Beautiful Egypt 130 – «The Solution» – November 1, 2015

   Last month, we wrote a series of articles about some of our great martyrs, such as, the martyrs of Ismailia 1952-massacre, Port Said martyrs who resisted the Tripartite Aggression in 1956, General Abdel Munim Riad, Petty Officer Mohamed Fawzy Nagi Salim al-Barquqi, Staff Officer Shafiq Mitry Sidrak, Sergeant Sayed Zakaria Khalil, Staff Officer Ahmed Hamdy, Major Gharib Abdul Tawwab, and Enlisted man Shenouda Raghib. These heroes are part and parcel of the love and sacrifice canvas. Yet, we still do not know many of our martyrs who contributed to the victory. Henceforth, before the memory of the victory passes, we should contemplate its aspects:

A Goal

   Success and achievement, be they related to individuals or nations, need great goals: for if you do not know your destination, all routes are the same. In fact, goals determine your starting point. As we celebrate the October victory, we are fully aware that the Egyptians’ goal was victory, nothing else.

   All Egyptians: be they leaders, Armed Forces, Police, or civilians did their duty diligently and honestly. Everybody offered his or her life readily and willingly. For instance, Magdy Zahir Qilada was martyred while working in the factory which made the bridges to be used by the Armed Forces to cross the Bar Lev Line. Fire broke out in the factory. It was about to consume it, had it not been for Magdy who tried to put out the fire by himself and save the place.

   Colonel Mohamed Zurd is another hero. He was called “Bar Lev Line Hero”. He destroyed the last fortress in the Bar Lev Line, hurrying toward it and throwing a bomb through its ventilation opening. Throughout, he faced Israeli shots alone, only to open the way before our men and raise the Egyptian flag above the last fortress in the Bar Lev Line.

A Plan:

   Goals are visions that man changes to plans and practical steps. This is what happened in the October War. Victory required good planning, restructuring, as well as finding ways to overcome obstacles. The sand wall, part of the Bar Lev Line the strongest fortification of the modern age, was an obstacle to war and victory. The enemy used that wall in spreading despair within the hearts of our soldiers, making them think they would never cross it and, thus, fail to wage war.
Nevertheless, Egyptian military planning never stopped. The problem was thoroughly tackled. In an interview with General Baki Zaki Yusuf, he said, “When orders were issued in May, 1969, that we get ready to wage war, we assembled with our leaders that each might show his squad his plan to cross the Canal with the least losses. At that time, I was listening to General Tal’at Mussallim (Captain then), who said that we could bombard the Bar Lev Line using explosives within 12-15 hours, with a 20-percent casualty!” Baki continues, saying that he asked the permission to talk. He said, “The solution is a water hose! We will need small water pumps that can be carried by small boats. These pumps will imbibe water from the canal, compress it, then aim at the sand barrier powerfully, thus, moving sands away. The inclination of the barrier will allow the sands to fall into the bottom of the Canal. As the water continues to flow, we will have holes opened within the barrier. These holes will have the required width and depth. Through them, armored vehicles and tanks can cross to Sinai.” Thus, General Baki Zaki Yusuf destroyed the legend of the Bar Lev Line by the idea of water pumps that opened the sand barrier to make the Armed Forces cross to Sinai. His idea saved not less than 20 thousand Egyptian soldiers from death. Thus, he made a plan to achieve the goal.

Perseverance

   The goal, motive, and deliberate practice created perseverance within Egyptians. This, in turn, showed itself in feats of heroism that outstood in history. Among these feats are:
Individual feats
– Hazza’: He is one of the heroes who participated in the War. He fought for 48 hours, incessantly. He was martyred after facing, together with his squad, two of the enemy’s brigades and aircrafts.
– Ghoneim: A navy hero. The West press called him “One of the Mediterranean and Red Sea Masters”. He fought incessantly for 90 minutes, despite the fact that the Israeli Air Force launched 12 bombs. He kept maneuvering bravely.
– Sayed Hindawi: He drove his burning tank to annihilate a complete Israeli unit.
– Nash’at: A signal officer who refused to withdraw from his place together with his commander until they were martyred.
– Farouk: A hero who fought for 96 consecutive hours. He was able to imprison an entire tank squad by himself. He was martyred by the enemy’s aircraft bombing.
Collective Feats
Squad # 121 – Armored Vehicles: It was led by Major Mahmoud al-Tamimi. The squad combated Israeli tanks which crossed to the Western bank from October 15-19.
   Egyptian Thunderbolt Heroes: They were led by Captain Hamdy Shalaby. They prevented Israeli tanks from crossing the Suez Canal before completing the bridges and the Egyptian tanks crossing them. They closed down the coastal route in Sinai near Rummanah on October 7 for six hours. They were on a one-way mission. A fierce battle with the enemy tanks, armored vehicles, and trucks broke out. It ended up in their withdrawal, nonetheless, sending their aircrafts to strike our heroes who continued fighting. So much so that the enemy tanks retreated more than once. Those heroes fought so fearlessly that even the enemy vouched for them, saying, “The Egyptian Commandoes fought quite bravely on the coastal route: as though they had pledged to die in order to prevent us from reaching the Suez Canal.”

   This is but a sample of the great stories we heard and the heroic feats which the whole world bore testimonials to.

   These feats have always been there to face any enemy who dares to breach Egypt’s security. We have heard of the Operation Martyr’s Right-1 which the Armed Forces fought with the people of Sinai to combat terrorist gangs and purge Egypt from them. Then Operation Martyr’s Right -2 ensued, only to resume Egyptians’ heroic feats.

   The October victory has become an epic for Egyptian heroism. It has always been a flambeau borne by all who seek success and achievement, not only in warfare, but also on the civil and social levels. Meanwhile, we have to think of Egypt’s future and toil for it with the same will, strength and perseverance. What an inspiring story! Stories never end in Beautiful Egypt.

General Bishop
Head of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center