Yom Kippur War of 1973

 Nadene Goldfoot                                           

         

The War of 1973 (also known as the Yom Kippur War or October War) started because Egypt and Syria launched a coordinated surprise attack on Israel to reclaim the territories Israel captured during the 1967 Six-Day War—specifically the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights.The Yom Kippur War actually began on October 6, 1973  when a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria launched a coordinated surprise attack against Israel. This happened 6 years after 1967.                                                    

Golda Meir nee Meyerson, was elected PM in 1968 and was PM throughout the Yom Kippur War.  She was re-elected in 1973 but retired in 1974.  She wrote My Life, an excellent book that I have read.  

 The 1967 Arab League summit (the Khartoum Conference), held in Khartoum, Sudan, from August 29 to September 1, 1967, in the aftermath of the Arab defeat in the Six-Day War.  They decided on their famous 3 NO''s.  Participants: Leaders and representatives from eight Arab states.   Oil-rich Arab nations (such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait) agreed to provide financial support to Egypt and Jordan to help rebuild their economies and military forces.

                                                           

            Jews, people who would not revert from their religion to the consternation of all other religions. None would win them over, even though the religion itself divided into Reform, Conservative and Orthodox Jews and how they view Judaism in the late 1800's.  

          No peace with Israel

• No recognition of Israel
• No negotiations with Israel 

Later Shift: These "Three No's" guided collective Arab policy for decades until later shifts, such as the 1979 Egypt–Israel peace treaty, the 1994 Jordan–Israel peace treaty, the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, and subsequent normalization agreements like the 2020 Sudan-Israel deal.                                   

The Syrians initially overran much of the Golan Heights, but, despite support from Iraqi and Jordanian troops, etc, they were stopped and driven far behind the lines from which they had attacked.                                              

Artillerymen hold their ears as 155mm guns lay down barrage on Syrian positions during the Yom Kippur War in 1973. Bettman/Getty Images.

The Egyptians crossed the Suez Canal in the 1st hours of the war and seized the Israel forward positions (the "Bar Lev line").  As a result of wide-ranging tank battles, however, they were unable to progress through the Sinai Desert.  

It is said that the Israel that fought the Yom Kippur War no longer exists.  Fifty- years is a long enough time to dissipate the impact of war.

The Yom Kippur War of 1973 has probably  receded in the Israeli imagination. But its specter is more complex than Vietnam for Americans. The 2,500 Israeli soldiers killed (a fraction of the 15,000 Arabs who perished) was three times the per capita human cost of the Vietnam War to the United States. Steven Simon, writer of this article, was in Israel during that time, and everyone knew someone who’d been killed. The war was also far shorter, about 10 days, so the casualty list had an outsized emotional impact. It was not the long slog of Vietnam, but rather an avalanche.

Early in the war, Syrian armor destroyed the Israeli tank brigade deployed to the Golan Heights and reached Gesher B’not Yaakov (Jisr Banat Yaqub). Just beyond it was the Jezreel Valley. The prospect of a large Syrian armored formation penetrating the Israeli heartland was as ghastly for Israelis as it must have been thrilling for the Syrians. The United States has never experienced anything like this, including 9/11.

Both sides suffered severe losses in equipment, but when a Soviet airlift replaced Arab materiel, the US countered with a major arms airlift, starting on October 14th.  Two days later, an Israeli force crossed the Suez Canal and in a few days cut off the Egyptian 3rd Army.                                                                  

The USSR, concerned about the possibility of a major Arab defeat, invited US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to Moscow to work out terms for a cease-fire, which were accepted by the UN on October 22 and became operative on October 25th. 

Israel's overall military victory was thankful but minor; as the war had grave repercussions within the country because of the initial defects revealed;  the loss of more than 2,600 men, and the effectiveness of the Arab oil weapon, used internationally for the 1st time.  

Territorial Loss in 1967: During the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel seized the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, the Golan Heights from Syria, and the West Bank and Gaza Strip from Jordan. Egypt and Syria wanted to take back their land.  (Al Jazeera)  So they can blame Egypt in the 1st place for talking them all into attacking Israel in 1967.                                           

For the Jewish community, both in Israel and across the globe, the timing of the attack on Yom Kippur—the Day of Atonement and the holiest day in Judaism—created profound religious, cultural, and historical resonances.

Restoring Honor and Leverage: Egypt and Syria wanted to shatter Israel's image of military invincibility and force the international community to take the Arab-Israeli conflict seriously.  

The Surprise Timing: The attack began on October 6, 1973. The date coincided with Yom Kippur (the holiest day in Judaism) and the Islamic month of Ramadan, catching Israeli intelligence and military forces off guard. [In 2027 Ramadan will fall in February.]  {A monstrous and bloody attack will happen again on Israel on October 7, 2023) .

Stalled Diplomacy: Peaceful efforts and proposals to negotiate a return of the land had failed over the preceding six years. Egyptian President Anwar Sadat sought a military move to break the political deadlock. 

