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Egypt: Remembering the 6th of October

By Wendell Steavenson

Egyptians don’t call it the Yom Kippur War, they call it the 6th of October. On this day in 1973, the Egyptian Army, supported by the Air Force under the leadership of General Hosni Mubarak, pushed across the Suez Canal and dislodged the Israelis who had been occupying the Sinai Pensinsula, on the other side, since 1967. It was the only time in four Arab-Israeli wars that the Egyptians had the better of the Israelis. Tactically, the crossing was bold and ingenious (dissolving giant defensive sand berms with high-pressure water hoses; erecting pontoon bridges; commandos crossing the canal in exposed rubber dinghies), but the offensive surprise afforded by attacking on the eve of a Jewish holiday didn’t last long. After three days, the Israelis counterattacked. They divided the Egyptian Third Army, recrossed the canal, and came within a hundred kilometers of Cairo. Ceasefire and Camp David followed, with Israel ceding Sinai back, and the Egyptians were able to pretend that they had won the war and overturned decades of Arab humiliation.

This victory named a bridge, the 6th of October over the Nile, and a new Cairene suburb, the 6th of October, and provided the foundation for the Army’s valedictory status in Egypt. Last night, I was out walking amid evening promenaders and Coptic Christians protesting yet another church burning and beating by the military police. (One pulled up his sleeve to reveal a raised red welt from a long baton, laid over a tattoo of St. George slaying the dragon.) Across the street, a couple of hundred riot police and military police were massed. By the river, I saw an old man, who seemed to be mad, railing in the dusk. “Nasser took everything!” he said, “and left us this trash!” He pointed at a heap of flotsam garbage, and then to his chest: “I am a hero of October 6th!”

Mubarak built a vast rotunda memorial to commemorate the 6th of October; it was empty of visitors when I visited it a few months ago. Outside, a row of Egyptian tanks faced a row of captured Israeli tanks with their turrets bowed. Inside, a vast panorama of lights and noise depicted the epic struggle to cross the canal. I saw no mention of the Israeli counterattack. It has been subsumed by myth and propaganda.

This October 6th, Egyptians were treated to a rare address by Field Marshal Tantawi, head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, who took over executive power from Mubarak in February, and who is now the de facto leader of Egypt. He saluted the country’s youth, and paid his respects to the memory of Anwar Sadat, who presided over the war, and to the heroes of that day. It was all quite bland. Some tweeting activists were glad he had not used to occasion for political pronouncements; others complained that he sounded just like Mubarak. He made a point of repeating that “it’s the military’s responsibility to secure the country during this critical time.”

A handover to civilian rule still seems some way off. The newspapers over the past weeks have been full of a messy negotiation over the timetables for the process of political reform. Various political parties signed on to a new road map, which means parliamentary elections will be held over several months (between November and early next year), plus six months for the new assembly to chose a constitutional commission, plus six months for that commission to draft a new Constitution, plus the time taken for a referendum to ratify the new constitution. Presidential elections could be put off until sometime deep into 2013.

Egyptians are confused and dismayed. Liberal parties like the Adl (Justice) and the Egyptian Social Democratic Party are close to tearing themselves apart over whether their leaders should have signed on to such a protracted process. In the meantime, the State lumbers on, “like a zombie,” a friend of mine said, “headless” but with all the limbs of government, the state media, the swampy judicial system, the entrenched ministerial bureaucracies, staggering on, wrapped in red tape.

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Egyptian Streets

Independent Media

50 Years to the 6th of October War: Remembering a Historic Clash Between Israel, Egypt, and Syria

By Sara Ahmed

The 6th of October War, also known as the Yom Kippur War or the October War, was a important conflict that took place in 1973 between Israel and its neighboring nations, Syria and Egypt.

The October War has had a profound impact on Egyptian culture over the years, becoming the subject of numerous films, books, and songs. On the 6th of October, it is particularly common for social media feeds to flood with black-and-white images of the war, and for it to be commemorated through films specifically curated for the occasion on national television. Its legacy subsequently continues to influence Egyptians’ patriotism and national unity.

This year, as Egypt celebrates the memorable event with a long weekend, it marks 50 years since the war transpired.

Lasting nearly three weeks, the war marked a pivotal point in the history of the Middle East, leaving a long lasting impact on the involved countries, which were directly or directly uninvolved, and the MENA region as a whole.

CAUSE OF THE WAR

The underlying causes of the war can be traced back to the ongoing tensions between Israel and its Arab neighbors since the creation of the Jewish state in 1948. A massive point of contention that is at the root of socio-political tensions until today , with many Palestinian territories still undergoing annexation , the creation of the Israeli state was deemed an irreversible catastrophe for the Middle East’s largely Arab and Muslim nations, orchestrated by Western forces such as the United Kingdom.

The ideology of late 19th-century European colonialism, which denied the rights of indigenous Palestinians and viewed them as landless people, is the foundation of Israel’s current regime over Palestinians. In 1948, Israel carried out a mass expulsion of indigenous Palestinians to establish the state of Israel. This event is known to Palestinians as al-Nakba, or the Catastrophe.

Previously, in 1948, Egypt’s King Farouk led the first Arab-Israeli war, ultimately failing to expel the Israelis from once-Palestinian land. In 1956, Egypt faced tripartite aggression from Israel, England, and France over Nasser’s nationalization of the Suez Canal.

Egypt and Israel subsequently fought in the Six-Day War ( 1967) when a decade’s worth of political tension reached a boiling point. Egypt, led by President Gamal Abdel Nasser, and Syria, under the leadership of President Hafez al-Assad, sought to regain control over territories lost to Israel during the Six-Day War in 1967. The objective was to reverse the military gains made by Israel and establish their dominance in the region.

While there was minor combat in northern Israel and Egypt’s northern African territory, most of the fighting between the two sides occurred in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights, both of which were conquered by Israel in 1967.

ON THE OFFENSIVE

On the 6th of October 1973, the Egyptian and Syrian forces launched a surprise attack on Israel, particularly in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights. The timing of the attack was strategic, as it coincided with the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, a day when Israel’s security forces were thin and doubtful of an attack.

The initial days of the war saw significant territorial gains for Egypt and Syria, catching Israel off-guard. The Egyptian army attacked Israeli air bases and command posts; namely, it crossed the Suez Canal, breaching the heavily fortified Bar Lev Line, and advanced into Sinai.

Meanwhile, Syria made considerable advances on the Golan Heights , threatening Israel’s northern border. The war quickly escalated, and both sides suffered heavy casualties. Egypt alone was estimated to have lost up to an estimated 15,000 killed and others taken prisoner while Israel suffered casualties at around 2,500 killed and 7,500 wounded .

However, Israel managed a counteroffensive, primarily due to its military capabilities and support from the United States.  Israeli forces pushed back the Egyptian army forces across the Sinai Peninsula and eventually forced Egypt to accept a ceasefire . Similarly, Israeli forces successfully repelled Syrian advances on the Golan Heights and ultimately regained control of the territory.

The student movement in Egypt, which had been brewing since Egypt’s defeat in the 1967 war, intensified under subsequent President Anwar El Sadat’s leadership (1970-1981). It had begun with university students demanding accountability from the state for the outcomes of the 1967 war.

Against the context of these local pressures, President Sadat sought to leverage the United States’ power over Israel to regain Egyptian and Arab territories. However, when the Americans showed little interest, he decided to refocus his attention on the region through a “limited war” to get the US’s attention, according to Egyptian journalist Mohamed Hassanein Heikal.

More significantly, the war provided opportunities for diplomacy, which led to President Sadat’s infamous visit to Jerusalem and the Egypt-Israel peace treaty in 1979. In 1982, after Israel’s phased withdrawal from Sinai, Egypt’s flag finally flew over the peninsula. This was a momentous occasion for Egyptians, who had been fighting to regain control of Sinai since the Six-Day War in 1967.

A REVOLUTIONARY AFTERMATH

The 6th of October War had several far-reaching consequences.

Firstly, it shattered the myth of Israeli invincibility, established after its swift victory in the Six-Day War. The suddenness and intensity of the Arab attack caught Israel off-guard, highlighting the need for improved military preparedness and intelligence gathering.

Secondly, the war strained relations between the involved countries and brought international attention to the conflict. The United States and the Soviet Union, both major powers during the Cold War, were drawn into the war as they supported their respective allies. This further heightened tensions in the region and contributed to a more complex geopolitical landscape. It also threw the world into a potential nuclear threat, with both powers threatening to exert a nuclear confrontation.

Furthermore, the war paved the way for diplomatic negotiations between Israel, Egypt, and eventually, Syria. The peace process initiated in the aftermath of the war led to the signing of the Camp David Accords in 1978 between Israel and Egypt, resulting in the return of the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt and the establishment of diplomatic relations.

