapped along to Dancing Queen.
They took a curtain call at the end, to deafening applause from the audience.
"Abba has never left us, in my heart," singer Agnetha Faltskog told the BBC on the red carpet.
"It was not such a difficult decision [to reunite] because the music is part of us."
"I dreamed of this for years," added Anni-Frid Lyngstad. "We love our music, we love to sing."
The launch night was attended by a host of musical stars including Kylie Minogue, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Jarvis Cocker and Keira Knightley.
Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf and his wife Silvia also joined the audience - meaning there was a real life Dancing Queen in attendance.
Image source, PA Media
Image caption, Kylie Minogue was among the stars who checked out the ground-breaking virtual concert
Image source, EPA
Image caption, Swedish King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia were also in attendance
The concert has been in the works since 2016 and features ground-breaking new technology that recreates the sight of Abba in their 1970s prime, playing hits like SOS, Voulez-Vous and Lay All Your Love On me.
To create the spectacle, the band performed in motion capture suits for five weeks, with 160 cameras scanning their body movements and facial expressions.
Those became reference points for hundreds of animators and visual effects artists to create avatars of the band in their heyday.
Affectionately known as "Abba-tars", the characters are not 3D holograms - as everyone involved in the production is at pains to point out.
"I don't think any hologram shows have been successful,"producer Baillie Walsh told Dazed magazine last year. "After five minutes, I don't think they're that interesting."
Instead, the characters appear on a massive, 65million pixel screen, with lights and other effects blurring the boundaries between the digital elements and the "real world" in the arena.
Media caption, Abba's avatars perform the hit song SOS
"We want to pull on the emotions," producer Svana Gisla told the BBC.
"So if you come out of here and feel like you've seen a visual spectacle, we will have failed. If you come out of here and you've laughed and you've cried and you can't wait to go back, that's what we want."
Amazingly, they've pulled it off. The images might be 2D, but impressive lighting effects and back projections provide a crucial depth of field - creating the illusion that the band are really in the room with you.
I was cynical about the technology ahead of the show, but the effect is mystifyingly realistic. It needs to be seen to be believed.
As the concert begins, the quartet "emerge" from under the stage on risers, before launching into the spooky electric psychodrama of The Visitors - the title track of their penultimate album, from 1981.
A photo-realistic Agnetha and Frida resemble peacocks in red and blue winged catsuits, twirling around the stage while Benny and Bjorn vamp on the piano and guitar.
Although the band members were in their 70s when the motion capture footage was filmed, the Royal Ballet's resident choreographer Wayne McGregor helped them recreate the movement of their younger selves.
Agnetha and Frida's home-spun dance routines, which could charitably be described as "extravagant walking", are both instantly recognisable and achingly nostalgic.
Image source, ABBA Voyage
Image caption, The band appear as virtual "Abba-tars" representing how they looked in their prime
While the virtual Abba are restricted to the centre of the stage, a spectacular floor-to-ceiling light show adds a propulsive dynamism to proceedings. The band perform Chiquitita against an eclipsing sun, and are surrounded by pulsing laser beams during Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight).
As long as you keep your eyes away from the big screens, where the avatars assume an unfortunate "uncanny valley" effect, you feel like you've been transported back to the band's last UK concert, in London's Wembley Arena, 42 years ago.
Wisely, the production acknowledges all the digital trickery, with Benny's avatar declaring: "To be or not to be, that is no longer the question," during an early interlude.
"This is the real me," he continues, to laughter from the audience. "I just look very good for my age."
The music is enhanced by a precision-drilled, 10-piece live band, who race through an eclectic set of Abba songs that mixes classics like Mamma Mia and Thank You For The Music with unexpected deep cuts such as Eagle and the tender When All Is Said And Done.
The two new songs they released last year, Don't Shut Me Down and I Still Have Faith In You, slot into the setlist seamlessly; while the footage of the band winning the Eurovision Song Contest in 1974 elicits an audible "aaaahh" from the audience during Waterloo.
But there are some surprising gaps, with The Name Of The Game, Super Trouper and Money Money Money among the songs consigned to the dustbin of history.
It seems likely, however, that Abba recorded more songs than currently appear in the show, to encourage repeat visits.
Image source, EPA
Image caption, Zara Larsson was overwhelmed by the show
But no matter what happens next, the opening night audience of celebrities and hardcore fan club members was rapt.
"That was frickin' incredible," pop star Zara Larsson told the BBC after the show. "I cried four times. I didn't know I was going to feel like that."
"It felt like I was experiencing them in their prime and it was very emotional."
"It was an extra-terrestrial, extraordinary, exhibition of fabulousness," agreed choreographer Les Child. "They've done an amazing job."
"I felt like I spent the evening with Abba" added Hanna Rossman, who had travelled from Berlin for the show. "And the absolute highlight was that they came on stage at the end."
The quartet didn't speak during their brief appearance on stage - but, by then, the concert had said everything they needed to say.
Getty Images
ABBA Voyage - in numbers 42 years since their last concert, in Japan
1,000 visual effects artists created the show
160 cameras captured the band performing
1bn computing hours to animate the avatars
500 lights in the purpose-built arena
3,000 people can attend every show
Source: ABBA VoyageThe show, which takes place in a purpose-built arena in east London, is currently due to run until December 2022. Then, in true Swedish style, the venue can be collapsed into a flat-pack and taken on the road.
It's the perfect solution for a band who swore never to tour again after they dissolved in 1982 - even turning down a $1bn offer to play 100 shows at the turn of the Millennium.
But the new technology, pioneered by Star Wars VFX company Industrial Light & Magic, tempted them back into the live arena.
"Being able to be on stage and perform for an hour or two, while being home walking the dog or making a carbonara? That's how it all started. We were intrigued by that," Benny Andersson told the BBC last year.
"And the vision of creating something spectacular which no-one had ever seen before," added Bjorn Ulvaeus. "I think, after we open [this show] there might be one or two who want to do the same, while they're still alive."
Image source, Getty Images
Image caption, The band's last concert in London took place in Wembley Arena in 1979
So, could the concert be replicated in purpose-built Abba Arenas around the world?
"It all depends," said Benny. "We'll see how it goes in London. Are people really interested in coming to see this?
"If they are, yes, it'll continue. If they're not coming, then we just close."
On tonight's evidence, the show will go on.
Image source, Baillie Walsh
Image caption, The group performed in motion capture suits to help create their digital avatars
Setlist
The VisitorsHole In Your SoulSOSKnowing Me, Knowing YouChiquititaFernandoMamma MiaDoes Your Mother Know?EagleLay All Your Love On MeSummer Night CityGimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)Voulez-VousWhen All Is Said And DoneDon't Shut Me DownI Still Have Faith In YouWaterlooDancing QueenThank You For The MusicThe Winner Takes It AllFollow us on Facebook, or on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.
US seizes Iranian crude from Russian tanker arrested in Greece :: Lloyd's List
Sun, 29 May 2022 14:32
Dynacom-owned tanker Ice Energy started a ship-to-ship transfer with the Lana in Greek waters four miles off the coast of Karistos on Monday afternoonGeorge Procopiou's Dynacom has been hired to transfer US-sanctioned Iranian crude from the Russian-flagged tanker Lana, detained in April by Greek authorities on the basis of Russian sanctions, and transfer the oil to the US
FREE TO READ George Procopiou's Dynacom is carrying out a ship-to-ship tansfer of oil from Lana to its vessel Ice Energy.THE US government has seized a cargo of Iranian crude oil from a Russia-flagged tanker being held in Greek waters and chartered a Greek-owned tanker to transport the oil back to the US.
