On 6 October 1981, Anwar Sadat, the President of Egypt, was assassinated during the annual victory parade held in Cairo to celebrate Operation Badr, during which the Egyptian Army had crossed the Suez Canal at the beginning of the Yom Kippur War.
Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin signing the Peace Treaty
The Masterminds and Motives
The assassination was undertaken by members of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Earlier in Sadat's presidency, Islamists had benefited from the "rectification revolution" and the release from prison of activists jailed under Gamal Abdel Nasser, but his Sinai treaty with Israel enraged Islamists, particularly the radical Egyptian Islamic Jihad.
The 1979 Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty was received with controversy among Arab nations, particularly the Palestinians. Egypt's membership in the Arab League was suspended (and not reinstated until 1989). PLO Leader Yasser Arafat said "Let them sign what they like."
According to interviews and information gathered by journalist Lawrence Wright, the group was recruiting military officers and accumulating weapons, waiting for the right moment to launch "a complete overthrow of the existing order" in Egypt. In February 1981, Egyptian authorities were alerted to El-Jihad's plan by the arrest of an operative carrying crucial information.
Read also: Egyptian Adventure
According to Tal'at Fu'ad Qasim, ex-head of the Gama'a Islamiyya ('Assembly of Islam'; known as "Islamic Group" in English), it was not Islamic Jihad but his organization that planned the assassination and recruited the assassin, al-Islambuli. In an interview with human rights lawyer and activist Hisham Mubarak published in the Middle East Report, Qasim completely denies the involvement of Islamic Jihad in the plot.
The Assassination
On 6 October 1981, a victory parade was held in Cairo to commemorate the eighth anniversary of Egypt's crossing of the Suez Canal during the Yom Kippur War. Sadat was protected by four layers of security and eight bodyguards, and the army parade should have been safe due to ammunition-seizure rules.
As Egyptian Air Force Mirage jets flew overhead, distracting the crowd, Egyptian Army soldiers and troop trucks towing artillery paraded by. One truck contained the assassination squad, led by Lieutenant Al-Islambuli. As it passed the tribune, Al-Islambuli forced the driver at gunpoint to stop.
From there, the assassins dismounted and Al-Islambuli approached Sadat with three hand grenades concealed under his helmet. Sadat stood to receive his salute; Anwar's nephew Talaat El Sadat later said, "The president thought the killers were part of the show when they approached the stands firing, so he stood saluting them," whereupon Al-Islambuli threw all his grenades at Sadat, only one of which exploded (but fell short), and additional assassins exited the truck, firing into the stands until they had exhausted their ammunition, and then attempted to flee.
The attack lasted about two minutes. Sadat and ten others were killed outright or suffered fatal wounds, including Major General Hassan Allam, Khalfan Nasser Mohammed (a general from the Omani delegation), Eng. Twenty-eight were wounded, including Vice President Hosni Mubarak, Irish Defence Minister James Tully, Sayed Marei, advisor to Anwar Sadat, Belgian ambassador Claude Ruelle, Coptic Bishop Samuel and four United States Armed Forces liaison officers. Security forces were momentarily stunned, but reacted within 45 seconds. The Swedish ambassador Olov Ternström managed to escape safely.
Read also: Learn Arabic in Egypt: Guide
Egyptian state television, which was broadcasting the parade live, quickly cut to military music and Quranic recitations.
Assassination of Anwar Sadat
One of the attackers was killed, and the three others injured and arrested.
Aftermath and Legacy
In conjunction with the assassination, an insurrection was organized in Asyut in Upper Egypt. Rebels took control of the security services HQ for a day and held off government forces for another day. Six attackers and 68 policemen and soldiers were killed in the fighting. Government control was not restored until paratroopers from Cairo arrived and the Air Force scrambled a pair of jets to intimidate the militants.
The assassination was generally greeted with enthusiasm from governments in the Islamic world, which regarded Sadat as a traitor for the Egypt-Israel peace treaty.
Read also: Clothing in Ancient Egypt
Assassination Of Anwar Sadat And Aftermath
Sadat was initially succeeded by Sufi Abu Taleb, Speaker of the People's Assembly, who assumed office as acting President and immediately declared a state of emergency. Al-Islambuli and the other assassins were tried, convicted, and sentenced to death.
Sadat was buried in the Unknown Soldier Memorial, located in the Nasr City district of Cairo. The inscription on his grave reads: "The hero of war and peace".
The funeral was attended by three former Presidents of the United States-Richard Nixon, Gerald R. President Ronald Reagan, who had survived an assassination attempt of his own several months prior, opted not to attend because of the tense political situation, although his administration were represented by Secretary of State Alexander Haig, Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, and Ambassador to the United Nations Jeane Kirkpatrick.
Popular articles:
tags: #Egypt