Lastly, despite the losses from both the Egyptian and Syrian sides, the 6th of October War also had significant repecussions on the Arab world. It provided a renewed sense of  pride to Arab nations, who saw the war as a partial victory against Israel.

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6th of october war etched in egyptian memory.

Noha El Tawil

Fri, 06 Oct 2017 - 11:02 GMT

An Egyptian soldier celebrating after the destruction of Bar-Lev line on October 6th, 1973 - File Photo

6th of October War

Land liberation.

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History revised: The missing chapter of the 6th of October War

Our Armed Forces, with its Ground Forces, Air Force, Navy and Air Defense, played a symphony repeating powerfully and with faith the motto of the Ramadan war: God is great; He put an end to the wrong saying that the Israeli military is invincible in less than six hours. Our martyrs have written with their blood the most glorious page in our modern history, a precious and strong victory, and Egypt’s flags flew over the precious land of Sinai. God is great.

With these words, a military voice bolstered with pride ends its narration of the 1973 war in the October War Panorama. This military museum was inaugurated in 1983 to commemorate the events of the war, also known as the glorious October victory.

The initial six hours of the war celebrated in the panorama, in which Egypt achieved a sweeping military success by means of a surprise attack, is also perhaps the only detail that many Egyptians know of the war, which continued for an additional eventful 20 days –– though there is no mention in the panorama.

While all concede that Egypt had initial military success and emerged from the war with considerable political gains, sources from inside the Egyptian military and historians say there’s much more to the war, which has somehow escaped the Egyptian consciousness.

Veterans and historians say the official narrative of the war leaves out a major military setback that Egypt suffered and that took it to the verge of defeat.

Zachary Lockman, professor of modern Middle East history at New York University, says it’s clear that from a military point of view, it wasn’t the great victory that former President Anwar Sadat claimed it to be.

“It was at best a stalemate … but it was a political victory,” he says.

Initial victory

The events of the first few days of the war are uncontested.

On 6 October 1973, Egyptian and Syrian forces launched simultaneous attacks that succeeded in taking Israel completely by surprise. The attack caused grave damage to its forces and especially its most powerful branch, the air force.

The war came after six years of preparations and sporadic attacks between Egypt and Israel following Egypt’s crushing defeat in 1967, which cost it the Sinai Peninsula. The initial airstrike opened the way for Egyptian troops to climb over the Bar Lev wall, a defense line erected by Israel along the Suez Canal to protect its 1967 gains, into the occupied territories to the east of the canal.

Simultaneously, military engineers created holes in the wall hailed as one of the strongest in the world, using water hoses. They also built bridges for Egyptian tanks and heavy equipment to cross into the east of the canal.

“The perception of the war in Egypt is partially correct about the first two days, but not what happened after that,” says Avi Shlaim, professor of international relations at Oxford University and author of “The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World.”

Shlaim says Egypt’s success in surprising Israel and crossing the canal is recognized as an impressive military achievement.

Israel’s failure to predict and prepare for the attack was considered a huge scandal, and is something the Israeli intelligence is still being questioned about to this day.

“We had a lot of superiority factors at the beginning. We succeeded in implementing the elements of surprise and initiative –– it was military planning at its highest levels,” recalls Bilal Barakat, a retired general who headed an artillery unit during the war. “After six years of intense and realistic training, the troops were able to perform the crossing almost on auto mode.”

Starting on 13 October, however, Barakat says the situation was reversed.

Beyond the canal crossing

What happened after that can’t be found in most records of the war in Egypt, whether in school curriculums, media or political speeches.

Historian Assem al-Dessouky argues that Sadat wanted to convince the Egyptian people that the war ended with the crossing of the canal to cover up his strategic mistakes later in the war.

With Sadat hailed as the mastermind of the October victory and toppled President Hosni Mubarak celebrated as the leader of the initial airstrike, both presidents had vested interests in propagating the war as an unquestionable victory, and prohibiting any questioning of the events during their rule.

Saad Eddin al-Shazly, military chief of staff at the time of the war, was dismissed in December 1973 after clashing with Sadat and Defense Minister Ahmed Ismail over several strategic decisions during the course of the war. He was marginalized by the regime.

Only after Mubarak’s ouster in 2011 were Shazly’s memoirs, “October War,” published in Egypt –– revealing a very different view.

“History will attest that … Egyptian officers and soldiers have all exerted their best effort and had the greatest performance, but that Egypt’s ruler at the time, hungry for power and for the spotlight, has aborted their victory,” Shazly writes.

Following Egypt’s initial success, Shazly recounts that Sadat and Ismail insisted against field commanders’ advice on expanding the attack further into Sinai. Following the failure of the attack, Sadat committed what Shazly calls his second strategic mistake, bringing in reinforcements from reserve troops in the west, leaving the forces at the canal with little backup.

While Egyptian forces were suffering heavy losses in the east, Israeli troops were able to cross to the west of the canal through a gap between the Egyptian second and third armies.

Following the elation of the crossing, Barakat remembers the Israeli advancement into the west of the canal as “painful.”

As the roles were reversed and Egyptian losses started to exceed Israel’s, Sadat still refused to end his attempted attack on the east and return the reserves to the west to fend off the attacks, Shazly writes.

By the time a United Nations ceasefire was imposed, the Israeli forces had advanced 35 kilometers into the west of the canal, completely surrounding the third army and cutting it off from its leadership. In the absence of organized troops, an attempted attack on Suez city on 24 October was fended off mainly by civilian fighters.

“They were less than one hour away from Cairo,” says Barakat, adding that, based on the deteriorating state of the forces on the ground, accepting the ceasefire and resorting to a diplomatic resolution was inevitable.

Shazly says with the third army under siege and getting supplies only from Israelis, Egypt was forced to abide by Israel’s conditions in the ceasefire treaty.

Meanwhile, Egyptians celebrated the announced victory. “While these humiliating procedures were occurring on the political and the military levels, the Egyptian people were the last to know, like a deceived husband,” writes Shazly.

“I consider it an incomplete victory. It would have had a true sweet taste if it weren’t for the Israeli penetration,” says Barakat. Lockman says that, hungry for a source of pride following the humiliating 1967 defeat, Egyptians were not too skeptical of the victory announcement.

Not a military victory, but a victory nonetheless

While most historians contest Egypt’s claim that it ended the war with a military victory, all concede that the war still created a lot of damage to Israel and enabled Egypt to make important gains.

“Israelis don’t see the war as a defeat, but they see it as a very costly war,” says Shlaim. He says this war destroyed many misconceptions about the Arab-Israeli conflict that Israel depended on. Even though it had the upper hand on the ground by the end of the war, Israel emerged from it “weakened, politically and militarily.”

These misconceptions include the idea that Egypt was neither willing nor able to engage militarily with Israel, and that the Israeli military was invincible.

The war also forced the US to have a more balanced view of the Arab-Israeli conflict, Shlaim argues, finally considering the Arab dimension as a factor in its policies. “Israel couldn’t have everything its own way [anymore], and the US shifted towards resolving the conflict,” says Shlaim.

Prior to the war, Sadat’s attempts to initiate a diplomatic resolution that would restore Egypt’s occupied land failed, as neither Israel nor the US was interested.

Many historians argue that Sadat did not initiate the war with the aim of accomplishing a complete military victory, but to create an international crisis that would force the major powers to intervene and make limited gains that it could use as leverage in negotiations, and in that sense, he has accomplished exactly his goal from of the war, they say.

A peace treaty was signed between Egypt and Israel in 1979, returning all of Sinai to Egypt except for Taba, which was returned later through international arbitration, while limiting the presence of Egyptian troops in the peninsula. In return, Egypt formally recognized Israel and committed to a collaborative peace with it.

Proud of the accomplishments and heroism of the Egyptian military in the October war, Barakat says he hopes the public gets to know its full history, stripped of any manipulations that serve personal or political interests.

“I would have wanted the people to know everything about the war with complete transparency. No army is victorious all the way,” says Barakat.

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Yom Kippur War

By: History.com Editors

Updated: August 16, 2023 | Original: November 9, 2009

On October 6, 1973, hoping to win back territory lost to Israel during the third Arab-Israeli war, in 1967, Egyptian and Syrian forces launched a coordinated attack against Israel on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar. Taking the Israeli Defense Forces by surprise, Egyptian troops swept deep into the Sinai Peninsula, while Syria struggled to throw occupying Israeli troops out of the Golan Heights. Israel counterattacked and recaptured the Golan Heights. A cease-fire went into effect on October 25, 1973.

1973 Yom Kippur War: Background

Israel’s stunning victory in the Six-Day War of 1967 left the Jewish nation in control of territory four times its previous size. Egypt lost the 23,500-square-mile Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip, Jordan lost the West Bank and East Jerusalem , and Syria lost the strategic Golan Heights.