The Russia-flagged aframax Lana (IMO: 9256860), formerly named Pegas, was detained on April 15 by Greek authorities and had been waiting at Karistos port pending a court ruling.
On Monday afternoon a Dynacom-owned tanker Ice Energy (IMO: 9301732) started a ship-to-ship transfer with the Lana in Greek waters four miles off the coast of Karistos. The operation, first reported by US lobby group United Against Iran on Twitter, was verified using Lloyd's List Intelligence data.
Lloyd's List understands that the George Procopiou-controlled tanker has been chartered by the US Department of Justice to transfer the oil to the US.
The US Department of Justice was not available to comment on the operation.
The US practice of seizing sanctioned cargos from vessels has proved controversial inside the maritime insurance community and sparked several legal challenges in similar cases.
While the details of this case are yet to be made public, the US has previously argued that such seizures were legal when linked to a US-sanctioned Iranian terrorist group, giving them jurisdiction to act in international waters.
The move to seize Lana's cargo ends weeks of speculation over how the Greek detention would play out. The 2003-built aframax Lana was originally detained on April 15 based on the vessel's former Russian ownership, not its Iranian cargo. The seizure notice was later withdrawn as the new registered owner was not on any European Union sanctions list.
The vessel was owned by Russia's Promsvyazbank and registered to the bank's financial subsidiary, PSB Leasing, according to Lloyd's List Intelligence data.
Its registered ownership and ISM management was then changed to TransMorFlot in March, while beneficial owner has changed to Jamaldin Pashaev, a Russian national.
The US designated Promsvyazbank and its 42 subsidiaries on February 22 in a move designed to thwart Russian action in Ukraine. On March 2, the European Council said it would prohibit Swift financial messaging services to the bank and six others, along with capital market restrictions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
There were no legal grounds to impound the ship following checks and the coast guard had been ordered by the anti-money laundering authority to release the vessel, Reuters reported, citing official Greek sources. No further details were provided and no date was given for its departure.
According to Lloyd's List Intelligence data, the vessel had been expected at the Marmara terminal in Turkey in January, and the vessel ended up in Greek waters unintentionally.
Following engine failure, the vessel was being towed when inclement weather forced it to anchor at the port of Karistos. Several other deficiencies were found upon inspection.
Lloyd's List understands that the mechanical failures of the ship were the reason behind the US DoJ's decision to charter Dynacom's Ice Energy to transfer the cargo and transfer it to the US.
Two laden Greek tankers seized by Iranian forces :: Lloyd's List
Sun, 29 May 2022 14:32
Suezmaxes Delta Poseidon and Prudent Warrior boarded in the Middle East Gulf and escorted to Iranian anchorageIncidents emerge on Friday amid spat between Tehran and Athens over US seizure of Iranian oil cargo off Russian tanker held in Greek port
FREE TO READ The Delta Poseidon.TWO GREEK oil tankers have been boarded in international waters by Iranian military personnel while navigating through the Middle East Gulf.
Industry sources confirmed that in two seemingly similar operations the suezmaxes Delta Poseidon (IMO: 9468671) and Prudent Warrior (IMO: 9753545), both under Greek flag, were approached by Iranian helicopters on Friday afternoon.
They were both boarded by military personnel and later escorted by naval vessels from international traffic lanes to Iranian waters a few miles off the coast.
A spokesperson at Polembros Shipping in Greece, the manager of the 2017-built Prudent Warrior, said the company had lost communication with the vessel. It had a crew of 24 Greeks and Filipinos on board.
Polembros has since learned from other Greek vessels in the vicinity that the tanker is now at an anchorage about 11 miles off the Iranian coast, he said.
US signals renewed sanctions crackdown against Iran By Richard Meade 26 May 2022A US crackdown against a Moscow-backed Iranian oil smuggling network offers a window on the sanctions strategy in Washington. The takeaway for shipping is that enforcement against subterfuge oil networks is likely to be stepped up as nuclear talks collapse
Read the full article here
The vessel had loaded at Basrah, Iraq, and is carrying an oil cargo for the US.
Delta Poseidon had also loaded at the same Iraqi port.
According to Lloyd's List Intelligence, its destination was Agioi Theodoroi near Corinth and the cargo is understood to be for the Motor Oil refinery located there.
Delta Poseidon, which has a crew of 25 on board, is part of the fleet of Greece-based Delta Tankers. The company has been approached for comment.
Greece's shipping ministry has been informed of the incidents.
US seizes Iranian crude from Russian tanker arrested in Greece By Richard Meade 23 May 2022George Procopiou's Dynacom has been hired to transfer US-sanctioned Iranian crude from the Russian-flagged tanker Lana, detained in April by Greek authorities on the basis of Russian sanctions, and transfer the oil to the US
Read the full article here
The incidents occur at the end of a week that saw the US seize a cargo of Iranian crude oil from a Russian tanker held in Greece.
Tehran decried the move as ''international robbery.''
According to state news agency Irna, Iran's foreign ministry summoned the charg(C) d'affaires of the Greek embassy in Tehran to protest the move, calling it ''a clear act of piracy''.
Iran has also protested to the envoy of Switzerland in Tehran, which represents US interests there, over the seizure in Greece of the cargo from the aframax Lana (IMO: 9256860), formerly named Pegas.
One industry source told Lloyd's List: ''we have to wait and see what the Iranians want but everyone, including security forces in the region, think this is a case of tit-for-tat.''
FDA Official In Charge Of Evaluating New Drugs Hospitalized For 'Mental Disorder' | The Daily Wire
Sun, 29 May 2022 14:26
A top federal official in charge of evaluating the safety of drugs was hospitalized against his will this month for an unspecified ''mental disorder,'' prompting concern over his fitness for the role he said includes making ''major decisions that impact on public health,'' The Daily Wire has learned.
Dr. Jeffrey Siegel, director of the Food and Drug Administration's Office of Drug Evaluation Sciences, was transported from his home to a hospital for ''mental disorder'' at 3 a.m. on May 9, according to Montgomery County, Maryland, police dispatch logs reviewed by The Daily Wire. Police declined to release a report on the incident despite a Freedom of Information Act request, but Siegel wrote about being taken from his home in a rambling note left on a neighborhood listserv.
Police log.
''15 minutes later I saw bright red and blue lights (I may have the colors wrong) outside the house and then EMTs in our house who started to ask me to please come with them,'' Siegel wrote in the note, more than a week after his hospitalization. ''Thinking I was being asked to go voluntarily I politely declined. They insisted. Finally, they turned me around in the steps of my front hallway on Moorland Lane, handcuffed me, forced me unto a gurney, tied me down, took me in the ambulance to the hospital.''
One neighbor who received the missive via Nextdoor expressed concern about Siegel's ability to do his job, given that Siegel also wrote that he makes 'major decisions that impact on public health.'''
''I am frankly left a little bit worried for the soundness of operations at our FDA, if indeed that is true,'' the neighbor wrote.
A biography of Siegel states that he leads the office that ''oversees Clinical Outcome Assessments, Biomarker Qualification, Research and Bioinformatics'' in the Office of New Drugs. An FDA org chart says that the deputy director position is vacant, and that he is also leading the ''Division of Biomecial [sic] Informaci [sic], Research & Biomaker [sic] Dev.''
Siegel posted the note with pictures of bruised wrists, apparently sustained during a struggle with paramedics who were restraining him, complained about ''brain fog,'' and lashed out out a particular doctor for not giving him drugs he was seeking.
Siegel did not respond to requests for comment.
In his note, Siegel boasted how his ''job carries a lot of responsibilities.''
''Finally, I realized this was not voluntary but had been ordered by someone against my will'... so I stopped resisting. When in the hospital I was given a clean bill of heath [sic] including CT and MRI and they sent me home on Tuesday with no diagnosis,'' he wrote.