Major Jewish Historical & Cultural References

• The Synagogue Mobilization: Because the surprise attack occurred on Yom Kippur, the vast majority of Israeli military reservists were not at their military posts; they were fasting and praying in synagogues. Because the streets were completely empty and the entire population was gathered together, commanders simply went from synagogue to synagogue to call up their units. Soldiers famously stripped off their tallitot (prayer shawls) and kittels (white holiday robes) directly over their civilian clothes to board military transports heading straight to the frontlines.
• The Debut of the "Hesder" Units: The 1973 war was the first major conflict featuring distinct Hesder army units—frameworks allowing Orthodox yeshiva students to combine intensive Torah study with active combat duty. Their frontline service, particularly in the grueling tank battles on the Golan Heights, deeply impacted the religious Zionist community and integrated military defense as a core component of their religious identity.
• The Problem of the Agunot (Chained Widows): In Jewish law, a woman cannot remarry if her husband is missing in action but his death cannot be legally verified. Following the heavy, chaotic losses of the war, the Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, painstakingly reviewed hundreds of military forensic cases to halachically permit the war widows to move on with their lives.
• Shift in Yom Kippur's Modern Meaning: Prior to 1973, modern secular Israelis often viewed Yom Kippur as an individual day of rest. The national trauma of nearly losing the state transformed the holiday into a deeply national day of collective remembrance. It fractured the supreme confidence built after the 1967 Six-Day War and introduced a sobering language of vulnerability and social introspection to Israeli culture. 
• What the Arabs neglected to learn was what Yom Kippur was all about.  Had they realized this, would Egypt had attacked in the 1st place?  Yom Kippur is the Jews' Day of Atonement.  It is an all day solemn fast-day  (Lev.23:32 as a Sabbath of solemn rest.  A man must cleanse himself of all sin.  It is the day on which Moses came down from Mt. Sinai with the 2nd tablets of the law and announced to the people the Divine pardon for the sin of the Golden Calf.  Man is to stop all work and abstain from food, drink, and sexual intercourse;  the day was outstanding for the elaborate Temple Ceremonial.  They included the sending of the scapegoat to the wildernss  "for AZAZEL."  In the evening is the rendition of Kol Nidre, a time of canceling rash vows between man and G-d  AND  the Concluding Neilah service, saying the Shema and the declaration:  "NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM."

• 1. What Is Ramadan?

  Ramadan commemorates the month during which Muslims believe the prophet Muhammed was given the first revelations of the Quran, the holy book of Islam, from the angel Gabriel. It’s an extremely important month in the Muslim year. During this time, Muslims fast during daylight hours (no food or drink—even water—permitted from dawn to sunset) and strive to avoid any impure thoughts or immoral behavior. Participating in this observance is one of the five pillars of Islam, meaning that it is required for all healthy adult Muslims. Ramadan ends in a festival called Eid-al-Fitr, or the Festival of Breaking the Fast. Muslims celebrate and give thanks for the strength Allah imparted in them during fasting. Children receive presents and new clothes, and young girls may decorate their hands with henna.

• https://responsiblestatecraft.org/yom-kippur-war-50th-anniversary/

• The New Standard Jewish Encyclopedia

• Wikiwand

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Our Ten Days of Reflection and Improvement Before Yom Kippur With The IDF

 Nadene Goldfoot                                          

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, took place in the States for 2 days, on our special Shabbat of Friday, 9/11 at sundown and ended on 9/12 Saturday evening.  We say to each other, ShaNA  ToVA, (year good) or Have a good year.  

 According to Jewish tradition, the world, as well as every individual, is judged. It is meant to be a time of repentance and reflection, and of recognizing that God is the ultimate sovereign of the world. May this Rosh Hashanah result in a judgement of peace and prosperity for each of us and for the entire world.                              

This is a 10 day period of reflection and improvement on ourselves so that the next year will be an improvement. It ends with the holiday of Yom Kippur, a day of repentance for any sins.                                     

Being we are in the midst of war in the Middle East with Hamas terrorists, our sons and daughters continue defending and protecting.                           

Col. Jonathan Steinberg, the commander of the Nahal 

Brigade who was killed on October 7, 2023, in an undated 

photo (Israel Defense Forces)

Col. Jonathan “Yoni” Aaron Steinberg, 42, the commander of the Nahal Brigade, from Kibbutz Shomria, was killed on October 7 while battling Hamas terrorists near Kerem Shalom.

The IDF announced that it had eliminated a Hamas Nukhba terrorist who infiltrated Israel during the October 7 massacre and took part in the killing of Nahal Brigade commander Col. Yonatan Steinberg.

PM Netanyahu and DM Katz said in a joint statement that the IDF had completed the destruction of Hezbollah’s underground infrastructure on the Ali Taher Ridge in  (Lebanon) -- "The terror infrastructure and the command center on the ridge were designed to serve as the staging base for the conquest of the Galilee, and had observation and fire dominance over Metula and Kiryat Shmona. Their destruction completes the achievement of operational control over the Ali Taher ridge – above and below ground." 

The siege of Ali al-Taher was an Israeli military operation to encircle, besiege and ultimately seize and destroy a major underground Hezbollah complex beneath the Ali al-Taher ridge near Nabatieh in southern Lebanon, part of the wider 2026 Lebanon war.                       