When Anwar el-Sadat (1918-81) became president of Egypt in 1970, he found himself leader of an economically troubled nation that could ill afford to continue its endless crusade against Israel . He wanted to make peace and thereby achieve stability and recovery of the Sinai, but after Israel’s 1967 victory it was unlikely that Israel’s peace terms would be favorable to Egypt. So Sadat conceived of a daring plan to attack Israel again, which, even if unsuccessful, might convince the Israelis that peace with Egypt was necessary.

Did you know? On October 6, 1981, Anwar Sadat was assassinated by Muslim extremists in Cairo while viewing a military parade commemorating the anniversary of Egypt’s crossing of the Suez Canal at the start of the Yom Kippur War.

In 1972, Sadat expelled 20,000 Soviet advisers from Egypt and opened new diplomatic channels with Washington, D.C., which, as Israel’s key ally, would be an essential mediator in any future peace talks. He formed a new alliance with Syria, and a concerted attack on Israel was planned.

Yom Kippur War: October 1973

When the fourth Arab-Israeli war began on October 6, 1973, many of Israel’s soldiers were away from their posts observing Yom Kippur (or Day of Atonement), and the Arab armies made impressive advances with their up-to-date Soviet weaponry.

Iraqi forces soon joined the war, and Syria received support from Jordan. After several days, Israel was fully mobilized, and the Israel Defense Forces began beating back the Arab gains at a heavy cost to soldiers and equipment. A U.S. airlift of arms aided Israel’s cause, but President Richard Nixon (1913-94) delayed the emergency military aid for a week as a tacit signal of U.S. sympathy for Egypt. On October 25, an Egyptian-Israeli cease-fire was secured by the United Nations.

Yom Kippur War: Aftermath

Israel’s victory came at the cost of heavy casualties, and Israelis criticized the government’s lack of preparedness. In April 1974, the nation’s prime minister, Golda Meir (1898-1978), stepped down.

Although Egypt had again suffered military defeat at the hands of its Jewish neighbor, the initial Egyptian successes greatly enhanced Sadat’s prestige in the Middle East and gave him an opportunity to seek peace. In 1974, the first of two Egyptian-Israeli disengagement agreements providing for the return of portions of the Sinai to Egypt were signed, and in 1978 Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin (1913-92) signed the first peace agreement between Israel and one of its Arab neighbors . In 1982, Israel fulfilled the 1979 peace treaty by returning the last segment of the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt.

For Syria, the Yom Kippur War was a disaster. The unexpected Egyptian-Israeli cease-fire exposed Syria to military defeat, and Israel seized even more territory in the Golan Heights. In 1979, Syria voted with other Arab states to expel Egypt from the Arab League.

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6 October 1973: Crossing over to Victory

Samia sidhom.

The date 6 October this year marks 40 years on the day the Egyptian army, under the leadership of President Anwar al-Sadat , crossed the Suez Canal eastwards into Sinai which was then occupied by Israeli forces since Egypt’s defeat in the June 1967 Six Day War. The Israelis had the Sinai Peninsula fully under their control; they built fortifications and ramifications to secure their staying there for good; their Bar Lev line was a legend of invincibility.

Dishonour wiped off On the West bank of the Canal, Egypt’s army conducted a War of Attrition that at best exhausted and frustrated the troops but achieved no real gain. The Israelis remained there on the East bank, taunting Egyptians for their incapacity and showing no signs of ever budging. Come 6 October, which coincided with the Jewish Yom Kippur, the Egyptian army stunned the world—not least Egypt itself—by crossing over the Canal at noon, using water canons to break down the Bar Lev line, and raising the Egyptian flag on the land of Sinai. An air strike, whose hero was Hosni Mubarak, then a military pilot and later Egypt’s president from 1981 to 2011, had already neutralised Israeli air power and secured a safe Canal crossing for Egyptian troops. It was a moment no Egyptian who lived then can ever forget; it marked the return of Egyptian pride, dignity, and self-esteem. It was a moment when Egypt raised her head high, her six-year mortification and dishonour wiped off. The rest is now history. Following a battle of tanks in Sinai, a truce was reached between the two warring parties on 22 October; an arduous process of peace negotiation finally led to the signing of a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, which guaranteed no more war between Egypt and Israel and which returned Sinai in full to Egypt.

The ‘miracle’ The Egyptian collective sense of miraculous renewal and healing back in 1973 when Egypt triumphed over a seemingly invincible oppressor has again overwhelmed Egyptians after 30 June 2013. Forty years ago, the oppressor was the Israeli occupier of part of the homeland; in 2013 it was the Islamists who had taken hold of Egypt, apparently never to let go.  They threw to the wind all interests of the Egyptian people in favour of reviving their dream of a pan-world Islamist project that relegated Egypt to the role of just one minor part of an Islamist world. The majority of Egyptians are Muslim, and they had voted in the Islamist regime just one year earlier, giving political Islam the chance of a lifetime. But it took no more than a year with the Islamists in power for Egyptians to see through the hypocrisy of the Islamist project; that Islam and Egypt were being exploited for ends that served neither. Egyptians agonised over their Egypt; their timeless civilisation, moderation, culture, pluralism and inner greatness were slipping through their hands. And their oppressor had banished all democracy and secured full, unalloyed power over the people. Egyptians realised they needed nothing short of a ‘miracle’ to overcome their wilful adversary. It took the alliance of the Egyptian army with the Egyptian masses to work that miracle. On 30 June, more than 30 million Egyptians took to the streets demanding an end to the Islamist regime and the overthrow of the Muslim Brotherhood President Muhammad Mursi. On 3 July this was fulfilled, and Egypt was finally free of Islamist oppression. The Egyptian soul was healed.

On to democracy Just as the Canal crossing in October 1973 was just the first step that opened the road to full triumph, so has 30 June been the first step to the creation of a modern Egypt. And just as the road to peace was arduous back in 1973, the road to democracy is even more gruelling today, fraught with hazards as the remnants of Islamists vow vengeance. Yet, in face of all the hazards, a new constitution is being written that should safeguard a democratic Egypt. Parliamentary and presidential elections will follow, and Egyptians can look forward with pride to a brighter future for an Egypt that embraces equally and justly all her children.

WATANI International 2 October 2013

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The Egyptian Army has earth's best soldiers

Egyptian Armed Forces

Ministry of defense.

Military Attractions and Museums - 6th of October Panorama

• 6th of October Panorama

A Mural depicting King Narmer (who united Upper and Lower Egypt), the first king of the pharaonic Egypt

the Main Building

Positions of the forces of the two sides on Oct 22nd ,1973

Planning Concept of October 1973 War

"The painting of Ahmose " Hyksos repellent

The painting of the great crossing of the Suez Canal and breaking through the Parlev Line

(1) The painting of returning the land and achieving peace as Egypt regained its sovereignty and the Egyptian flag was raised on Taba in March 1989

The painting of returning the land and achieving peace as Egypt regained its sovereignty and the Egyptian flag was raised on Taba in March 1989

The painting of the Battle of Mansoura when the Egyptians defeated the Crusades under the rule of Sultan El Saleh

The painting of the battle of Port Said October 1956 and the heroic resistance of the Egyptian Army and the people of Port Said defending the city during the tripartite unbridled aggression on Egypt

1973 Operations room of The General Command of the Armed forces during October War

(1) Planning Concept of October 1973 War

Mural representing the victory and raising of the Egyptian flag on the east bank of the Suez Canal

Mural representing the main branches of the Armed forces

" The commanders of the Armed forces who participated in October War 1973 "

The command of the third field Army and the commanders of the units and formations

The command of the second field Army and the commanders of the units and formations

The command of the Naval forces and the commanders of the units and formations

The command of the Air forces and the commanders of the units and formations

The command of the Air defense forces and the commanders of the units and formations

Few number of the different Egyptian weapons used in October war

Seizing a command post of the enemy and fighting off an enemy counter attack inside the strong point assisted by artillery and air forces

Close-combat; the infantry heroes penetrating through the strong points of the enemy while the Egyptian flag stands tall on one of the strong points of defense

Infantry and tanks are developing the attack and taking full control of the bridgeheads and the heroes of Air forces and Air defense are destroying the enemy aircrafts

The liberation of Al-Qantara Sharq city and raising the Egyptian flag above the liberated city and capturing the commander of Al-Qantara and his command staff

Airstrike craft crossing the Canal as military engineers are opening the gaps in the embankment using water hoses

A revolving-stage theater with a capacity of 70 spectators, wholly rotating by 180 degrees in 18 minutes illustrating the crossing epic

Pursuing the retreated enemy as the air force and artillery are destroying the enemy’s logistic sites, at the same time our infantry troops and tanks are moving forward

A maquette supplemented with 6-minute motion, light and sound effects, showing the sequence of crossing by an infantry brigade for 6 hours from the outset of the crossing

The Interior Lobby

The Exterier Exhibit

Open-air showground

the panoramic hall

Heroism and Martyrs

Persistence and Challenge Hall

The Crossing Hall

The Simulation Hall

Army and People Hall

Long Live Egypt Building

Historical Background

The museum was founded in 1983, to emphasize the military and cultural cooperation between The Arab Republic of Egypt and The Democratic Republic of Korea, commemorate the 6th of October glorious Victory, and document the mighty Egyptian people's heroism. It was inaugurated on the 5th of October 1989. Later in 2018, the museum underwent renovation, maintenance and development works, and was subsequently reopened in 2019. The museum aims at documenting the October War, as a witness to the potent Egyptian people's bravery, while defending their land, through an interactive and distinguished museum display, taking advantage of the latest technology. The museum was established on a large area of 31,000 square meters, which includes an open-air yard with a view of the main construction of the circular panorama, in addition to the "Tahya-Masr" (Long Live Egypt) structure.