''Unfortunately, the problem didn't end there. I had trouble sleeping so I asked [the doctor] for something to sleep. She refused,'' he said. He claimed he paid her practice between $12,000 and $18,000 a year and asked ''if anyone knows of a good lawyer (and I'm not the litigious type, but I feel I'm the injured party here).''
Neighbors responded by questioning his account, with saying that someone had filed an ''emergency petition'' against him, and another speculating that it was his wife, not the doctor.
''This glass of juice has leaks in it, I would suggest a psychologist, rather than a lawyer. Good luck getting the mental health help you need,'' another said.
Siegel, for his part, commented on the thread that he had ''No COVID. Thank goodness.''
A Science.org article titled ''FDA's revolving door: Companies often hire agency staffers who managed their successful drug reviews,'' published in 2018, reported that Siegel back in 2010 oversaw the approval of an arthritis drug from Genentech, and months later left the agency to join the company and represented it ''before his former FDA colleagues when the company sought approval'' to promote the drug for other conditions. He said the timing of his decision was coincidental.
Uvalde Robb Elementary School was Under Lockdown Due to Gunshots in the Area - Announced Students and Staff were Safe Until Teacher Propped Door Open
Sun, 29 May 2022 14:03
(Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
New information revealed that on Tuesday, Robb Elementary School's official Facebook page announced that the school was indeed placed on lockdown due to gunshots heard around the area.
Executive Director of Communications and Marketing of Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District (CISD), Anne Marie Espinoza, announced that Robb Elementary was under a lockdown status and the students and teachers were secured.
''Robb Elementary is under a Lockdown Status. Robb Elementary Parents: Please know at this time Robb Elementary is under a Lockdown Status due to gunshots in the area. The students and staff are safe in the building. The building is secure in a Lockdown Status. Your cooperation is needed at this time by not visiting the campus. As soon as the Lockdown Status is lifted you will be notified. Thank you for your cooperation!'' the announcement stated.
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It was reported that the suspect fired outside the school before entering.
Time passed, and another update was posted on Robbs Elementary's Facebook page. This time an active shooter was at Robb Elementary and law enforcement was on site.
''There is an active shooter at Robb Elementary. Law enforcement is on site. Your cooperation is needed at this time by not visiting the campus. As soon as more information is gathered it will be shared. The rest of the district is under a Secure Status.''
The Gateway Pundit previously reported, a testimony from law enforcement said that a teacher propped open the entry door one minute before the accident, according to Col. McGraw.
We have the teacher who propped open the door calling 911 but NEVER secured the door again. The suspects walks through said door at either 11:33 or 11:40, depending on which press conference you watched, and walks down a hall and into a room that may or may not have been locked.
Based on the timeline of COL. STEVEN MCGRAW, DIRECTOR OF TEXAS DPS:
11:28: Ramos crashes into the ditch. The teacher runs to room 132 to retrieve a phone. The same teacher walks back to the exit door and the door remains propped open.
(No time given): Ramos opens the truck and two men from the funeral home, who were checking on him, take off running when they see a gun. They're shot at but no one is hit.
11:30: The teacher runs back inside, panicked, and apparently calls 911. Door remains propped open. The use of the word ''apparently'' is peculiar. At this point in the investigation, with this detailed of a timeline, you would think that teacher has been identified, confirmed and a statement taken, that they did in fact call 911.
Uvalde school district was monitoring students' social media pages for threats against staff or site | Daily Mail Online
Sun, 29 May 2022 13:57
Texas school officials had been monitoring students' social media prior to the deadly shooting in Uvalde Tuesday, it has been revealed - but still failed to pick up on concerning posts from the teenage gunman in the days leading up to the tragedy.
As an 18th birthday present to himself earlier this month, now-deceased suspect Salvador Ramos bought two AR-style rifles and paraded them on social media - including in ominous messages sent hours before the killing started.
The teen's photo-op also saw him share an image to his since-scrubbed Instagram account, of him cradling the magazine of a rifle on his lap.
The ensuing massacre - the deadliest at a US elementary school since the infamous 2012 Sandy Hook shooting - left 19 students aged under 11 and two adults at Uvalde Elementary dead. Ramos also reportedly shot his 66-year-old grandmother before embarking on the killing spree.
Now, Uvalde School officials say they had been monitoring its students' social media pages using an advanced AI-based service called Social Sentinel, designed to recognize signals of potential harm found in digital conversations.
The district revealed Monday it had been using the platform 'to monitor all social media with a connection to Uvalde as a measure to identify any possible threats that might be made against students and or staff within the school district.'
Salvador Ramos, 18, from Uvalde, fatally shot 19 children and two adults in Tuesday's shooting. Ramos shared photos of guns to social media in the days leading up to the massacre
This photo of two AR15-style rifles appeared on Ramos' Instagram account just three days before the massacre at Robb Elementary school. He then shared it in a tagged post hours before the shooting
The teen also shared an image to Instagram of him holding the magazine of a rifle. His account was taken down shortly after Governor Greg Abbott confirmed his name
According to its creators, the service - powered by advanced linguistics technology - scans and analyzes digital content to pick out and flag potential safety and security risks, as well as mental health and social and emotional concerns.
The software scans selected digital content - in this case, thousands of students' social media accounts - and identifies language that fit those criteria.
What is Social Sentinel? The media tracking service that failed to spot Texas shooter's gun posts on InstagramSocial Sentinel is a linguistics technology service used by the Uvalde School District that tracks users' social media activity, flagging it if it finds the content to be concerning.
The company primarily analyzes profiles of students, and seek 'to improve school violence prevention and awareness' with the tech, which is used by districts across the country.
According to its creators, the service - powered by advanced linguistics technology - scans and analyzes digital content to pick out and flag potential safety and security risks, as well as mental health and social and emotional concerns.
The software scans selected digital content - in this case, thousands of students' social media accounts - and identifies language that fit those criteria.
The powerful tech is designed to then alerts leaders if a community member is showing signs of crisis, so they can intervene before an incident occurs.
The service scans threatening images, along with its associated text, before determining whether it is something community leaders should look into.
It is not immediately clear why the technology failed to flag gunman Salvador Ramos' posts, which contained photos of guns and ammo used in Tuesday's attack - the worst school shooting in a decade.
The powerful technology is designed to then alerts leaders if a community member is showing signs of crisis, so they can intervene before an incident occurs.
The service also scans threatening images, along with its associated text, before determining whether it is something community leaders should look into.
However, in this particular instance, the technology fell short - failing to spot Ramos' objectively concerning posts and notify district officials.
It is not immediately clear why the technology failed to flag Ramos' posts. DailyMail.com reached out to Social Sentinel and Uvalde district staffers for comment on the software's apparent failure Wednesday morning, but did not immediately hear back.
Students and parents also failed to spot the post from the troubled student, who was described as a bullied loner who slowly dropped out of school due to teasing about his lisp, habit of wearing eyeliner, clothes and his family's poverty
Uvalde district policy encourages '[s]tudents, parents, staff, and community members are encouraged to share information that is deemed troubling' with the district using a reporting system' so that it can 'take appropriate action.'
Those who knew Ramos or his relatives say he was a 'nice' but 'quiet' boy who grew increasingly violent as he became older, amid relentless bullying both in school and online.
Santos Valdez told the Washington Post that he used to be friends with Ramos and played online shooter games such as Fortnite and Call of Duty with him, until the pair stopped talking as Ramos's behaviour 'deteriorated.'
Valdez said Ramos had showed up to the park one time with cuts all over his face, initially claiming he was scratched by a cat before admitting that he did it to himself with a knife.
