MIDDLE EAST SITUATION REPORT NUMBER 36 (AS OF 1700 EDT)

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: Library of Congress
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): LOC-HAK-544-5-3-9
• Release Decision: RIPLIM
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 7
• Document Creation Date: January 11, 2017
• Document Release Date: January 4, 2013
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: October 14, 1973
• Content Type: MEMO

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DIA Review
Completed.
State Dept. review
completed
plulTRAL INTELLIGENcE AGENCY
.14 October 1973
INTELLIGENCE MEMORANDUM
MIDDLE AT
1
.Situation Report.'Number 36
CAs Of 1700 *EDT)
THE MILITARY SITUATION
GENERAL.
? ? ?
MORI/CDF per
C03323859 "
,Significant action Shifted to the. Sinai today as?
the Egyptian launched a major offensive along their entire
front.. Action 'Was concentrated ?in the. southern sector,
with the Israelis reportedly inflicting heavy armor losSes
on the Etyptians. By late afternoon, Tel?Aviv claimed that
fightinghad.almbst ceased as the Egrptians were forced to
withdraw. . ?
?
? 2. On the Syrian front, the Israelis claimed few
advances, ad the situation id. badically unchanged. The
Syrians and Iraciis launched. local counterattacks but report-
edly were repulsed. .The.Jordanian brigade has.yet to See
action, while a Saudi'brigadd is approaching the Syrian
border.
EGYPTIAN 'MONT.
_
?3. ,On the Zgyptian front there was a day of intense
gtound and air riCtivityl with ? .minor naval engagement
noted in the Mediterranean near Alexandria. The Israelis
reported:that thpy had pushed back the Egyptian advance
On' all sectors. Particularly heavy fighting apparently
took .place in. the Mitla Pass- area. According.to.uncon-?
firmed p.jcass reports, the Israelis are-inoving additional
troops into the. Sinai front area.
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4. 'Claims Of losses Were conflicting- .The Israelis
report 0:WY: ZOO Egyptian tanks destroyed and over 400 enemy
troops captured. According to g?yptian announcements, about
150 Israeli tanks and 24 aircraft were destroyed. Egypt .
further stated that "new areas of land along the entire
confrontation. line" had been seized. ?
SYRIAN PkONT
?
G. There is no major Change in. the situation along the
Syrian front..." According to. the Israelis, the lead elements
of their forces advancing toward Damascus have haltod in 1
? the vicinity of Sasal where'artillery duels were under way.
? Shelling of the suburbs of Damascus continues. Israeli
forces attempting to envelop Syrian and Iraqi units on the
south flank og. the main'advanee have also stopped near
Marra.: Small unit counterattacks by Syrian and Iraqi forces
throughout:tha day 'have boon repulsed according to the
Israeli's. Syrian air activity was light during the course :
of the day. ??
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SOVIET 'POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
;l3. The US embassy in Moscow reports that ?on 10 October
llovosti correspondent-Ted-Rukhadze asked Hedrick Smith of
Ire7WFW?kork Times whether it would not bo a good idea for
'the UN?W1-1W?ussR to agree to limit arms' shipments to the
Middle East ih order to contain the conflict. Rukhadze re--
marked that the arms limitation agreement was his own ida%
and did not :suggest that his comments be passed to the US.
(Smith adds that it was an associate of Rukhadze's who had
hinted that the Moscow 'summit meeting of 1972 would take
place despite the US mining .of Haiphong harbor.) The,US-
embassy states that it has received no suggestions-from
'offioial or unofficial soviet sources which would indicate
:an arms limitation agreement Is .under. consideration. ? The
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press channel would not be an altogether Unlikely channel.
for the Soviets to float a trial balloon of this type/
there are ampl precedents, particularly during the Cuban
missile Crisis. in 1962..
.SAUDI AhhniA .
?'14. A 'senior Jordanian official reported yesterday that
the Saudi Arabian brigade !enroute to Syria passed through
Azraq innorth-central Jodan yesterday and.was expected to.
reach 11-5.on; the old Iraqi pipeline by sunrise this morning. ,
This progress report would put the brigade fat from the
Syrian front with difficult terrain still to cross. Radio
broadcasts from Riyadh today announcing thearrival of the
.Saudi 'brigade at the "Golan heights front" thus appear some-
premature,,
?
