The Yom Kippur War caught Israel off guard
On this day · 6 October 1973
On Judaism's holiest day, Egypt and Syria struck across two fronts at once, and the Cold War nearly went hot.
On October 6, 1973, Egypt and Syria launched a coordinated surprise attack on Israeli forces in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights. The timing was deliberate: it fell on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, when much of Israel was fasting and off duty. Israeli intelligence had badly misjudged Arab intentions, and the opening blow landed hard.
Washington responded with a major military airlift to Israel beginning October 14, which helped reverse the battlefield situation but also prompted Arab oil producers to embargo shipments to the United States, triggering an economic shock felt worldwide.
The war was a watershed for U.S. policy toward the Middle East.
Fighting wound down after UN Security Council Resolution 338 on October 22, with Israel finally accepting the ceasefire on October 25. The conflict opened the door to Henry Kissinger’s shuttle diplomacy and, ultimately, the 1979 Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty.
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