Stephen Garcia, who considered himself Ramos's best friend in eighth grade, said he was 'bullied by a lot of people' including for over a photo of himself wearing eyeliner which led to 'gay' taunts. Garcia said Ramos dropped out of school when he moved away to another part of the state, and the two had lost touch.
New video from the chaotic scene shows police arriving to the scene with their guns in hand
A police vehicle is seen parked near of a truck believed to belong to the suspect behind a shooting at Robb Elementary School
Law enforcement are seen at the scene of the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas on Tuesday
State troopers are seen near Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday
Sheriffs are seen outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on Tuesday
A mobile morgue is seen on Tuesday afternoon being brought to the site of the shooting
Others confirmed that Ramos had stopped attending classes, and did not intend to take part in graduation this summer. Instead, he got a job at a local Wendy's restaurant.
A colleague there described Ramos has having an aggressive streak. She told the Daily Beast he walked around with a pair of boxing gloves at the park, asking people to fight him and filming it. He also menaced co-workers, asking one of the cooks: 'Do you know who I am?'
'He would be very rude towards the girls sometimes... and he would also send inappropriate texts to the ladies,' the former colleague said, asking for her name not to be used.
A teenage acquaintance of Ramos, who lives in Los Angeles and claims to barely know him, posted screenshots of messages he sent her early Tuesday after tagging her in a picture of his rifles. In them, he said he wanted to share a 'lil secret' and urged her to respond to him. The conversation ended before Ramos revealed his secret.
People waiting for news of their loved ones following a mass shooting in Texas embrace outside a civic center in the city
Two women weep as they embrace one-another following a mass shooting at a Texas school which killed at least 19 children
A woman cries while speaking on the phone outside the Ssgt Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transferred from Robb Elementary to be picked up after the shooting
Women embrace one-another as they mourn outside a civic center in the city of Uvalde, southern Texas, following a mass shooting at an elementary school
Crowds of people comfort one-another following a mass shooting at a school in the city of Uvalde, southern Texas
Law enforcement are seen near the crime scene on Tuesday afternoon after the mass murder at the school
Ramos's home in Uvalde is seen on Tuesday as police try to fathom a motive for the shooting
Ruben Flores, who knew Ramos's family, said he had an unstable home life and got into blow-up fights with his mother, who he grew up with alongside two sisters in a house around a five minute drive from Robb Elementary.
Police had been called to the home on more than one occasion, Flores added.
She said Ramos had moved in with his grandmother 'a few months ago'. Flores said the grandmother was in the process of evicting Ramos's mother from her house, which the elderly lady owned.
So far, police have confirmed that 19 children and three adults, including a 44-year-old teacher, were killed in Tuesday's massacre. Police sources told KTRK they expect the death toll to rise.
During an emergency address from the White House Tuesday, President Joe Biden criticized state laws that let the teen - who was evidently suffering from deteriorating mental health - purchase the assault weapons just days after turning 18.
'The idea that an 18-year-old kid can walk into a gun store and buy two assault weapons is just wrong,' said Biden, addressing the country Tuesday night.
'As a nation, we have to ask: When in God's name will we stand up to the gun lobby?'
He added: 'Why are we willing to live with this carnage? Why do we keep on letting this happen? Where in God's name is our backbone?'
One of the rifles that Ramos legally purchased was found alongside his body in the school, police sources told Click2Houston, while another was found in a truck which he crashed close by.
Amerie Jo Garza (right) was confirmed dead by her father Angel Garza (left), who said: 'My little love is now flying high with the angels above'
Eliahana 'Elijah Cruz' Torres, 10, was also identified among the deceased. The fourth grader, didn't want to go to school on Tuesday, her grandfather said - but her family told her she had to
Steven Garcia and Jennifer Lugo confirmed their daughter, Ellie, was killed in Tuesday's massacre after she had been missing for several hours
The deadly violence in Texas follows a series of mass shootings in the United States this month.
On May 14, an 18-year-old white man shot 10 people dead at a Buffalo, New York grocery store.
Wearing heavy body armor and wielding an AR-15 rifle, the self-declared white supremacist allegedly livestreamed his attack, having reportedly targeted the store because of the large surrounding African American population.
The following day, a man blocked the door of a church in Laguna Woods, California and opened fire on its Taiwanese-American congregation, killing one person and injuring five.
Despite recurring mass-casualty shootings, multiple initiatives to reform gun regulations have failed in the US Congress, leaving states and local councils to enact their own restrictions.
Cops are still investigating the shooting - the deadliest at a US school in more than a decade.
China must be prepared to destroy Elon Musk's Starlink system, Chinese researchers say | American Military News
Sun, 29 May 2022 13:55
Elon Musk meets with U.S. Air Force Academy Cadets (U.S. Air Force/Justin R. Pacheco)
Chinese military researchers are calling for their country's military to develop ways to either counter or outright destroy the Starlink satellite internet service developed by Elon Musk.
In a paper published last month in the Chinese peer-reviewed journal Modern Defence Technology and reported by the South China Morning Post on Wednesday, lead researcher Ren Yuanzhen and his colleagues wrote that ''a combination of soft and hard kill methods should be adopted to make some Starlink satellites lose their functions and destroy the constellation's operating system.''
Ren is a researcher with the Beijing Institute of Tracking and Telecommunications, which is organized under the Chinese People's Liberation Army's (PLA's) Strategic Support Force. According to the South China Morning Post, his coauthors included several other senior scientists in China's defense industry.
Ren and his colleagues also wrote that the ion thrusters equipped on the Starlink systems allow them to quickly alter their orbits. The Chinese researchers wrote this could allow the satellites to be used as offensive weapons to ram into high-value targets in space.
The Chinese researchers wrote that China first needs to upgrade its existing space surveillance systems to be able to track Starlink satellites and identify any unusual features China could use to its advantage.
In terms of countering the Starlink satellites, the researchers noted China has developed missiles that are capable of destroying satellites in orbit, such as the one China used in 2007 to destroy one of its own defunct satellites. The researchers noted, however, that such anti-satellite missiles create a huge debris field in space and are too costly to use against Starlink's system of more than 2,300 small and relatively low-cost satellites.
''The Starlink constellation constitutes a decentralized system,'' the Chinese researchers wrote. ''The confrontation is not about individual satellites, but the whole system. This requires some low-cost, high-efficiency measures.''
The push to find ways to counter Starlink comes after Musk activated the satellite internet service to help Ukraine maintain communications after Russia invaded the country in February. U.S. military officials have praised the satellite internet service, noting its ability to quickly deal with electronic warfare attacks from Russia.
Starlink could prove similarly valuable to Taiwan if China were to invade the island nation.
Starlink was also developed with the support of the U.S. Department of Defense and designed with the goal of being able to detect and track hypersonic weapons, which can travel at five times the speed of sound or faster. The ability to detect such weapons could also prove useful in countering China in a potential future conflict.
The South China Morning Post wrote that Ren and his colleagues could not immediately be reached for comment and it is unclear to what extent their paper represents the official views of the Chinese military.
Jussie Smollett attempts career comeback with LGBT film on BET+ streaming service | Fox News
Sun, 29 May 2022 13:52
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Jussie Smollett has launched his directorial debut with BET+ "B-Boy Blues." The LGBTQ+ centered show will debut on the streaming network June 9, just in time for Pride Month.
This project marks the first for Smollett since he was found guilty of making false reports on what he alleged to be a hate crime. He was then sentenced to 30 months' probation, 150 days in jail, after making false reports to the police in January 2019 that he was a victim of a hate crime.
"Through our content slate, we are intentional about representing the fullness of the Black experience, including that of the LGBTQ+ community," BET+ exec VP/GM Devin Griffin said to Variety. "'B-Boy Blues' is an artful, heart-rending film about the complexity of love '' something we all can relate to."