Museum Display

It represents the story of the Egyptian people's opposition and victory in one of the Egyptian Armed Forces most significant battles in history, via a museum display scenario which documents the phases before, during, and after October War, using various museum displays suitable for all ages.

Educational Activities

The museum presents multiple educational activities for school students of different ages, students with special needs, and academic researchers, in a way that links the museum collections to the ...

Museum Facilities

The museum seeks to present a group of facilities that provide maximum comfort for the visitors to enjoy the museum displays and the different museum services such as: ...

Museum Services

The museum offers a group of services targeting the visitors' comfort and pleasure, especially the special-needs visitors, including: ...

Museum visits

Opening hours : All week days, 5 tours daily

Morning : from 9 am until 3 pm (3 tours, two hours per each)

Afternoon : from 5 pm until 9 pm (2 tours, two hours per each)

Tickets : : include (admission - open-air display – Reception lobby – Persistence and Challenge Hall – the Panoramic Hall – the Crossing Hall)

Photo Albums

The museum is located on Salah Salem St. - Nasr City, Cairo, near Ard Al-Maared Metro Station and Cairo International Stadium.

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The 46th anniversary of the October victory

• Saturday، 05 October 2019 - 12:19 PM

We are still reaping the October victory’s fruit… we still have the potential to challenge

The glorious victory of October was not only a restoration of land, but also a revival of a spirit that was thought of as diminished and blurred. It is the "spirit of patriotism and loyalty" that was pivotal in this great victory.

After the defeat of June 1967, when those who lost their loyalty came out to violate the reputation of the great army of Egypt and accuse it of corruption, lack of resourcefulness, and letdowns in defending the homeland, the victory of October came to prove that the army of Egypt is the best of all; they are the loyal sons of Egypt who were able to erase defeat and turn it into a glorious victory.

There had been claims that the Egyptian people lost their loyalty after the defeat of 1967 and forgot that this people has a civilization of seven thousand years deeply rooted in history. They imagined that this people would not bear the then-difficult reform measures to be able to provide weapons and supplies for the army, but the people impressed everyone with cohesion and tolerance, perseverance and patience and equanimity to face all economic difficulties until they achieved the victory of October.

At that time, those who reign over ashes, tried to spoil the Egyptian-Arab relations in order to keep Egypt alone without support, but the Egyptian-Arab cohesion was evident in the victory of October, and Arab unity and the role of Saudi Arabia, UAE and the Gulf emerged in the most beautiful way , supporting  Egypt to achieve victory..

Event monitoring of the Egyptian political, economic and social scene today, comparing happenings before and after the victory of October 1973,  will find out  they are almost similar, so history repeats itself and a new epic is being witnessed with the spirit of the glorious October and the  pillars  of cohesive people and the homeland  armour and a sword of the Egyptian Army, and features of economic reform and development, under the auspices of  the president or the symbol  of the country as it makes tremendous leaps forward, with  an eye on the simple, low-income and poor brackets.

Devoted army and loyal soldiers

Following the 1967 war, there has been a political, economic and military status that threatens the Egyptian State, however with top secrecy, commitment, persistence and collaboration with the political leaderships, the military institution had committed itself over seven years to reconstruct its infrastructure, train its personnel and draw up a comprehensive strategic military plan. The spirit was so high that the military personnel only were paid half of their salary to support the war effort, as the Egyptian citizens have given up their basic needs to help soldiers return Egypt’s dignity, and due to this spirit, we have achieved the glorious October victory.

After June 30 revolution in 2013 and due to people cohesion, the October spirit has returned to face the political vacuum, chaos, spread of terrorism, as well as attempts to change the identity of the Egyptian state and replace the long-standing identity with the “stateless” notion. The spirit has succeeded to restore confidence of the society, after a long period of polarization, intimidation, stress and sedition among the nation, which was previously prominent in the October war.

Authentic people challenges ordeals

Under the Western and American economic siege, Egypt succeeded in managing the war economy achieving a victory for the Egyptian will in face of attempts to kneel and break it, where Egyptians ability to burden the difficulties was discovered. The fighters in the October War were not only soldiers, but the people as well.

The spirit of October War succeeded in facing the economic crisis and adoption of the economic open-door policy supported by the popular solidarity, as some workers donated their incomes to support the war effort.

With the same spirit of October War, what is happening currently in Egypt, after June 30 Revolution, like economic transformations and adopting the economic reform program that combats poverty, ignorance and disease, within a few years, Egypt was able to get out of structural economic crises that had negative effects on the standard of living.

One has to refer to examples that reflect the deep-rooted spirit of October War in the Egyptian people currently, for example, the great contribution of Egyptians to the "Long live Egypt" Fund, through which the Egyptian Presidency solves many economic and social problems. Also, Egyptians’ confidence in their leadership after calling for investment in the new Suez Canal project, where we found a high turnout of citizens to put their savings in this project.

In the same context, the Egyptian people were courageous when they endured the economic and living burdens resulting from the economic reform program. President Abdel Fattah El Sisi appreciated this popular courage, when he repeated his gratitude to the Egyptian people throughout many occasions for enduring these circumstances.

Arabism of October victory & Arabism of June 30 revolution

"The Arab world without Egypt is like NATO without the USA"… a statement made by former Jordanian Crown Prince "Hassan bin Talal" in November 1987. Regardless the Prince's praising of the Egyptian role in this argument, Egypt enjoys regional weight that extends throughout its long history, based on its geopolitical and strategic importance and ability to orchestrate the region's events due to its geographic location, demographic weight, military capability, and the historic and contemporary role as the heart of cultural and intellectual creativity in the Arab world.

Accordingly, the Sixth of October War in the Arab memory represents an experience of national success. Since the beginning of the preparation of that war, Egypt has summoned the requirements of Arab national security and strategic coordination between Egypt and Syria militarily, Saudi Arabia economically, Algeria weaponry and Morocco politically.

The Arab countries realized that the June 30 Revolution is a rescue and protection for Arab national security and that Egypt's escape from collapse and division is a real rescue for the area and the whole region. The agenda of the Muslim Brotherhood was to extend governance from Egypt to other neighboring countries and was working very hard to do so. But the Egyptian will was stronger, so the Arab brothers, mainly the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, sided with the Egyptian people in the June 30th Revolution and provided political and economic support to their elder sister Egypt.

To conclude, we cannot fail to mention that we will continue to invite the spirit of the great October victory, that the transit will continue, and that we will remain able to challenge forever under a conscious leadership that has been faithful to its people who owed gratitude its dedication.

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6 October War

Last updated Saturday , 16-03-2024 on 10:02 am

6 October War, An English topic of the October War contains many useful information about the glorious October War where the great victory that restored dignity and trust to the Egyptian people and the Arab nation. All this information will be found here in 6 October War .

The October War, that glorious victory that was once a day to back the land and dignity is a day that generations will never forget over time. Here we will learn more about this day in 6 October War .

  October War

The Arab states that have borders with Palestine – Egypt, Jordan and Syria – fought two wars with Israel. But in every war, the Arabs lost part of their land. Israel was victorious, and this was because of the support of Western countries.

Despite the defeat of Arab states in their previous wars, they were preparing for a new war to return the land occupied by Israel.

The Egyptian leadership agreed with the Syrian leadership on joint coordination to wage war with Israel at the same time.  On October 6, 1973, the armies of the two countries moved toward their respective borders with Israel.

The Egyptian army had to pass the Suez Canal as soon as possible to reach the fortifications of the enemy on the other bank of the canal.

 The Egyptian Engineering Corps installed bridges on the canal and opened corridors to cross Egyptian tanks at the time when the Israeli army was celebrating Yom Kippur, Where most of the soldiers were on vacation.

The second barrier to be cut by the Egyptian army after the Suez Canal is a huge dirt line of sand and dust, which was done along the canal with high obstacles preventing the vehicles from crossing it.

 And contains in its fold the warehouses of tanks and individuals, the “Barlev line” . Where the Egyptian forces were able to pass using non-war technology, the powerful water hoses.

