Arab states launch massive attack on Israel

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Heavy fighting has erupted between Arab and Israeli forces along two fronts.

To the south, Egyptian armoured forces have broken the Israeli line on the eastern bank of the Suez Canal.

In the north, Syrian troops and tanks are battling with Israeli defences along the Golan Heights.

Both sides have accused each other of firing the first shots, but UN observers have reported seeing Egyptian and Syrian troops crossing into Israeli-held territory.

Israeli defence minister, General Moshe Dayan has told the nation in a televised address: "We must realise this is war. We are engaged in heavy battles on both fronts against numerically superior forces."

The attacks have come on the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, and the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

Most Jews had been observing strict religious rules of fasting and prayer, but with the outbreak of fighting, Israel's civilian reserve force is now rushing to mobilise.

The heaviest fighting has been reported along the Suez Canal and the adjoining Sinai peninsula.

Israel's Prime Minister, Mrs. Golda Meir, claimed in a radio address that heavy losses have been inflicted on both Egypt and Syria.

But an Egyptian military communiqu?has stated the Canal is now almost entirely under their control.

Damascus radio said Syrian forces on the northern frontier have captured Israeli positions on the Golan Heights, notably Mount Hermon.

But the claims are being countered by the Israelis, who say the situation in the border region remains "adequate".

Israel is outnumbered three to two in immediately available man-power, three to two in tanks and two to one in combat aircraft against the combined forces of Egypt and Syria.

British Foreign Office officials say there is a risk neighbouring countries may become involved.

Algeria, Libya, Kuwait, Jordan and the Lebanon have all pledged their support for the Arab offensive. 

Sadat established an historic detente with Israel

A number of other dignitaries including foreign diplomats were killed or seriously wounded.

The Egyptian authorities have declared a state of emergency.

President Sadat was attending the eighth anniversary of the Yom Kippur war with Israel as Field Marshal of the armed forces.

He had taken the salute, laid a wreath and was viewing an aerial display from the Egyptian Air force when two grenades exploded.

Gunmen then leapt from a military truck in front of the presidential reviewing stand and ran towards the spectators, raking officials with automatic gunfire.

Despite typically large numbers of security personnel for the ceremonial occasion, eyewitnesses say the attackers were able to keep shooting for well over a minute.

By the time the President's bodyguards returned fire at least ten people lay seriously injured or dead inside the stand.

Security forces then shot and killed two of the attackers and overpowered the rest, as crowds of military and civilian spectators scrambled for cover.

President Sadat was airlifted by helicopter to a military hospital, and is believed to have died about two hours later.

The precision with which the attack was coordinated has prompted suspicions that the attackers benefited from high-level intelligence and support.

A group calling itself the Independent Organisation for the Liberation of Egypt says it carried out the attack but the claim has not been verified.

Reaction to President's Sadat's death has been mixed. President Reagan condemned Anwar Sadat's death as an act of infamy:

"America has lost a great friend, the world has lost a great statesman, and mankind has lost a champion of peace," he said.

But many have been celebrating the news. In Libya, Tripoli radio said every tyrant has an end, as thousands took to the streets of the capital in jubilation.

Neither has the Palestinian Liberation Organisation condemned the assassination. Nabil Ramlawi a PLO official said:

"We were expecting this end of President Sadat because we are sure he was against the interests of his people, the Arab nations and the Palestinian people."

peninsula: a portion of land nearly surrounded by water（半岛）

grenade: a small explosive bomb thrown by hand or fired from a missile（手榴弹）