Former "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett arrives at the Leighton Criminal Courts Building to hear the verdict in his trial on December 9, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois. Smollett was accused of lying to police when he reported that two masked men physically attacked him, yelling racist and anti-gay remarks near his Chicago home in 2019. Smollett was found guilty of five of the six counts against him. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
"B-Boy Blues" is based on the James Earl Hardy novel and will star Timothy Richardson, Brandee Evans, Marquise Vilson, Broderick Hunter and Thomas Mackie.
JUSSIE SMOLLETT RELEASED FROM JAIL PENDING APPEAL: 'UNCONSTITUTIONAL TO CHARGE SOMEONE TWICE,' LAWYER SAYS
The indie film first debuted in 2021 at the American Black Film Festival. The film won the Narrative Feature Fan Favorite Award.
Smollett's first project since released from jail is described as "a clash of class and culture when Mitchell Crawford, a college educated journalist from Brooklyn and Raheim Rivers, a bike messenger from Harlem, fall in love."
This booking photo provided by the Cook County Sheriff's Office shows Jussie Smollett. A judge sentenced Jussie Smollett to 150 days in jail Thursday, March 10, 2022. (Cook County Sheriff's Office via AP)
"B-Boy Blues is a beautifully bold, funny, heartwarming bro-mance and I was thrilled to partner with Jussie to help this wonderful film gain greater exposure," Mona Scott-Young of Monami Entertainment told the outlet.
JUSSIE SMOLLETT RELEASED FROM JAIL: WILL HE SUCCESSFULLY APPEAL CONVICTION? LEGAL EXPERTS WEIGH IN
"Falling head over heels and fighting for love are universal emotions and experiences and we are so grateful to BET+ for shining a powerful spotlight on the still seriously underrepresented black LGBTQ+ community and bringing this impactful love story to an even greater audience."
Three weeks after Smollett was released from jail, he released a song titled "Thank You God."
The former "Empire" star shared the single on his Instagram account, which according to his bio is "currently run by" the Smollett family.
Actor Jussie Smollett speaks to Judge James Linn after his sentence is read at the Leighton Criminal Court Building, Thursday, March 10, 2022, in Chicago. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune via AP, Pool)
In the caption of the post, it's noted that "100% of the profits will be donated" to Rainbow Push Coalition, the Illinois Innocence Project and Secure the Bag Safety.
The one-minute preview on social media starts with a clip that reads: "CHANNELING THESE THOUGHTS THE BEST WAY I KNOW HOW. LOVE YOU'... - JUSSIE."
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Smollett then sings: "It's like they're hell-bent on not solving the crime / Taking out the elements of race and trans and homophobia that's straight taking lives / But turn around and act like I'm the one that killed the strides."
Elsewhere on the track, he says, "Some people searching for fame / Some people chasing that clout / Just remember this ... this ain't that situation / You think I'm stupid enough to kill my reputation."
"Just simply to look like a victim / Like it's something fun / Y'all better look at someone else / You got the wrong one."
Actor Jussie Smollett appears with his attorneys at his sentencing hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building, Thursday, March 10, 2022, in Chicago. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune via AP, Pool)
On March 16, Smollett was released from Cook County Jail in Chicago, Illinois, after a court gave the OK pending an appeal of his conviction.
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He had spent six days behind bars of his 150-day sentence after he was convicted of lying to Chicago police about being the victim of a hate crime in 2019. The actor was convicted on five felony counts of disorderly conduct for lying to police.
Fox News' Mariah Haas contributed to this report.
Memorial Day 2022: More than 3,500 flights canceled '' 102.3 WBAB
Sun, 29 May 2022 13:00
Wanderlust ran smack into a wall of frustration for thousands of would-be Memorial Day travelers with nearly 3,700 flights canceled during the first day-and-a-half of the holiday weekend.
>> Read more trending news
By 4 p.m. EDT Saturday, nearly 1,400 flights had been canceled nationwide, one day after inclement weather and a host of operational issues grounded more than 2,300 flights nationwide, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.
Among U.S. carriers, Delta Air Lines shouldered the brunt of cancelations, with 245 flights sidelined, or roughly 9% of the airline's operations.
Meanwhile, Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, where Delta is headquartered and operates its largest hub, saw 5% of all flights canceled and 7% delayed, The Associated Press reported.
In an email to the AP, Delta officials attributed Saturday's disruptions to a combination of bad weather and ''air traffic control actions,'' noting that the airline is trying to cancel flights at least 24 hours in advance throughout the holiday weekend.
The cancelations come two days after Delta announced on its website that it plans to reduce service by about 100 daily departures between July 1 and Aug. 7.
>> Related: Delta Air Lines announces plans to decrease flights this summer
''More than any time in our history, the various factors currently impacting our operation '-- weather and air traffic control, vendor staffing, increased COVID case rates contributing to higher-than-planned unscheduled absences in some work groups '-- are resulting in an operation that isn't consistently up to the standards Delta has set for the industry in recent years,'' said Delta's Chief Customer Experience Officer Allison Ausband in the post.
According to the AP, airlines have thousands fewer employees than they did in 2019, and that has at times contributed to widespread flight cancellations.
-- The Associated Press contributed to this report.
(C)2022 Cox Media Group
Asteroid-mining startup books its first mission, launching with SpaceX | TweakTown
Sun, 29 May 2022 12:48
Astroforge has received $13 million in funding after a new seed funding round led by Initialized Capital.
The Y Combinator asteroid-mining startup is based out of California, and was only founded in January 2022 with the only goal of taking "asteroid mining out of the realm of sci-fi into the realm of reality," according to AstroForge cofounder and CEO Matt Gialich.
The $13 million in funding secured will finance Astroforge's first two missions, the first of which will be a demonstration flight currently booked for a rideshare mission about a SpaceX Falcon 9 next year. Astroforge has also partnered with OrbAstro to create the first satellite for its initial demonstration flight and already has its eye on a collection of candidate asteroids to visit.
The asteroids Astroforge will be targeting are between 20 meters (65.6 feet) to 1,500 meters (0.93 miles) in diameter. Astroforge is particularly targeting asteroids with high concentrations of platinum-group metals, which include ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium, iridium, and platinum.
"If we can access the unlimited resources from space, we can move away from harmful mining practices on Earth and get the materials we need to expand our scientific abilities. To say this is a game-changer is an understatement," said Brett Gibson, general partner at Initialized Capital.
Adam's Top 3 Recommended Articles:Read more: Crazy video shows a test vehicle catapulted toward space at 1,000+ mph
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Travel disruption: 'We were on the plane when our flight was cancelled' - BBC News
Sun, 29 May 2022 12:06
By Dulcie Lee & Vivienne NunisBBC News
Image source, Rob Gore
Image caption, Rob Gore was on the plane with his family when he was told the bad news
More than 30,000 people face disruption to their half-term travel plans over the next week, after airlines cancel dozens of flights.
For some holidaymakers, it will be their first chance to get away since the pandemic hit more than two years ago.
Some told the BBC of their heartbreak and anger.
Rob Gore spent 14 hours at Manchester Airport on Friday.
He had planned to fly to Turkey with his family for his sister-in-law's wedding, but his flight was delayed.
After hours of waiting, he and his family finally boarded a plane - only to be ushered back off it at the last minute.
"When the news was announced on the plane by the pilot the kids just burst into tears," he said.
The pilot said they had run out of hours they were able to work, so everybody had to disembark, he said.
"It was just an absolute farce from Tui, no reps available until right at the very end," he said, describing his treatment as "disgusting".
The trip would have been Rob's first since he began receiving cancer treatment.
