On the 40th anniversary of the October 1973 war “Yom Kippur war” You will find it rare that Egyptian or Israeli media would speak about what happened to Egyptian POWs during that war. The media’s focus especially in Egypt is about the Israeli POWs and the good treatment they received .
On the other side very few sources speak about what happened during that war from crimes and violations committed by the Israeli Defense army. Group 73 Historians, a group of army veterans who chronicle independently the history of the wars against Israel revealed a horrifying incident which they named “The Thunderbolt Forces Massacre”.
The incident is based upon the testimony of former major general Magdy Shehata’s memories.
Here are couple of Photos showing Israeli POWs captured in 1973 by Egyptian army Al Ahram newspaper , Egypt´s largest newspaper following the State and Alexandria Bibliotheca released online on the anniversary of October 1983 war “Yom El Kippur War”.
Today is the anniversary of the 6th of October 1973 war , today we remember all our fallen soldiers and officers as well our POWs whether in 1967 or in 1973.
Today we also remember the treatment of Israeli POWs in Egypt and how it is quite different to what our Egyptian POWs faced in 1956 and 1967.
In this occasion , I would like to share with you a rare Egyptian documentary directed by late famous director Shady Abdel Salam in 1975 about the war and the Egyptian soldiers. The documentary in Arabic includes the testimonies of Egyptian soldiers including those who had been captured by Israeli forces.
This rare video shows you how the Israeli injured POWs were treated in Egyptian Captivity in 1973, this video shows you a group of Israeli POWs from IAF at Maadi military hospital.
Egypt’s first lady then Jihan Sadat refused to visit at first the Israeli injured POWs at Maadi hospital when she had visited the hospital , but the officials there convinced her to pay a visit the Israeli POWs because we treat our POWs in a better way.
Our Egyptian POWs were killed in cold blood in 1973 just like in 1967 and in 1956.
Al Jazeera channel official website made a report about the Palestinian detainee , Mansour Mowqda who is currently jailed in Israel for murder an Israeli Veteran officer.
The story of Mansour started in early 2002 where he worked at a farmer that was owned by a veteran IDF officer , that officer one day bragged in front of Mansour on how he killed Egyptian POWs in Yom Kippur October war 1973, yes in Yom Kippur war.
Mansour told his family that the officer was speaking proudly on how the Egyptian soldiers were put under the tanks’ track to be squashed then later were buried in mass graves. He even told him that he killed the Egyptian officer who was in charge of those soldiers with three gun shots then how he urinated over his body. Mansour could not keep his anger and killed that veteran officer/ war criminal.
Of course he was arrested later after being shot by dumdum bullets and was sentenced a life prison term. His injury went from bad to worse to worst as his lower part of his body is completely paralyzed.He had multiple major surgeries and he needs huge medical care and attention.
The ministry of detainees affairs in the Palestinian authority’s lawyers failed in getting health parole for him yet managed to reduce his sentence from life sentence to 30 years !!
Still Mansour is being mistreated despite his illness and his disability in the prison and its hospital which are like a living hell. He does not receive the proper medical attention or care he should get. The Palestinian detainees who do not suffer from health problems already are suffering from the ill treatment in the Israeli prisons so you can imagine how people like Mansour suffer.
Mansour on his wheel chair
Mansour killed one person , a war criminal and he paid a very big price for it ; a price that I am afraid that war criminal did not pay when he killed our POWs in very cold blood.
Mansour should get a health parole , already I do not know what price he will pay more than what he is paying.
Now moving to the real war criminal here who was that veteran IDF officer , well I am not surprised at his claims in fact it is well known fact the IDF used to execute our Egyptian POWs using tanks’ tracks to save bullets and time !! That disgusting Nazi technique was used in 1967 widely across Sinai especially in Al Arish whose people remember that fearful scene of tanks moving over human beings and how that scene was directed by Ariel Sharon !! They had done it in 1967 and so I would not be surprised that they used it in 1973.
I want to help Mansour but I feel that I am helpless , all what I can do is to write this post.
On 3th of June 1973 Syria and Israel had exchanged POWs whom were captured during the war of attrition. In 1970 Syria managed to capture 3 Israeli pilots : Captain Gideon Magen, Captain Pinchas Nahmani, and Lieutenant Boaz Eitan and sent them to the notorious Al Mazza prison. For the record those 3 pilots did not suffer 0.1 from what any Syrian citizen had suffered in that prison which has become a synonym to living cemetery during the iron fist of Hafez Al Assad rule.
Gideon Magen , the fourth from Left in Israel
On 9th of June 1972 the IDF managed to capture five Syrian officers who were in reconnaissance mission near the Golan heights.
On the 3th of June 1973 Israel and Syria exchanged their POWs , the 3 Israeli pilots for 5 Syria officers along other 41 Syrians.
Here was a photo for a Syrian POW during the exchange
One may wonder how the Egyptians treated Israeli POWs , Maj. Gen. Hassan Al-Gandali, a former chief of operations of the Egyptian army, said there were a number of Israeli POWs in Egyptian camps in 1973. “We were very much concerned about their welfare, though we were aware of the way the Israelis had dealt with our POWs under their custody,” Hassan said.
“As I was the chief of operations, I accompanied Egyptian Defense Minister Musheer Ahmad Ismail to the camp in which Col. Esaf Yagouri and 150 prisoners were kept. On seeing us the prisoners looked so terrified as they seemed to think that we were going to send them to the firing squad in return for what Israel had done to the Egyptian POWs in the past. On the other hand, Musheer told them that he did not blame them for obeying the orders of their superiors though it was to occupy a territory belonging to another country. ‘However, you will be treated in line with the Geneva Conventions. So you have nothing to worry about,’ Musheer said.
“Then he asked the commander of the camp about the sick POWs and took special care of them. He also ordered the camp commander to take the POWs for sightseeing in Cairo, including a trip to the pyramids and a boat ride on the Nile. After a few moments of disbelief the prisoners broke into a deafening applause. This is how the Egyptians treat their prisoners of war.”
