Israel declassifies Yom Kippur War archive

By Abdelraouf Arna'out

JERUSALEM (AA) - Israel on Thursday declassified its full archive of the Oct. 6, 1973 war with Egypt and Syria, ahead of the 50th anniversary of the incident.

The declassification included thousands of materials, documents, photos and recordings from the months leading up to and following the war.

"This is a 360-degree view of the story of the war, which affected all walks of life in Israel," the Times of Israel news website quoted state archivist Ruti Abramovitch as saying.

The Israel State Archives said on the 50th anniversary of the "Yom Kippur" war, the archive is available to all, including materials that are displayed for the first time.

The State Archives said it "provides a fascinating glimpse into the decision-making process under conditions of uncertainty" by the leaders, the fighting on the various fronts and the political contacts that were taking place.

In one of the displayed materials, Military Intelligence Directorate head Eli Zeira indicated that the Israeli military and intelligence establishment did not have sufficient information regarding a major attack by the Egyptians and the Syrians.

"I must say, we don’t have sufficient proof that they don’t intend to attack. We don’t have conclusive indications that they want to attack, but I can’t say based on knowledge that they aren’t preparing," Zeira said.

The 1973 war was fought between Egypt and Syria on one side and Israel on the other side. It was launched abruptly with Egypt managing to cross the Suez Canal after the destruction of the Israeli fortified Bar-Lev line built along the eastern bank of the Suez Canal.

Israel says it lost nearly 2,500 soldiers and thousands more were injured in the fighting.

As a result of the war in 1979, Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in Washington, ending a military conflict between the two countries.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar