On the noon of October 6, 1973, the Arabs were on a date with the fourth war against Israel, when the Egyptian and Syrian armies launched a surprise attack with the aim of reclaiming their lands that Israel had occupied in 1967.
That war, which the Arabs called the October War, and Israel called it the Kippur War, inaugurated a new phase in the Arab world, and prompted Washington to change its policies towards the Middle East.
Besides the participation of Arab countries in the war in favor of Egypt and Syria, the Iraqi participation was the most prominent, as the Iraqi Hawker Hunter planes flew the first air strike of the war from the Egyptian front, and then Iraq directed large ground and air forces to the Syrian front.
And about the reason for the outbreak of the war, the professor of political science in Najaf, Dr.
Asaad Kazem Shabib, the Arabs saw the opportunity to regain the lands that were occupied in 1967.
Al-Wondawi: Iraq secretly sent attack and bombing aircraft to Egypt to support its position (communication sites)
Iraq's role Iraq's
active participation in this war was not surprising, according to the historian specializing in Iraqi and Arab affairs, Dr.
Bashar Fathi al-Akidi, explaining that Iraq was the first to participate in all the wars that the Arabs fought against their enemies, especially Israel.
He added to Al-Jazeera Net, that the Iraqi army’s participation in the October war was consistent with the aspirations of the people and the desire of most army officers, so Iraq's position in participating in this war was strong.
The researcher and expert in security and strategic affairs, Dr.
Moayad Al-Wondawi, the details of the Iraqi participation by saying that when the war was declared, Baghdad sent, in a secret manner and with an understanding with Egypt, squadrons of "Hawker Hunter" attack and bombing aircraft to reinforce the Egyptian front, and the transport of the planes faced many difficulties, so the Iraqi aircraft participated in the first flight of the Egyptian Air Force, To attack specific targets.
Al-Wondawi confirmed to Al-Jazeera Net that the Iraqi squadron in Egypt successfully accomplished its mission, offering martyrs and capturing some Iraqi soldiers.
As for the situation on the Syrian front, it was different, according to Al-Wondawi. Although the Iraqis were not informed of the zero hour, neither from Egypt nor from Syria, Iraq decided to send a large military force, including armor and tanks, so the Iraqi forces had a great contribution to the battle, where they were able to successfully stop The Israeli armored attack towards Damascus, and Iraqi special forces were able to control the summit of Mount Hermon, with a lightning and distinguished military operation.
Israeli prisoners of war on the Syrian front (Getty Images)
Al-Wondawi regretted that the Syrian leadership at the time did not provide sufficient support, in addition to ignoring the heroics and tasks that the Iraqi army carried out in the Syrian and Egyptian military and war literature, despite all the sacrifices made by the Iraqi army at the time.
Dr.
Asaad Kadhim Shabib, that the first vanguards of the Iraqi military forces arrived in Damascus on the tenth of October, the Iraqi forces were advancing an armored brigade led by Major Salim Shaker al-Emami, and then followed by the mechanized infantry brigade and then an armored brigade, and the Iraqi army was considered the third of the Arab armies In terms of kit, fuel and equipment.
He indicated that the strength of military planning and discipline of the Iraqi army at that time, and its ability to withstand, as well as good knowledge of the Syrian geography, had a great role in preventing Israel from occupying Syria.
Shabib praised the sacrifices of the Iraqi army, as it presented a large number of martyrs, numbering 323, who were buried in the Sayyida Zeinab area in Damascus, and their graves are still witness to this day.
Archives from the October War of 1973 (Getty Images)
The oil weapon
The Arab-Israeli conflict has witnessed points of disagreement and agreement between the Arab countries, as this issue in many of its stages was a field for bargaining and bidding, but one of the prominent positions referred to in the 1973 war is the use of oil as an effective weapon in the battle, according to the historian al-Aqidi. .
He adds that Iraq suggested adopting oil as a weapon used to deal with Western regimes, to put pressure on the Israelis to end the occupation of Arab lands.
Al-Akidi continues by saying that at the meeting of Arab oil ministers on October 17, 1973, the Arab countries agreed to reduce oil production by 5% every month, which led to an increase in the global price of oil.
For his part, Shabib considered that the support provided by some Arab countries with money and oil economic pressures against Israel, made these countries together achieve many victories, including preventing Israel from occupying Syria.
Shabib believes that the strength of the Iraqi army contributed to preventing Israel from occupying Syria (Al-Jazeera Net)
The race for normalization, and
after nearly half a century after the October War, Arabs today find themselves facing another reality that is very different from what was the case previously.
In this regard, Shabib says that military steadfastness and the independence of political decision-making can be considered one of the most important factors in achieving victories and preventing Israel from penetrating further into Arab countries at the time.
It is noteworthy that the soft tools that the major powers worked on, led by America, sowed divisions between the Arab countries and provoked intra-regional problems and crises. America recently succeeded in persuading the UAE and Bahrain to sign a peace agreement and normalize their relations with Israel, even though they were not parties to the conflict with Israel.
Shabib believes that normalization today is based on the fear of the printed countries of internal and external concerns that may not pose a real threat, or rise to the Israeli threat at the geopolitical and security levels.
The current normalization differs from the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, which ended years of tension and returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt, according to Shabib.
As for Al-Aqidi, he warns that any attempt at normalization with Israel will generate a negative reaction on the part of the Arab peoples, which will reflect in the future on the governments that rushed to normalize their relationship with Israel.