The Egyptian forces entered to the sites of military fortifications and began confrontations after the Egyptian Air Force bombed these sites in advance to facilitate the task. 

The faith of the Egyptian fighter in his cause, and his trust in God, has the great effect of giving him the determination, the strength and the energy , the proper planning of the battle, the sound plans that can control all positions that can face the progress of the army, This provided the elements of victory in the war.

The complete secrecy that was planned for the battle played a major role in achieving victory, providing the element of surprise to the enemy, which caused his confusion in making his decisions.

The glorious October war restored confidence to the Egyptian armies, and even to the Arab peoples after they failed in their previous wars.

The Egyptian army was able to destroy the myth of the Israeli army equipped with the latest weapons and the latest equipment in the field of communication and mobilization.

In this way we have provided you with a topic in English about the 6 October War, and you can read more topics through the following section:

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• Solar Eclipse 2024

What the World Has Learned From Past Eclipses

C louds scudded over the small volcanic island of Principe, off the western coast of Africa, on the afternoon of May 29, 1919. Arthur Eddington, director of the Cambridge Observatory in the U.K., waited for the Sun to emerge. The remains of a morning thunderstorm could ruin everything.

The island was about to experience the rare and overwhelming sight of a total solar eclipse. For six minutes, the longest eclipse since 1416, the Moon would completely block the face of the Sun, pulling a curtain of darkness over a thin stripe of Earth. Eddington traveled into the eclipse path to try and prove one of the most consequential ideas of his age: Albert Einstein’s new theory of general relativity.

Eddington, a physicist, was one of the few people at the time who understood the theory, which Einstein proposed in 1915. But many other scientists were stymied by the bizarre idea that gravity is not a mutual attraction, but a warping of spacetime. Light itself would be subject to this warping, too. So an eclipse would be the best way to prove whether the theory was true, because with the Sun’s light blocked by the Moon, astronomers would be able to see whether the Sun’s gravity bent the light of distant stars behind it.

Two teams of astronomers boarded ships steaming from Liverpool, England, in March 1919 to watch the eclipse and take the measure of the stars. Eddington and his team went to Principe, and another team led by Frank Dyson of the Greenwich Observatory went to Sobral, Brazil.

Totality, the complete obscuration of the Sun, would be at 2:13 local time in Principe. Moments before the Moon slid in front of the Sun, the clouds finally began breaking up. For a moment, it was totally clear. Eddington and his group hastily captured images of a star cluster found near the Sun that day, called the Hyades, found in the constellation of Taurus. The astronomers were using the best astronomical technology of the time, photographic plates, which are large exposures taken on glass instead of film. Stars appeared on seven of the plates, and solar “prominences,” filaments of gas streaming from the Sun, appeared on others.

Eddington wanted to stay in Principe to measure the Hyades when there was no eclipse, but a ship workers’ strike made him leave early. Later, Eddington and Dyson both compared the glass plates taken during the eclipse to other glass plates captured of the Hyades in a different part of the sky, when there was no eclipse. On the images from Eddington’s and Dyson’s expeditions, the stars were not aligned. The 40-year-old Einstein was right.

“Lights All Askew In the Heavens,” the New York Times proclaimed when the scientific papers were published. The eclipse was the key to the discovery—as so many solar eclipses before and since have illuminated new findings about our universe.

To understand why Eddington and Dyson traveled such distances to watch the eclipse, we need to talk about gravity.

Since at least the days of Isaac Newton, who wrote in 1687, scientists thought gravity was a simple force of mutual attraction. Newton proposed that every object in the universe attracts every other object in the universe, and that the strength of this attraction is related to the size of the objects and the distances among them. This is mostly true, actually, but it’s a little more nuanced than that.

On much larger scales, like among black holes or galaxy clusters, Newtonian gravity falls short. It also can’t accurately account for the movement of large objects that are close together, such as how the orbit of Mercury is affected by its proximity the Sun.

Albert Einstein’s most consequential breakthrough solved these problems. General relativity holds that gravity is not really an invisible force of mutual attraction, but a distortion. Rather than some kind of mutual tug-of-war, large objects like the Sun and other stars respond relative to each other because the space they are in has been altered. Their mass is so great that they bend the fabric of space and time around themselves.

Read More: 10 Surprising Facts About the 2024 Solar Eclipse

This was a weird concept, and many scientists thought Einstein’s ideas and equations were ridiculous. But others thought it sounded reasonable. Einstein and others knew that if the theory was correct, and the fabric of reality is bending around large objects, then light itself would have to follow that bend. The light of a star in the great distance, for instance, would seem to curve around a large object in front of it, nearer to us—like our Sun. But normally, it’s impossible to study stars behind the Sun to measure this effect. Enter an eclipse.

Einstein’s theory gives an equation for how much the Sun’s gravity would displace the images of background stars. Newton’s theory predicts only half that amount of displacement.

Eddington and Dyson measured the Hyades cluster because it contains many stars; the more stars to distort, the better the comparison. Both teams of scientists encountered strange political and natural obstacles in making the discovery, which are chronicled beautifully in the book No Shadow of a Doubt: The 1919 Eclipse That Confirmed Einstein's Theory of Relativity , by the physicist Daniel Kennefick. But the confirmation of Einstein’s ideas was worth it. Eddington said as much in a letter to his mother: “The one good plate that I measured gave a result agreeing with Einstein,” he wrote , “and I think I have got a little confirmation from a second plate.”

The Eddington-Dyson experiments were hardly the first time scientists used eclipses to make profound new discoveries. The idea dates to the beginnings of human civilization.

Careful records of lunar and solar eclipses are one of the greatest legacies of ancient Babylon. Astronomers—or astrologers, really, but the goal was the same—were able to predict both lunar and solar eclipses with impressive accuracy. They worked out what we now call the Saros Cycle, a repeating period of 18 years, 11 days, and 8 hours in which eclipses appear to repeat. One Saros cycle is equal to 223 synodic months, which is the time it takes the Moon to return to the same phase as seen from Earth. They also figured out, though may not have understood it completely, the geometry that enables eclipses to happen.

The path we trace around the Sun is called the ecliptic. Our planet’s axis is tilted with respect to the ecliptic plane, which is why we have seasons, and why the other celestial bodies seem to cross the same general path in our sky.

As the Moon goes around Earth, it, too, crosses the plane of the ecliptic twice in a year. The ascending node is where the Moon moves into the northern ecliptic. The descending node is where the Moon enters the southern ecliptic. When the Moon crosses a node, a total solar eclipse can happen. Ancient astronomers were aware of these points in the sky, and by the apex of Babylonian civilization, they were very good at predicting when eclipses would occur.

Two and a half millennia later, in 2016, astronomers used these same ancient records to measure the change in the rate at which Earth’s rotation is slowing—which is to say, the amount by which are days are lengthening, over thousands of years.

By the middle of the 19 th century, scientific discoveries came at a frenetic pace, and eclipses powered many of them. In October 1868, two astronomers, Pierre Jules César Janssen and Joseph Norman Lockyer, separately measured the colors of sunlight during a total eclipse. Each found evidence of an unknown element, indicating a new discovery: Helium, named for the Greek god of the Sun. In another eclipse in 1869, astronomers found convincing evidence of another new element, which they nicknamed coronium—before learning a few decades later that it was not a new element, but highly ionized iron, indicating that the Sun’s atmosphere is exceptionally, bizarrely hot. This oddity led to the prediction, in the 1950s, of a continual outflow that we now call the solar wind.

And during solar eclipses between 1878 and 1908, astronomers searched in vain for a proposed extra planet within the orbit of Mercury. Provisionally named Vulcan, this planet was thought to exist because Newtonian gravity could not fully describe Mercury’s strange orbit. The matter of the innermost planet’s path was settled, finally, in 1915, when Einstein used general relativity equations to explain it.

Many eclipse expeditions were intended to learn something new, or to prove an idea right—or wrong. But many of these discoveries have major practical effects on us. Understanding the Sun, and why its atmosphere gets so hot, can help us predict solar outbursts that could disrupt the power grid and communications satellites. Understanding gravity, at all scales, allows us to know and to navigate the cosmos.

GPS satellites, for instance, provide accurate measurements down to inches on Earth. Relativity equations account for the effects of the Earth’s gravity and the distances between the satellites and their receivers on the ground. Special relativity holds that the clocks on satellites, which experience weaker gravity, seem to run slower than clocks under the stronger force of gravity on Earth. From the point of view of the satellite, Earth clocks seem to run faster. We can use different satellites in different positions, and different ground stations, to accurately triangulate our positions on Earth down to inches. Without those calculations, GPS satellites would be far less precise.

This year, scientists fanned out across North America and in the skies above it will continue the legacy of eclipse science. Scientists from NASA and several universities and other research institutions will study Earth’s atmosphere; the Sun’s atmosphere; the Sun’s magnetic fields; and the Sun’s atmospheric outbursts, called coronal mass ejections.