"My heart goes out to our kids," he says. "It's their first holiday in three years, especially after the pandemic. They've been heartbroken."
After two nights in a Manchester hotel, he's hoping to fly out Sunday in time for the wedding on Monday. "But nothing's concrete," he said on Saturday afternoon.
Tui said it has apologised to those impacted by the cancelled flight, adding it contacted customers as soon as possible and offered overnight accommodation, meals and refreshments while they planned a new flight.
'It got quite heated'
Fred Toon was due to fly from Gatwick to Menorca in Spain on Saturday with his wife, three children and his wife's parents.
Half an hour before they were due to board their flight was cancelled.
"It would have cost us more than £4,000, which I know you can claim back from the airline, but we haven't got £4,000 to go out of the account to buy the tickets," Fred said.
"It's heart-breaking to see all the children crying. It wasn't just my children - there were probably 20 to 30 different families with their children crying."
Image source, Fred Toon
Image caption, Fred Toon and his daughter, Ayla, 10, were due to fly to Mah"n in Menorca
After his flight was cancelled, he said staff told him to manage his booking online.
But the only flight on offer was on Thursday - and his accommodation was booked from Saturday to Saturday.
"They were no help whatsoever. It was getting quite heated down there. Emotions were running very high," he said.
'No water'
In Manchester, Jo, who did not give her last name, had her Tui flight to Greece delayed on Friday.
She said the airport was running out of supplies for all the delayed passengers: "It was like the start of the pandemic - people were panic buying drinks."
The restaurants and shops "couldn't deal with the capacity. Families had no nappies, no vouchers, no water," she added.
EasyJet and Tui have apologised for the disruption, blaming a number of issues including air traffic restrictions and runway works.
World stock markets rally, treasury yields fall on inflation data | Reuters
Sat, 28 May 2022 11:12
U.S. consumer spending increases, rise in inflation slowsWall Street rallies, snaps weekly losing streakTreasury yields fallBrent oil rises $2NEW YORK, May 27 (Reuters) - Global markets enjoyed a broad-based rally on Friday, while the yield on benchmark U.S. Treasuries fell after data showed that U.S. consumer spending rose in April and the uptick in inflation slowed, two signs the world's largest economy could be on track to grow this quarter.
Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, increased 0.9% last month, and although inflation continued to increase in April, it was less than in recent months. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rose 0.2%, the smallest gain since November 2020. read more
Wall Street rallied on Friday after the data, with all three major U.S. stock indexes bringing a decisive end to their longest weekly losing streaks in decades. read more
Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comThe U.S. Federal Reserve, in minutes from its May meeting released earlier this week, called inflation a serious concern. A majority of the central bankers backed two half-a-percentage- point rate hikes in June and July, as the group attempts to curb inflation without causing a recession.
The Fed did leave room for a pause in hikes if the economy weakens. read more
Analysts said the consumer spending and inflation data was encouraging and supported growth estimates for the second quarter that are mostly above a 2.0 annualized rate.
"The growth engine of the U.S. economy is still alive and kicking, and that's important," said Joe Quinlan, head of CIO Market Strategy for Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank. "Growth estimates for (the second quarter) are still good. There is a better tone in the market than we have seen in recent weeks, in terms of inflation possibly peaking here. Maybe we can avoid stagflation."
The MSCI world equity index (.MIWD00000PUS), which tracks shares in 45 nations, was up 2.12% at 4:45 p.m. EDT (2045 GMT).
Global equity funds saw inflows in the week to May 25 for the first week in seven weeks, according to Refinitiv Lipper. read more
European shares (.STOXX) hit a three-week high and rose 1.42%. Britain's FTSE (.FTSE) also hit a three-week high, and was heading for its best weekly showing since mid-March.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) rose 575.77 points, or 1.76%, to 33,212.96, the S&P 500 (.SPX) gained 100.4 points, or 2.47%, to 4,158.24 and the Nasdaq Composite <.IXIC<> added 390.48 points, or 3.33%, to 12,131.13.
The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes was last 2.7432%. It had hit a three-year high of 3.2030% earlier this month on fears that the Fed may have to raise rates rapidly to bring inflation under control.
Lower yields show the Fed's monetary policy is succeeding in tightening credit and slowing down prices, said BofA's Quinlan.
"The 10-year yield is suggesting we don't have to have inflation break above 9-10%," Quinlan said. "We are getting close to a peak in inflation."
The two-year yield , which rises with traders' expectations of higher fed fund rates, fell to 2.4839%.
German 10-year bond yields fell 4 bps to 0.955% .
Asian shares (.MIAPJ0000PUS) also benefited from hopes of stabilizing Sino-U.S. ties and more Chinese government stimulus. read more
The United States would not block China from expanding its economy, but wanted it to adhere to international rules, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday in remarks that some investors interpreted as positive for bilateral ties. read more
Emerging market stocks rose 1.98%. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) closed 2.17% higher, while Japan's Nikkei (.N225) rose 0.66%.
The swing toward broadly positive market sentiment drove the dollar to one-month lows against an index of currencies.
The dollar index fell 0.059%, with the euro up 0.06% at $1.073.
Oil prices were near two-month highs on the prospect of a tight market due to rising gasoline consumption in the United States in summer, and also the possibility of an EU ban on Russian oil.
U.S. crude settled 98 cents higher, or up 0.86%, at $115.07 a barrel. Brent settled $2.03 higher, or up 1.73%, at $119.43 a barrel.
Spot gold added 0.2% to $1,852.83 an ounce.
Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Elizabeth Dilts Marshall in New YorkAdditional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak in New York, Carolyn Cohn in London, Stella Qiu in Beijing and Kevin Buckland in Tokyo; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Alistair Bell and Matthew Lewis
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
TerraUSD Crash Led to Vanished Savings, Shattered Dreams - WSJ
Sat, 28 May 2022 04:25
Investors swept up in the mania for the high-yielding stablecoin thought it would be safe
Updated May 27, 2022 4:04 pm ETTerraUSD was touted as a blue-chip cryptocurrency. Now its investors are reeling from painful losses and asking if it was all a get-rich-quick scheme.
A surgeon in Massachusetts can't stop thinking about how he lost his family's nest egg. A young Ukrainian considered suicide after losing 90% of his savings. Other investors have given up dreams of starting new businesses or quitting their day jobs.
All...
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TerraUSD was touted as a blue-chip cryptocurrency. Now its investors are reeling from painful losses and asking if it was all a get-rich-quick scheme.
A surgeon in Massachusetts can't stop thinking about how he lost his family's nest egg. A young Ukrainian considered suicide after losing 90% of his savings. Other investors have given up dreams of starting new businesses or quitting their day jobs.
All of them were swept up in the mania for TerraUSD, whose total value swelled to $18 billion before collapsing earlier this month. The coin's sudden downfall is a reminder that crypto'--which enjoyed a huge bull market last year'--is often little more than a casino, with weak regulation and few means of recourse for the losers.
The crash caught many investors off guard because TerraUSD was a stablecoin, designed to maintain its value of $1 per coin. Unlike bitcoin, which has crashed repeatedly in its short history, TerraUSD was pitched as a harbor from volatility. It slipped below $1 earlier this month and was trading around 3 cents on Friday.
Investors piled into TerraUSD because of the opportunity to make money in Anchor Protocol, a sort of crypto bank that offered annual yields of nearly 20% on deposits of the coin. Critics questioned whether Anchor's yields were sustainable. But such eye-popping interest rates are common in decentralized finance, or DeFi, a sort of parallel financial system for crypto with its own version of banks and lending.
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As often happens in unregulated, untested parts of the markets, the pitch was too good to be true. Now, the TerraUSD implosion has fueled calls for greater government oversight of stablecoins.