: 'LIBYA :
. .15.: .Libya is moving :elements of ?the .4rd Mechanited
Infantry 'Brigade to Tobruk, the largest Libyan city near
the ZgYP4an border.. Although it is still not clear .
ill ? .roceed to .E t
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fJORDAN.
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Yesterday's tension preceding and following the
announcement of Jordan's troop commitment to Syria has been
replaced.by?relative calm 'in Amman, according to the DS
embassy. The Jordanians are satisfied.with the war news
.but mindful 01: their vulnerability now that Jordan is more
deeply committed. Amman airport remains closed but the Syrian
border and the bridges to the West Bank are open. The
embaSsy.ates the open bridges as evidence that the commit- _
mont of trodpd to Syria is' still to be regarded more as a
.gesture than a casus bolli. The price of all Arab currencies
is up, especially the-WFran pound. Gasoline is now under
the government's control and yesterday's food hoarding has
further depleted retail stocks. The press continues to
repeat stories of US re-supply of weapons to Israel but there
have been. no: editorial attacks on thc US.
4:
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17: Prime Minister hifai said privately today that
if Xing.kusayn and Jordan are to have any credibility in
the Arab world after the present conflict, it is aboolutely
:imperative that the Jordanian army become actively involved.
He said Jordan "needs martyrs," pointing out that Jordanian
?non-invOlvement while Syrian and Iraqi forces were taking
casualties :served.no political purpose. 4o said he was
.'.going to urge the King to Commit the 40th brigade to Actual
'fighting, and predicted that it would be in active counter-
offensive operations by tonight. When asked if. other brigades
would qp.in.to assist the 40th if it were badly cut up, ?
Rifal replied in the negative, saying Jordan had only pro-
mised to furnish one brigade and needed the-remaining units
to defend'jordan against possible Israeli attack. This is
, only one manes opinion; the informal council of war on which
the King relies to help make decisions could go either way,
? depending on the mood of 'the moment. ?
? ? ?
. SYRIA:
? 18; 10espite reports that Damascusis "under siege"
with artillery fire and heavy air attacks hitting the out-
skirts, thd city is described as "surprisingly" normal.
The population is still calm, crowds are mingling, and shops
are open. The diplomatiC community is not yet preparing
to evacuate, The Italian Embassy, however, reports that
it is findfng it increasingly difficult to carry out its
? function .of proteoting US interests not only because of
tilt) doteriorating security situation but also because of
heightened anti-US feeling generated by reports of US
participation in combat alongside thejsraelis.
PAkISTAN
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.NIGERIA
? ?:?
23. General?Gdwon of Nigeria is reconsidering his ,
' ,country's relations with; Israel. In. separate conversations-
? with. the U.S. and Israeli ambaSsadors, Gowan strongly. indi-
cated he Will sever.diplomatio ties with Tel Aviv if Israel ?
'
begin si pajok offensive. on: the Suez front, or if.Israel
?bombs .civilian 'targets in Egypt. Gowon appealed to the US.
. not to resupPly Israel with. arms-. Pressures on Gowon from.
? within 'his own goVernment to 'break relations have been
' reinforced by?:the gathering. momen,tura of .the African
bre.ak-;withIsrao_l movement. quatorial Guinea and Cameroon
have new severed ties, bringing to five the number of
African state S ?to take such: action Since the outbreak of
.war. 'A break; by Nigeria will. intensify the pressure on ?
other .African states .to follow suit. Gowon wields consider-
able influence, both ?becauSe of his personal atatura and
. ?
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his. Position as the current *chairman of the OAT::I
Which Egypt is a inember.?
:'
UGIANIA
* 24iresident ?Atrtin. is no in 13aghdad for talks with
?
the reagi president, according to the local press. The next
stop Om his self-appointed round of talks is to be Amman.
QIL MEETING ?
" According' to the Arab press,. the Kuwaiti government
has: announoed that the emergency session of the Organization
of hrab Petroleum Exporting Countries (0APEC) called for
early last:week?Will convene in Piwait on.Tdesda.y.
. .
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