When you look up at the Sun and Moon on the eclipse , the Moon’s day — or just observe its shadow darkening the ground beneath the clouds, which seems more likely — think about all the discoveries still yet waiting to happen, just behind the shadow of the Moon.

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The Best Student Writing Contests for 2023-2024

Help your students take their writing to the next level.

When students write for teachers, it can feel like an assignment. When they write for a real purpose, they are empowered! Student writing contests are a challenging and inspiring way to try writing for an authentic audience— a real panel of judges —and the possibility of prize money or other incentives. We’ve gathered a list of the best student writing contests, and there’s something for everyone. Prepare highly motivated kids in need of an authentic writing mentor, and watch the words flow.

1.  The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards

With a wide range of categories—from critical essays to science fiction and fantasy—The Scholastic Awards are a mainstay of student contests. Each category has its own rules and word counts, so be sure to check out the options  before you decide which one is best for your students.

How To Enter

Students in grades 7-12, ages 13 and up, may begin submitting work in September by uploading to an online account at Scholastic and connecting to their local region. There are entry fees, but those can be waived for students in need.

2.  YoungArts National Arts Competition

This ends soon, but if you have students who are ready to submit, it’s worth it. YoungArts offers a national competition in the categories of creative nonfiction, novel, play or script, poetry, short story, and spoken word. Student winners may receive awards of up to $10,000 as well as the chance to participate in artistic development with leaders in their fields.

YoungArts accepts submissions in each category through October 13. Students submit their work online and pay a $35 fee (there is a fee waiver option).

3. National Youth Foundation Programs

Each year, awards are given for Student Book Scholars, Amazing Women, and the “I Matter” Poetry & Art competition. This is a great chance for kids to express themselves with joy and strength.

The rules, prizes, and deadlines vary, so check out the website for more info.

4.  American Foreign Service National High School Essay Contest

If you’re looking to help students take a deep dive into international relations, history, and writing, look no further than this essay contest. Winners receive a voyage with the Semester at Sea program and a trip to Washington, DC.

Students fill out a registration form online, and a teacher or sponsor is required. The deadline to enter is the first week of April.

5.  John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest

This annual contest invites students to write about a political official’s act of political courage that occurred after Kennedy’s birth in 1917. The winner receives $10,000, and 16 runners-up also receive a variety of cash prizes.

Students may submit a 700- to 1,000-word essay through January 12. The essay must feature more than five sources and a full bibliography.

6. Bennington Young Writers Awards

Bennington College offers competitions in three categories: poetry (a group of three poems), fiction (a short story or one-act play), and nonfiction (a personal or academic essay). First-place winners receive $500. Grab a poster for your classroom here .

The contest runs from September 1 to November 1. The website links to a student registration form.

7. The Princeton Ten-Minute Play Contest

Looking for student writing contests for budding playwrights? This exclusive competition, which is open only to high school juniors, is judged by the theater faculty of Princeton University. Students submit short plays in an effort to win recognition and cash prizes of up to $500. ( Note: Only open to 11th graders. )

Students submit one 10-page play script online or by mail. The deadline is the end of March. Contest details will be published in early 2024.

8. Princeton University Poetry Contest for High School Students

The Leonard L. Milberg ’53 High School Poetry Prize recognizes outstanding work by student writers in 11th grade. Prizes range from $100 to $500.

Students in 11th grade can submit their poetry. Contest details will be published this fall.

9. The New York Times Tiny Memoir Contest

This contest is also a wonderful writing challenge, and the New York Times includes lots of resources and models for students to be able to do their best work. They’ve even made a classroom poster !

Submissions need to be made electronically by November 1.

10.  Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest

The deadline for this contest is the end of October. Sponsored by Hollins University, the Nancy Thorp Poetry Contest awards prizes for the best poems submitted by young women who are sophomores or juniors in high school or preparatory school. Prizes include cash and scholarships. Winners are chosen by students and faculty members in the creative writing program at Hollins.

Students may submit either one or two poems using the online form.

11.  The Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers

The Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers is open to high school sophomores and juniors, and the winner receives a full scholarship to a  Kenyon Review Young Writers Workshop .

Submissions for the prize are accepted electronically from November 1 through November 30.

12. Jane Austen Society Essay Contest

High school students can win up to $1,000 and publication by entering an essay on a topic specified by the Jane Austen Society related to a Jane Austen novel.

Details for the 2024 contest will be announced in November. Essay length is from six to eight pages, not including works cited.

13. Rattle Young Poets Anthology

Open to students from 15 to 18 years old who are interested in publication and exposure over monetary awards.

Teachers may choose five students for whom to submit up to four poems each on their behalf. The deadline is November 15.

14. The Black River Chapbook Competition

This is a chance for new and emerging writers to gain publication in their own professionally published chapbook, as well as $500 and free copies of the book.

There is an $18 entry fee, and submissions are made online.

15. YouthPlays New Voices

For students under 18, the YouthPlays one-act competition is designed for young writers to create new works for the stage. Winners receive cash awards and publication.

Scroll all the way down their web page for information on the contest, which accepts non-musical plays between 10 and 40 minutes long, submitted electronically. Entries open each year in January.

16. The Ocean Awareness Contest

The 2024 Ocean Awareness Contest, Tell Your Climate Story , encourages students to write their own unique climate story. They are asking for creative expressions of students’ personal experiences, insights, or perceptions about climate change. Students are eligible for a wide range of monetary prizes up to $1,000.

Students from 11 to 18 years old may submit work in the categories of art, creative writing, poetry and spoken word, film, interactive media and multimedia, or music and dance, accompanied by a reflection. The deadline is June 13.

17. EngineerGirl Annual Essay Contest

Each year, EngineerGirl sponsors an essay contest with topics centered on the impact of engineering on the world, and students can win up to $500 in prize money. This contest is a nice bridge between ELA and STEM and great for teachers interested in incorporating an interdisciplinary project into their curriculum. The new contest asks for pieces describing the life cycle of an everyday object. Check out these tips for integrating the content into your classroom .

Students submit their work electronically by February 1. Check out the full list of rules and requirements here .

18. NCTE Student Writing Awards

The National Council of Teachers of English offers several student writing awards, including Achievement Awards in Writing (for 10th- and 11th-grade students), Promising Young Writers (for 8th-grade students), and an award to recognize Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines.

Deadlines range from October 28 to February 15. Check out NCTE.org for more details.

19. See Us, Support Us Art Contest

Children of incarcerated parents can submit artwork, poetry, photos, videos, and more. Submissions are free and the website has a great collection of past winners.

Students can submit their entries via social media or email by October 25.

20. The Adroit Prizes for Poetry & Prose

The Adroit Journal, an education-minded nonprofit publication, awards annual prizes for poetry and prose to exceptional high school and college students. Adroit charges an entry fee but also provides a form for financial assistance.

Sign up at the website for updates for the next round of submissions.

21. National PTA Reflections Awards

The National PTA offers a variety of awards, including one for literature, in their annual Reflections Contest. Students of all ages can submit entries on the specified topic to their local PTA Reflections program. From there, winners move to the local area, state, and national levels. National-level awards include an $800 prize and a trip to the National PTA Convention.

This program requires submitting to PTAs who participate in the program. Check your school’s PTA for their deadlines.

22. World Historian Student Essay Competition

The World Historian Student Essay Competition is an international contest open to students enrolled in grades K–12 in public, private, and parochial schools, as well as those in home-study programs. The $500 prize is based on an essay that addresses one of this year’s two prompts.

Students can submit entries via email or regular mail before May 1.

23. NSHSS Creative Writing Scholarship

The National Society of High School Scholars awards three $2,000 scholarships for both poetry and fiction. They accept poetry, short stories, and graphic novel writing.

Apply online by October 31.

Whether you let your students blog, start a podcast or video channel, or enter student writing contests, giving them an authentic audience for their work is always a powerful classroom choice.

If you like this list of student writing contests and want more articles like it, subscribe to our newsletters to find out when they’re posted!

Plus, check out our favorite anchor charts for teaching writing..

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What is the difference between a solar eclipse and a lunar eclipse?

It almost time! Millions of Americans across the country Monday are preparing to witness the once-in-a-lifetime total solar eclipse as it passes over portions of Mexico, the United States and Canada.

It's a sight to behold and people have now long been eagerly awaiting what will be their only chance until 2044 to witness totality, whereby the moon will completely block the sun's disc, ushering in uncharacteristic darkness.

That being said, many are curious on what makes the solar eclipse special and how is it different from a lunar eclipse.

The total solar eclipse is today: Get the latest forecast and everything you need to know

What is an eclipse?

An eclipse occurs when any celestial object like a moon or a planet passes between two other bodies, obscuring the view of objects like the sun, according to NASA .

What is a solar eclipse?