 Israeli forces surrounded the ridge in a rapid advance around ten weeks before the operation concluded, trapping an estimated several dozen Hezbollah fighters and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) "advisers" inside a network of tunnels the group had spent about two decades constructing beneath the hills.

 On 3 September 2026, Israel declared "operational control" of the complex after weeks of fighting, a development Hezbollah neither confirmed nor denied

Iran has repeatedly threatened to strike Israel if Israel destroys the complex. The IDF is prepared both defensively and offensively and continues to closely monitor the Houthi arena, particularly in light of the latest developments. 

Resource:

israelAM

https://www.timesofisrael.com/col-jonathan-steinberg-42-let-us-carry-on-his-legacy/

World Series Pitcher: Sandy Koufax

 Nadene Goldfoot                                                                

Sanford Koufax, nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former professional baseball player. Widely regarded as one of the greatest pitchers of all time, he played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1955 to 1966.

October 6, 1965. The World Series. The whole country tuning in to watch the most dominant pitcher in baseball. And Sandy Koufax wasn't there.

It was Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, and Koufax made a choice that had nothing to do with baseball and everything to do with who he was. He sat out Game 1, letting his teammate Don Drysdale take the mound instead. When manager Walter Alston pulled a struggling Drysdale from that game, Drysdale famously cracked, "I bet right now you wish I was Jewish, too."

Koufax didn't do it for headlines. He did it quietly, without fanfare, because it was simply right. In an era when Jewish athletes were stereotyped as weak, Koufax stood tall by standing down. He went on to pitch a shutout in Game 5 and a three hit gem in Game 7 on just two days' rest, leading the Dodgers to the championship and earning World Series MVP. But it's that empty mound in Game 1 America remembers.

Koufax with the 1954 University of Cincinnati baseball team (left; top row, 5th from the left) at age 19.

Koufax was born Sanford Braun to a Jewish family on December 30, 1935, in Borough Park, Brooklyn. His parents, Evelyn (née Lichtenstein) and Jack Braun, divorced when he was three years old. The son of a single working parent, he spent most of his childhood with his maternal grandparents and spent his summers at Camp Chi-Wan-Da, a Jewish summer camp in Ulster Park, New York, where his mother worked as a bookkeeper.

Evelyn, a certified public accountant, remarried when her son was nine to Irving Koufax, an attorney, whose name Sandy took. Koufax also gained a stepsister, Edith, Irving's daughter from a previous marriage. Shortly afterwards, the family moved to the Long Island suburb of Rockville Centre. They moved back to Brooklyn in June 1949, the day after Koufax graduated from ninth grade, settling in the neighborhood of Bensonhurst.

Years go by.  Walter Alston was the long-time manager of the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers who guided Sandy Koufax through his entire Hall of Fame major-league career.

Notably, teammates Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella both clashed with Alston on Koufax's usage, noting the young pitcher's talent and objecting to him being benched for weeks at a time. Pitcher Don Newcombe stated years later that Koufax faced antisemitism as a young pitcher from white players on the team who shunned him and used antisemitic slurs when referring to him. This led to black teammates rallying to Koufax's defense and supporting him during his early years.

 Koufax was 6'2" and weighed in at 210 lbs. Sanford Koufax, was a Major League Baseball player who pitched for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1955-1957) and Los Angeles Dodgers (1958-1966). Did you know that Sandy, his nickname, was the youngest player ever inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame (36 years, 20 days / #2 - Lou Gehrig, 36 years, 172 days), the first pitcher to ever throw four no-hitters, and one of only three pitchers (the other two are Walter Johnson & Grover Alexander) in baseball history to win the Triple Crown of Pitching (leading the league in wins, strikeouts and earned run average) three times?

Koufax and teammate Don Drysdale changing parts on a military truck at the US Army Reserve Center in Van Nuys, California

Koufax, along with fellow Dodgers pitcher Don Drysdale, served in the United States Army Reserve for two years, from 1957 to 1959. He was often stationed at Fort Dix, New Jersey, during the offseason..

Clinching the pennant on September 27, the Dodgers faced the heavily favored New York Yankees in the 1963 World Series. In Game 1, Koufax beat Whitey Ford 5–2. He struck out the first five batters and 15 overall, breaking Carl Erskine's decade-old record of 14. The Dodgers won Games 2 and 3 behind the pitching of Johnny Podres, Ron Perranoski, and Don Drysdale. Koufax completed the Dodgers' series sweep in Game 4 with a 2–1 victory over Ford; the only run he allowed was a home run by Mickey Mantle.  During the series, Koufax struck out 23 batters in 18 innings, a record for a four-game World Series, and had a 2–0 record with an earned run average of 1.50; for his performance, he was awarded the World Series Most Valuable Player Award.Koufax is considered one of the greatest big game pitchers in baseball history.  I have only touched on a little of his life. 

Resource:  

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandy_Koufax

most. Sometimes the greatest act of courage isn't throwing the pitch. It's knowing when not to.