Some investors who lost money in the crash say they didn't understand exactly what they were getting into. One of the key risks that many failed to appreciate was the design of the stablecoin itself. TerraUSD was prone to collapse because it was an ''algorithmic'' stablecoin not backed by real assets. Other stablecoins, such as USD Coin, say that they hold $1 of cash, Treasury bills or other traditional financial assets for each unit of digital currency, allowing them to maintain their peg to the dollar.
A spokesman for Terraform Labs Pte. Ltd., the Singapore-based company behind TerraUSD and Anchor Protocol, said it had been clear about the risks of both initiatives. ''As with virtually everything else in life, each individual must decide for themselves what risks they are willing to undertake,'' the spokesman said.
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''We worked hard to put in place measures we believed would help maintain and protect the future of Terra, a future we believed in from the beginning,'' he added.
Keith Baldwin, a 44-year-old surgeon who lives outside New Bedford, Mass., saved $177,000 during the past decade. Last year he took his savings and bought USD Coin, putting it in a crypto account that paid a 9% annual yield.
In April, he moved it into a pseudo-savings account powered by TerraUSD that offered 15%. More than 90% of his savings vanished in a few days when TerraUSD lost its peg to the dollar. Dr. Baldwin said he didn't know that Stablegains, the startup that managed the account, was converting his USD Coin holdings into TerraUSD. (USD Coin has kept its $1 peg.)
Dr. Baldwin doesn't consider himself a crypto enthusiast. He had hoped to spend the money on a house. Now he has been cutting back on expenses so he can still save for his children's education. ''I don't want to punish our kids for the mistake I made,'' he said.
TerraUSD slipped below $1 on May 7. Over the next week, it kept falling and rebounding, as the team behind the stablecoin'--led by South Korean crypto developer and Terraform Labs founder
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Do Kwon '--
burned through a $3 billion reserve fund in an unsuccessful bid to defend TerraUSD's value.
When Dr. Baldwin learned that TerraUSD's troubles were threatening his nest egg, he scrambled to withdraw his funds from Stablegains. Hours ticked by as the site processed the transfer. By the time they landed at Dr. Baldwin's newly created account at the Kraken crypto exchange, the coin was trading at just 14 cents.
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Stablegains said last weekend it was winding down, and its founders said they were ''deeply sorry and devastated.'' In an emailed statement, Stablegains said it had disclosed the risks of DeFi online and in its terms of use. The startup has said it had nearly 5,000 customers.
The meltdown has reverberated around the world. In France, Thomas Blanc had hoped to use his profits from crypto investing to organize free electronic-music festivals, do charitable projects and help his parents retire early. Instead he ended up losing more than $400,000.
In Australia, Ben Thompson endured sleepless nights before deciding he would sell his TerraUSD if the coin recovered to 65 cents. He woke up the next morning to find it trading around 10 cents.
In Ukraine, a 30-year-old man who used to work in insurance thought a stablecoin would be safer than a bank in his war-torn country. He fell into a depression, he said, after losing most of his savings.
Dr. Baldwin, Messrs. Blanc and Thompson and the Ukrainian man are all part of a more than 4,000-person group on the chat platform Discord devoted to seeking restitution for their losses.
In a May 13 tweet, Mr. Kwon voiced regret to those who lost money in the TerraUSD collapse, writing: ''I am heartbroken about the pain my invention has brought on all of you.''
In the coming days, investors burned by the crash may receive funds in a new cryptocurrency, partly compensating their losses. Mr. Kwon and his fellow developers have said they are creating the new cryptocurrency as part of a reboot of the Terra blockchain network.
It is unclear how many investors were affected by TerraUSD's collapse, but it is likely in the thousands.
Until the crash, about 265,000 cryptocurrency addresses had deposited TerraUSD to Anchor Protocol, according to blockchain analytics provider Nansen. That might not correspond to the total number of investors, though, since one person can have multiple addresses. And in some cases, multiple people pooled their assets and deposited them on Anchor from one address.
Unlike asset-backed stablecoins, TerraUSD was effectively backed by Luna, a volatile cryptocurrency, also created by Mr. Kwon. A built-in mechanism was designed to restore TerraUSD's dollar peg if its price ever deviated from $1.
Here is how it was supposed to work: If TerraUSD fell below $1, traders could buy the coin and convert it into $1 of Luna, earning arbitrage profits. That would dry up supply of TerraUSD and push its price back to $1. But the mechanism only worked if traders saw value in Luna. When TerraUSD started wobbling this month, Luna went into free fall.
Some investors said they didn't know TerraUSD had such a vulnerability. Brian Anderson, a 45-year-old former teacher in Utah, took out a $95,000 loan against his home in December 2020 and put the money in Anchor Protocol in March, encouraged by an online investing course. He had planned to use the interest payments and other gains to attend a U.S.-accredited medical school in the Caribbean and become a doctor.
''I thought it wasn't risky,'' Mr. Anderson said, ''being in a stablecoin.''
Write to Alexander Osipovich at alexander.osipovich@dowjones.com and Caitlin Ostroff at caitlin.ostroff@wsj.com
Joe Rogan: Spotify removes 36 episodes of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast citing 'technical issue' | The Independent
Sat, 28 May 2022 00:47
Spotify appears to have removed dozens of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast episodes from its platform.
In February, it was reported that he had personally asked for 113 podcast episodes to be removed, including some featuring far-right commentators such as Alex Jones and Milo Yiannopoulos.
On this occasion, the missing episodes have been explained away by a ''technical issue''.
''Spotify is aware of this technical issue, and we are looking into it now,'' a company representative told the Los Angeles Times.
The Independent has reached out to a representative for Joe Rogan for comment.
The commentator signed a licensing deal to take his show and its back catalogue to Spotify in 2020. The agreement is rumoured to have been worth more than $200m (£160m).
The 36 newly removed episodes were reportedly recorded prior to Rogan's exclusivity deal with the platform.
Earlier this month, the podcaster was heavily mocked online after realising he'd been discussing a fake news story while recording his podcast.
Joe Rogan
(Spotify)
In the episode, released on 12 May, the commentator announced: ''I read something briefly and I didn't get into the article.'' He then claimed that Australia is ''trying to pass a bill that would outlaw you growing your own food''.
Believing the story to be true, Rogan mocked Australians for the fake proposed law, calling the lawmakers, which did not exist, ''f***ing creeps'' '' before coming up short when trying to verify the story himself.
After a search failed to produce any results, he exclaimed to his guest: ''Yep, I can't find it either. Dammit! Better not be fake. It might be fake.''
Liturgy - Wikipedia
Fri, 27 May 2022 18:44
Customary public worship performed by a religious group
"Liturgist" redirects here. For the academic discipline, see
Liturgics.
Liturgy is the customary public worship performed by a religious group. Liturgy can also be used to refer specifically to public worship of Christians.[1] As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembrance, supplication, or repentance. It forms a basis for establishing a relationship with God.
Technically speaking, liturgy forms a subset of ritual. The word liturgy, sometimes equated in English as "service", refers to a formal ritual enacted by those who understand themselves to be participating in an action with the divine.
Benedictine Monks praying the Liturgy of the Hours.