A total solar eclipse occurs when the moon comes in between the Earth and the sun, blocking its light from reaching our planet, leading to a period of darkness lasting several minutes. The resulting "totality," whereby observers can see the outermost layer of the sun's atmosphere, known as the corona, presents a spectacular sight for viewers and confuses animals – causing nocturnal creatures to stir and bird and insects to fall silent.

Partial eclipses, when some part of the sun remains visible, are the most common, making total eclipses a rare sight.

What is a lunar eclipse?

A total lunar eclipse occurs when the moon and the sun are on exact opposite sides of Earth. When this happens, Earth blocks the sunlight that normally reaches the moon. Instead of that sunlight hitting the moon’s surface, Earth's shadow falls on it.

Lunar eclipses are often also referred to the "blood moon" because when the Earth's shadow covers the moon, it often produces a red color. The coloration happens because a bit of reddish sunlight still reaches the moon's surface, even though it's in Earth's shadow.

Difference between lunar eclipse and solar eclipse

The major difference between the two eclipses is in the positioning of the sun, the moon and the Earth and the longevity of the phenomenon, according to NASA.

A lunar eclipse can last for a few hours, while a solar eclipse lasts only a few minutes. Solar eclipses also rarely occur, while lunar eclipses are comparatively more frequent. While at least two partial lunar eclipses happen every year, total lunar eclipses are still rare, says NASA.

Another major difference between the two is that for lunar eclipses, no special glasses or gizmos are needed to view the spectacle and one can directly stare at the moon. However, for solar eclipses, it is pertinent to wear proper viewing glasses and take the necessary safety precautions because the powerful rays of the sun can burn and damage your retinas.

Contributing: Eric Lagatta, Doyle Rice, USA TODAY

• International

April 7, 2024 - Israel-Hamas war

By Chris Lau, Catherine Nicholls, Antoinette Radford and Maureen Chowdhury , CNN

Our live coverage of Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza has moved  here .

Footage of Khan Younis after Israeli troop withdrawal shows rubble and razed buildings 

From CNN's Chris Lau

Some Palestinians who returned to the streets of Khan Younis after Israeli troops withdrew from the city have found themselves surrounded by rubble and heavily damaged buildings, footage taken by a Gaza resident shows. 

In one of the video clips, drones can be heard buzzing overhead. 

The man filming says that there was a high concentration of military equipment in this area during the military's incursion. 

The southern Gaza city of Khan Younis was designated a safe zone by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in the early days of the war. 

But as the Israeli army pushed south, the city came under sustained attack, with the IDF labeling it a Hamas stronghold. 

Some of the Israeli military's offensives took place at medical facilities sheltering displaced civilians and health workers. The IDF said they located Hamas militants in hospitals. 

The military is "far from stopping" its operations in Gaza, its chief of staff said on Sunday, after the IDF said it had withdrawn its ground forces from Khan Younis after months of fierce fighting. 

This post has been updated to clarify the resident's comments in the video.

"Significant progress" in Gaza ceasefire talks, Egyptian state media report, citing senior official source

From CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq

Negotiations in Cairo between Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire and hostage deal have achieved "significant progress" and consensus on many controversial points, according to Egyptian state outlet Al Qahera News, citing a senior Egyptian official.

The official confirmed the "continuation of efforts to reach a truce agreement" in Gaza, according to the state outlet.

"The round of negotiations in Cairo is witnessing great progress in bringing points of view closer together," Al Qahera cited the source as saying, adding that there had been an agreement on "basic axes between all parties."

The source said the Qatari and Hamas delegations would leave Cairo and return within two days to agree to the final terms of the agreement. The US and Israeli delegations would leave within hours, though consultations would continue over the next 48 hours, the source told Al Qahera.

Hamas' demands: Hamas said Sunday it would like to see a "complete cessation of aggression." The group also reiterated its demands, including a withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, the return of displaced Palestinians to their homes, reconstruction of the damage in Gaza from Israel's military, and a "completion of a prisoner exchange deal" involving a mutual release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

Israel has repeatedly called Hamas' demands " delusional ."

Israeli military says it's preparing to shift from defense to offense on the border with Lebanon

From CNN's Ben Wedeman and Mia Alberti in Beirut

The Israeli military said Sunday it is "preparing to move from defence to attack" regarding operations on the northern border with Lebanon.

The Israel Defense Forces and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah have been exchanging increased fire since the day after Hamas launched the October 7 attacks in Israel, with casualties reported on both sides. It is one of multiple ongoing conflicts between Israel and Iranian proxy groups .

"During the last days, another phase of the Northern Command’s preparations for the war was completed, which revolved around raising the capabilities of emergency operational depots for the purpose of large-scale recruitment of IDF forces when necessary ... and their arrival to the front line within a short period with all the necessary equipment for combat," the IDF said in a statement.

The IDF said commanders of regular and reserve units are now ready to be deployed "within just a few hours."

The statement was released in both English and Arabic, with the statement in Arabic using slightly different language. The English-language version does not carry the phrase "preparing to move from defence to attack" and instead highlights the Israeli military's "readiness for the transition from defense to offense."

Doctors operate on children from the floor of northern Gaza hospital, while others starve in "dire" conditions

From journalist Abdel Qadder Al-Sabbah in Gaza and CNN’s Kareem Khadder and Zeena Saifi in Jerusalem

A group of American doctors who spent over a week working in hospitals in northern Gaza describe "miserable," "catastrophic" and "dire" conditions to CNN, as more people die of starvation in the enclave. 

The doctors volunteered through a World Heath Organization-coordinated mission to the north of Gaza — where little to no aid is reaching hospitals, and spent most of their time at the Kamal Adwan Hospital . 

"The situation here is dire … they’re running on solar power, there’s no fuel to run the electricity in the hospital … patients are lying on the floors in their blood because there’s no beds available,” Dr. Farhan Abdelaziz, an emergency medicine physician said. "The humanitarian crisis here is beyond what words can really convey."

Video filmed by a CNN stringer in Kamal Adwan Hospital shows the doctors operating on screaming patients on the floor, most of whom are children. Abdelaziz is seen trying to calm down a nine-year-old girl crying out in pain, caressing her hand, telling her to pray to God.

Another doctor said the hospital received "mass casualties" every day — ranging from 10 to 20 people showing up all at once.

"This morning we woke up and found out that four patients died in the ICU. One of them was about 10 years old, and the mom refused to leave the child’s bedside, refused to believe that the child was dead, refused to let the staff cover her up ... She just couldn’t believe her child was dead,” Dr. Samer Attar, an orthopedic surgeon, told CNN. The child died of malnutrition and dehydration, he said.

At least 30 Palestinians have died of malnutrition in Gaza, including over 20 children, according to the enclave's Ministry of Health. 

"These people, they just need help. They just want this to stop. … Nobody discusses politics here. They just talk about food and water and shelter, and they just want the war the end," Attar said.

Negotiations over Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal continue in Cairo, Egyptian state media reports

From CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq, Kareem Khadder and Mia Alberti

Negotiations over a ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas, in an indirect fashion and under Egyptian mediation, continued in Cairo on Sunday, Egypt's state-run media Al-Qahera News reported Sunday, citing a senior source.

"The proposed truce includes a detainee exchange deal and mechanisms for the return of the displaced in the Gaza Strip," the news agency said in a post on X.

Hamas said in a statement as its delegation arrived Sunday that it is keen to reach an agreement that would see a "complete cessation of aggression."

The group also reiterated its demands, including a withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, the return of displaced Palestinians to their homes, reconstruction of the damage in Gaza from Israel's military, and a "completion of a prisoner exchange deal" involving a mutual release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

Israel has repeatedly called Hamas' demands "delusional."

This weekend's talks come six months into the conflict, and as the Israeli military withdrew troops from the southern city of Khan Younis on Sunday, saying they will regroup and prepare for further missions in the strip.

Israeli military says it's "far from stopping" operations in Gaza as troops withdraw from Khan Younis

From Tamar Michaelis

The Israel Defense Forces is "far from stopping" military operations in the Gaza Strip, its chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, said at a news conference Sunday.

"We will not leave any Hamas brigades active, in any part of the Gaza Strip. We have plans and will act when we decide," he said, adding that the military's goals in Gaza have not been fully achieved, including the return of all hostages, the return of displaced residents to the north, and the dismantling of Hamas throughout the enclave.

In response to a question about the military's withdrawal of ground forces from Khan Younis in southern Gaza, Halevi claimed Hamas' military wing had been diminished to operating as "small terrorist cells."

He reiterated that the IDF has not left the Gaza Strip and that there are "many troops at this very hour" in the strip.

The country's defense minister made similar remarks earlier Sunday, saying the withdrawing troops will regroup and then  prepare for new missions , including in  Rafah .

