Topic summary
Yom Kippur War
Israel- Egypt
- 650,000–850,000 troops (100,000+ crossed)
- 1,700 tanks (1,020 crossed)
- 2,400 armored carriers
- 1,120 artillery units
- 400 combat aircraft
- 140 helicopters
- 104 naval vessels
- 150 surface-to-air missile batteries (62 in the front line)
- Syria
- 150,000–300,000 troops
- 1,200 tanks
- 800–900 armored carriers
- 600 artillery units
- Expeditionary forces
- 120,000 troops
- 500–670 tanks
- 700 armored carriers
- Saudi Arabia
- 23,000 troops (3,000 crossed)
- Morocco
- 5,500 troops
- 30 tanks provided by Syria
- Cuba
- 500–1,000 troops
- Total
- 914,000–1,067,500 troops
- 3,430–3,600 tanks
- 3,900–4,000 armored carriers
- 1,720 artillery units
- 452 combat aircraft
- 140 helicopters
- 104 naval vessels
- 150 surface-to-air missile batteries
- 375,000–415,000 troops
- 1,700 tanks
- 3,000 armored carriers
- 945 artillery units
- 440 combat aircraft
- Egypt
- 5,000–15,000 dead
- 8,372 captured
- Syria
- 3,000–3,500 dead
- 392 captured
- Morocco
- 6 dead
- 6 captured
- Iraq
- 278 dead
- 898 wounded
- 13 captured
- Cuba
- 180 dead
- 250 wounded
- Jordan
- 23 dead
- 77 wounded
- Kuwait
- 18 dead
- Total
- 8,000–18,500 dead
- 18,000–35,000 wounded
- 8,783 captured
- 2,250–2,300 tanks destroyed
- 341–514 aircraft destroyed
- 19 naval vessels sunk
- 2,521–2,800 dead
- 7,250–8,800 wounded
- 293 captured
- 400–800 tanks destroyed, 600 damaged or captured
- 407 armored vehicles destroyed or captured
- 102–387 aircraft destroyed
The Yom Kippur War, also known as the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, the fourth Arab–Israeli War, the October War, or the Ramadan War (6–25 October 1973), was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria. Most of the fighting occurred in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights, territories occupied by Israel in 1967. Some combat also took place in mainland Egypt and northern Israel.
The war started on 6 October 1973, when the Arab coalition launched a surprise attack across their respective frontiers during the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, which coincided with the 10th day of Ramadan. The United States and Soviet Union engaged in massive resupply efforts for their allies (Israel and the Arab states, respectively), which heightened tensions between the two superpowers.
Egyptian and Syrian forces crossed their respective ceasefire lines with Israel, advancing into the Sinai and the Golan Heights. Egyptian forces crossed the Suez Canal in Operation Badr, establishing positions, while Syrian forces gained territory in the Golan Heights. After three days, Israel halted the Egyptian advance and pushed most of the Syrians back to the Purple Line. Israel then launched a counteroffensive into Syria, shelling the outskirts of Damascus. The Egyptian forces continued the advance into Sinai on 14 October to relieve the Syrian front which was coming under increasing pressure.
Israeli forces exploited the failed Egyptian advance to breach the Suez Canal, advancing north toward Ismailia and south toward Suez to sever the Egyptian Second and Third Armies, with some units pushing west. However, their advance met fierce resistance on all fronts. Both sides accepted a UN-brokered ceasefire on 22 October, though it collapsed the day after amid mutual accusations of violations. With the renewed fighting, Israel succeeded in advancing south, materializing the threat to the Third Army's supply lines, but failed to capture Suez. A second ceasefire on 25 October officially ended the conflict.
The Yom Kippur War had significant consequences. The Arab world, humiliated by the 1967 defeat, felt psychologically vindicated by its early and late successes in 1973. Meanwhile, Israel, despite battlefield achievements, recognized that future military dominance was uncertain. These shifts contributed to the Israeli–Palestinian peace process, leading to the 1978 Camp David Accords, when Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt, and the Egypt–Israel peace treaty, the first time an Arab country recognized Israel. Egypt drifted away from the Soviet Union, eventually leaving the Eastern Bloc.