Etymology [ edit ] The word liturgy (), derived from the technical term in ancient Greek (Greek: Î>>ειÏÎυρÎ"ία ), leitourgia, which literally means "work for the people" is a literal translation of the two words "litos ergos" or "public service". In origin, it signified the often expensive offerings wealthy Greeks made in service to the people, and thus to the polis and the state.[2] Through the leitourgia, the rich carried a financial burden and were correspondingly rewarded with honours and prestige. The leitourgia were assigned by the polis, the State and the Roman Empire, and became obligatory in the course of the 3rd century A.D. The performance of such supported the patron's standing among the elite and the popular at large. The holder of a Hellenic leitourgia was not taxed a specific sum, but was entrusted with a particular ritual, which could be performed with greater or lesser magnificence. The chief sphere remained that of civic religion, embodied in the festivals: M.I. Finley notes "in Demosthenes' day there were at least 97 liturgical appointments in Athens for the festivals, rising to 118 in a (quadrennial) Panathenaic year."[3] However, groups of rich citizens were assigned to pay for expenses such as civic amenities and even payment of warships. Eventually, under the Roman Empire, such obligations, known as munera, devolved into a competitive and ruinously expensive burden that was avoided when possible. These included a wide range of expenses having to do with civic infrastructure and amenities; and imperial obligations such as highway, bridge and aqueduct repair, supply of various raw materials, bread-baking for troops in transit, just to name a few.
Buddhism [ edit ] Buddhist liturgy is a formalized service of veneration and worship performed within a Buddhist Sangha community in nearly every traditional denomination and sect in the Buddhist world. It is often done one or more times a day and can vary among the Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana sects.
The liturgy mainly consists of chanting or reciting a sutra or passages from a sutras, a mantra (especially in Vajrayana), and several gathas. Depending on what practice the practitioner wishes to undertake, it can be done at a temple or at home. The liturgy is almost always performed in front of an object or objects of veneration and accompanied by offerings of light, incense, water, and food.
Christianity [ edit ] Frequently in Christianity, a distinction is made between "liturgical" and "non-liturgical" churches based on how elaborate or formal the worship; in this usage, churches whose services are unscripted or improvised are called "non-liturgical". Others object to this distinction, arguing that this terminology obscures the universality of public worship as a religious phenomenon.[4] Thus, even the open or waiting worship of Quakers is liturgical, since the waiting itself until the Holy Spirit moves individuals to speak is a prescribed form of Quaker worship, sometimes referred to as "the liturgy of silence".[5] Typically in Christianity, however, the term "the liturgy" normally refers to a standardised order of events observed during a religious service, be it a sacramental service or a service of public prayer; usually the former is the referent. In the ancient tradition, sacramental liturgy especially is the participation of the people in the work of God, which is primarily the saving work of Jesus Christ; in this liturgy, Christ continues the work of redemption.[6]
The term "liturgy" in Greek literally means to "work for the people", but a better translation is "public service" or "public work", as made clear from the origin of the term as described above. The early Christians adopted the word to describe their principal act of worship, the Sunday service (referred to by various terms, including Holy Eucharist, Holy Communion, Mass or Divine Liturgy), which they considered to be a sacrifice. This service, liturgy, or ministry (from the Latin "ministerium") is a duty for Christians as a priestly people by their baptism into Christ and participation in His high priestly ministry. It is also God's ministry or service to the worshippers. It is a reciprocal service. As such, many Christian churches designate one person who participates in the worship service as the liturgist. The liturgist may read announcements, scriptures, and calls to worship, while the minister preaches the sermon, offers prayers, and blesses sacraments. The liturgist may be either an ordained minister or a lay person. The entire congregation participates in and offers the liturgy to God.
Islam [ edit ] Salāt ("prayer", Arabic: صÙاØ(C) á¹£alāh or gen : á¹£alāt ; pl. صÙÙات á¹£alawāt ) is the practice of physical and compulsory prayer in Islam as opposed to dua, which is the Arabic word for supplication. Its importance for Muslims is indicated by its status as one of the Five Pillars of Islam.
Salat is preceded by ritual ablution and usually performed five times a day. It consists of the repetition of a unit called a rakÊah (pl. rakaÊāt) consisting of prescribed actions and words. The number of obligatory (fard) rakaÊāt varies from two to four according to the time of day or other circumstances (such as Friday congregational worship, which has two rakats). Prayer is obligatory for all Muslims except those who are prepubescent, menstruating, or in puerperium stage after childbirth.[7]
Judaism [ edit ] Jewish liturgy is the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Rabbinic Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book. In general, Jewish men are obligated to pray three times a day within specific time ranges (zmanim). while, according most modern Orthodox authorities, women are only required to pray once daily, as they are generally exempted from obligations that are time dependent. All public prayer requires a minyan, a quorum of 10 adults, to be present.
Traditionally, three prayer services are recited daily:
Shacharit or Shaharit (×(C)ַחֲרִת), from the Hebrew shachar or shahar (×(C)ַחָר) "morning light",Mincha or Minha (×žÖ´× Ö°×—Ö¸×--), the afternoon prayers named for the flour offering that accompanied sacrifices at the Temple in Jerusalem,Arvit (×ַרְבִ×ת) or Maariv (מַ×ֲרִ×ב), from "nightfall".Additional prayers:
Musaf (מוּ×ָף, "additional") is traditionally recited on Shabbat, major Jewish holidays (including Chol HaMoed), and Rosh Chodesh.A fifth prayer service, Ne'ila (× Ö°×Ö´××'Ö¸×--, "closing"), is recited only on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.See also [ edit ] Book of Common PrayerThe Book of Common Worship of 1993Divine LiturgyDivine Service (Eastern Orthodoxy)Divine Service (Lutheran)EucharistKesh temple hymn (Liturgy to Nintud) '-- Sumerian clay tablet written as early as 2600 BCLiturgical books of the Roman RiteLiturgical yearMass (liturgy)SacramentSeokjeon DaejeSiddurReferences [ edit ] ^ "liturgy" . Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.) - "2.a. A form of public worship, esp. in the Christian Church; a collection of formularies for the conduct of Divine service." ^ N. Lewis, "Leitourgia and related terms," Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies 3 (1960:175''84) and 6 (1965:226''30). ^ Finley, The Ancient Economy 2nd ed., 1985:151. ^ Underhill, E., Worship (London: Bradford and Dickens, 1938), pp. 3''19. ^ Dandelion, P., The Liturgies of Quakerism, Liturgy, Worship and Society Series (Aldershot, England and Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2005). ^ Catechism of the Catholic Church 1069(London: Chapman, 1994). ^ Multicultural Handbook of Food, Nutrition and Dietetics, p. 43, Aruna Thaker, Arlene Barton, 2012 Further reading [ edit ] Baldovin, John F., SJ (2008) Reforming the Liturgy: a Response to the Critics. The Liturgical PressBowker, John, ed. (1997) Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-213965-7.Bugnini, Annibale, (1990) The Reform of the Liturgy 1948''1975. The Liturgical PressDix, Dom Gregory (1945) The Shape of the LiturgyDonghi, Antonio, (2009) Words and Gestures in the Liturgy. The Liturgical PressJohnson, Lawrence J., (2009) Worship in the Early Church: an Anthology of Historical Sources. The Liturgical PressJones, Cheslyn, Geoffrey Wainwright, and Edward Yarnold, eds. (1978) The Study of Liturgy. London: SPCK.Marini, Piero, (2007) A Challenging Reform: Realizing the Vision of the Liturgical Renewal. The Liturgical PressScotland, N. A. D. (1989). Eucharistic Consecration in the First Four Centuries and Its Implications for Liturgical Reform, in series, Latimer Studies, 31. Latimer House. ISBN 0-946307-30-X"What Do Quakers Believe?". Quaker Information Center, Philadelphia, PA, 2004.External links [ edit ] Catholic Encyclopedia articleOrthodox Tradition and the LiturgyJewish Encyclopedia: LiturgyContemporary Christian Liturgy Website History, theory, practiceThe Indult Tridentine Rite of MassWork of the PeopleEastern Orthodox Christian Liturgy Website LiturgyA Brief Exposition of the Divine Service
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