Israeli troops leaving Gaza will prepare for "follow-up missions," including in Rafah, defense minister says

From Tamar Michaelis in Jerusalem and Lauren Kent in London

Some Israeli troops are leaving Gaza to prepare for follow-up missions, including in the southernmost Rafah region , Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Sunday.

"We are reaching a situation where Hamas does not control the Gaza Strip and that it does not function as a military framework that poses a risk to the citizens of the State of Israel," Gallant added, in remarks during a visit to assess the Israel Defense Forces' Southern Command.

Earlier Sunday , the IDF said its 98th division had "concluded its mission" in the southern city of Khan Younis and was leaving the Gaza Strip to "recuperate and prepare for future operations."

The defense minister said Israeli forces had destroyed "enemy targets, warehouses, weapons, underground (infrastructure), headquarters (and) communication rooms" in Khan Younis.

Remember: An Israeli invasion of Rafah has been anticipated with grave concern from the United Nations and international aid organizations, as more than 1 million civilians are packed into the Gazan city with nowhere left to run .

World Central Kitchen head criticizes Israeli inquiry into "unforgivable" strikes that killed aid workers

From CNN’s Xiaofei Xu in Paris

The Israeli strikes that killed seven World Central Kitchen (WCK) workers in Gaza are “unforgivable,” the organization's founder, José Andrés, said as he criticized the  Israel Defense Forces inquiry  into the killings.

Andrés called for an independent investigation and better evidence from the IDF in an interview with ABC's Martha Raddatz that aired Sunday, adding that Israel cannot properly investigate itself.

What Israel has said: In a report published Friday, the IDF said the strike was a "grave mistake" and that troops thought they were attacking Hamas gunmen when drone strikes targeted three vehicles of the WCK late Monday night.

More from Andrés: The aid group founder doubts Israel's claim that it failed to identify the vehicles because it was dark out. Andrés said WCK vehicles are white with a colorful logo painted above, and that Israel’s high-tech drones should have no issue identifying them.

The IDF had said that because the strikes happened at night, the surveillance drones could not see the WCK logo on the vehicles, and that it is considering distributing thermal stickers for aid vehicles to prevent this happening again.

“This doesn’t seem (like) a war against terror. This doesn’t seem anymore a war about defending Israel. This, really at this point, seems (like) a war against humanity itself,” Andrés said.

He also urged the US to put out concrete measures to ensure Israel avoids killing civilians and aid workers — instead of just giving warnings. “There should already be consequences,” he said, commenting on the latest  White House warning  for Israel to do better at protecting civilians.

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Francis Collins: Why I’m going public with my prostate cancer diagnosis

I served medical research. now it’s serving me. and i don’t want to waste time..

Over my 40 years as a physician-scientist, I’ve had the privilege of advising many patients facing serious medical diagnoses. I’ve seen them go through the excruciating experience of waiting for the results of a critical blood test, biopsy or scan that could dramatically affect their future hopes and dreams.

But this time, I was the one lying in the PET scanner as it searched for possible evidence of spread of my aggressive prostate cancer . I spent those 30 minutes in quiet prayer. If that cancer had already spread to my lymph nodes, bones, lungs or brain, it could still be treated — but it would no longer be curable.

Why am I going public about this cancer that many men are uncomfortable talking about? Because I want to lift the veil and share lifesaving information, and I want all men to benefit from the medical research to which I’ve devoted my career and that is now guiding my care.

Five years before that fateful PET scan, my doctor had noted a slow rise in my PSA, the blood test for prostate-specific antigen. To contribute to knowledge and receive expert care, I enrolled in a clinical trial at the National Institutes of Health, the agency I led from 2009 through late 2021.

At first, there wasn’t much to worry about — targeted biopsies identified a slow-growing grade of prostate cancer that doesn’t require treatment and can be tracked via regular checkups, referred to as “active surveillance.” This initial diagnosis was not particularly surprising. Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in men in the United States, and about 40 percent of men over age 65 — I’m 73 — have low-grade prostate cancer . Many of them never know it, and very few of them develop advanced disease.

Why am I going public about this cancer that many men are uncomfortable talking about? Because I want to lift the veil and share lifesaving information.

But in my case, things took a turn about a month ago when my PSA rose sharply to 22 — normal at my age is less than 5. An MRI scan showed that the tumor had significantly enlarged and might have even breached the capsule that surrounds the prostate, posing a significant risk that the cancer cells might have spread to other parts of the body.

New biopsies taken from the mass showed transformation into a much more aggressive cancer. When I heard the diagnosis was now a 9 on a cancer-grading scale that goes only to 10, I knew that everything had changed.

Thus, that PET scan, which was ordered to determine if the cancer had spread beyond the prostate, carried high significance. Would a cure still be possible, or would it be time to get my affairs in order? A few hours later, when my doctors showed me the scan results, I felt a rush of profound relief and gratitude. There was no detectable evidence of cancer outside of the primary tumor.

Later this month, I will undergo a radical prostatectomy — a procedure that will remove my entire prostate gland. This will be part of the same NIH research protocol — I want as much information as possible to be learned from my case, to help others in the future.

While there are no guarantees, my doctors believe I have a high likelihood of being cured by the surgery.

My situation is far better than my father’s when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer four decades ago. He was about the same age that I am now, but it wasn’t possible back then to assess how advanced the cancer might be. He was treated with a hormonal therapy that might not have been necessary and had a significant negative impact on his quality of life.

Because of research supported by NIH, along with highly effective collaborations with the private sector, prostate cancer can now be treated with individualized precision and improved outcomes.

As in my case, high-resolution MRI scans can now be used to delineate the precise location of a tumor. When combined with real-time ultrasound, this allows pinpoint targeting of the prostate biopsies. My surgeon will be assisted by a sophisticated robot named for Leonardo da Vinci that employs a less invasive surgical approach than previous techniques, requiring just a few small incisions.

Advances in clinical treatments have been informed by large-scale, rigorously designed trials that have assessed the risks and benefits and were possible because of the willingness of cancer patients to enroll in such trials.

I feel compelled to tell this story openly. I hope it helps someone. I don’t want to waste time.

If my cancer recurs, the DNA analysis that has been carried out on my tumor will guide the precise choice of therapies. As a researcher who had the privilege of leading the Human Genome Project , it is truly gratifying to see how these advances in genomics have transformed the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

I want all men to have the same opportunity that I did. Prostate cancer is still the No. 2 killer of men. I want the goals of the Cancer Moonshot to be met — to end cancer as we know it. Early detection really matters, and when combined with active surveillance can identify the risky cancers like mine, and leave the rest alone. The five-year relative survival rate for prostate cancer is 97 percent, according to the American Cancer Society , but it’s only 34 percent if the cancer has spread to distant areas of the body.

But lack of information and confusion about the best approach to prostate cancer screening have impeded progress. Currently, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends that all men age 55 to 69 discuss PSA screening with their primary-care physician, but it recommends against starting PSA screening after age 70.

Other groups, like the American Urological Association , suggest that screening should start earlier, especially for men with a family history — like me — and for African American men, who have a higher risk of prostate cancer. But these recommendations are not consistently being followed.

Our health-care system is afflicted with health inequities. For example, the image-guided biopsies are not available everywhere and to everyone. Finally, many men are fearful of the surgical approach to prostate cancer because of the risk of incontinence and impotence, but advances in surgical techniques have made those outcomes considerably less troublesome than in the past. Similarly, the alternative therapeutic approaches of radiation and hormonal therapy have seen significant advances.

A little over a year ago, while I was praying for a dying friend, I had the experience of receiving a clear and unmistakable message. This has almost never happened to me. It was just this: “Don’t waste your time, you may not have much left.” Gulp.

Having now received a diagnosis of aggressive prostate cancer and feeling grateful for all the ways I have benefited from research advances, I feel compelled to tell this story openly. I hope it helps someone. I don’t want to waste time.

Francis S. Collins served as director of the National Institutes of Health from 2009 to 2021 and as director of the National Human Genome Research Institute at NIH from 1993 to 2008. He is a physician-geneticist and leads a White House initiative to eliminate hepatitis C in the United States, while also continuing to pursue his research interests as a distinguished NIH investigator.

• Francis Collins: Why I’m going public with my prostate cancer diagnosis 3 hours ago Francis Collins: Why I’m going public with my prostate cancer diagnosis 3 hours ago
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PlayStation Store: March 2024’s top downloads

Democracy, dragons, and dingers all featured in last month’s most downloaded games chart.

It’s time to see which PS5, PS4, PS VR2, PS VR, and free-to-play games topped last month’s download charts. March’s PS5 list saw democracy being preserved with Helldivers 2 holding the most downloads in both US and EU regions, with new releases MLB The Show 24 and Dragon’s Dogma 2 entering the chart’s top 3 in the US. New release cyubeVR reached the top spot on the PS VR2 list in both the US and EU regions.

Check out the full listings below. What titles are you playing this month?

PS VR2 Games*

Free to play (ps5 + ps4).

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