![]() Israel had in the Sinai by October 14 around fifteen brigades totaling nearly 60,000 infantry. Awaiting for them was a dug-in force of 800 Israeli tanks supported by infantry equipped with SS.11 missiles, as well as American-made LAW and TOW anti-tank missiles. Four armored brigades and one mechanized infantry brigade under the command of the Second and Third Armies were to make four independent thrusts. The attack was to proceed on October 13, but was postponed to October 14. ![]() Sadat insisted that the attack proceed, however, and both Ahmed Ismail and Shazli had no choice but to acknowledge the order. His war minister, Ahmed Ismail, and his chief of staff, Saad El Shazly, opposed the idea Shazli in particular stated that for Egyptian forces to advance outside their SAM defences would mean their exposure to the Israeli Air Force, which the Egyptian Air Force was too weak to challenge. Syrian president Hafez Al-Assad requested his Egyptian ally, Anwar El-Sadat, order an attack in the Sinai, which would draw Israeli attention away from the Syrian front. By the time the Syrians, now aided by Iraqi and Jordanian expeditionary forces managed to put a halt to the Israeli advance, Israeli forces were 40 km from Damascus. In the Golan Heights, Israel had repelled Syrian forces and pushed into Syria itself. The Egyptians would not attack for fear of extending their forces beyond the cover of their SAM defences. The Israelis suffered heavy losses in these attacks, and by October 9 Egyptian forces in the Sinai had managed to destroy 500 Israeli tanks. This prompted the Israelis to launch Operation Abiray-Lev (Stouthearted Men) the next day, penetrating the Egyptian line of defense and crossing the Suez Canal.Īfter Egyptian infantry had successfully crossed the canal and captured the Bar-Lev Line on October 6, Israeli forces made several counterattacks in attempts to push the Egyptians back across the Suez Canal. An Egyptian attacking force that advanced beyond their line of defense at the Bar-Lev Line was repulsed with heavy losses by Israeli forces. The Battle of the Sinai was one of the most consequential battles of the Yom Kippur war. ![]()
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