Egyptian Army

Egyptian Army Egyptian Ground Forces
القوات البرية المصرية
Egyptian Army Insignia
Active	1805 (211 years)
Country	Egypt
Allegiance	Egypt
Branch	Infantry, Mountain Troops, Artillery, Armour, Paratroopers, CBRN
Type	Army
Role	Land warfare
Size	310,000 active (As of 2014)[1] 375,000 Reserve (As of 2014)[1] 685,000 Total (As of 2014)[1]
Part of	Egyptian Armed Forces
Nickname(s)	Egy Army
Motto	Victory or Martyrdom
Colors	Red, White and Black
March	"We painted on the heart the face of our nation" (Arabic: رسمنا على القلب وجه الوطن‎, rasamna ala al qalb wagh al watan)
Anniversaries	6 October
Equipment	Equipment of the Egyptian Army
Engagements	See list Battle of Pelusium (525 BC) Battle of Carchemish (605 BC) Battle of Hamath (605 BC) Battle of Megiddo (609 BC) Fall of Ashdod (635 BC) Battle of Qarqar (853 BC) Battle of Bitter Lakes (925 BC) Battle of Bitter Lakes (925 BC) Battle of Kadesh (1274 BC) Egyptian-Sea People wars (1,175 BC) Battle of the Delta (1175 BC) Battle of Djahy (1,178 BC) Battle of Al Mansurah (8–11 February 1250) French campaign in Egypt and Syria (1798–1801) Mahdist War (1881–1899) Greek War of Independence (1821–1832) First Egyptian-Ottoman War (1831–1833) Second Egyptian-Ottoman War(1839–1841) Ethiopian–Egyptian War (1875–1876) 'Urabi Revolt (1879–1882) Anglo-Egyptian War (1882) World War I (1914–1918) World War II (1939–1945) 1948 Arab–Israeli War (1948–1949) Suez Crisis (1956) North Yemen Civil War (1962–1970) Six-Day War ( 5–10 June 1967) Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970) War of Attrition (1967–1970) Yom Kippur War (1973–1974) Egyptian bread riots (18–19 January 1977) Libyan–Egyptian War ( 21–24 July 1977) Gulf War (1990–1991) Egyptian Crisis (2011–14) Sinai insurgency (2011 – present) Second Libyan Civil War (2014 – present) Military intervention against ISIL (16 February 2015 – present) Intervention in Libya (16 February 2015 – present) Intervention in Yemen (25 March 2015 – present) Other
Website	www.mod.gov.eg
Commanders
Second Field Army	Major General Mohammed el-Shahat
Third Field Army	Major General Osama Askar

The Egyptian Army officially Egyptian Ground Forces (Arabic: القوات البرية المصرية‎; Arabic pronunciation: [el qowat el brih el masriya]) the largest service branch within the Egyptian Armed Forces, and is the largest army in Africa.

The modern army was established during the reign of Muhammad Ali Pasha (1805-1849), who is considered to be the "founder of modern Egypt". Its most significant engagements in the 20th Century were in Egypt's five wars with the State of Israel (in 1948, 1956, 1967, 1967-1970, and 1973), one of which, the Suez Crisis of 1956, also saw it do combat with the armies of Britain, and France. The Egyptian army was also engaged heavily in the protracted North Yemen Civil War, and the brief Libyan-Egyptian War in July 1977. Its last major engagements was Operation Desert Storm, the liberation of Kuwait from Iraqi occupation in 1991, in which Egyptian army constituted the second largest contingent of allied forces.

As of 2014, the army has an estimated strength of 310,000 soldiers, of which, approx. 90-120,000 are professionals with the rest being conscripts.^[1]

History

Founding 32nd century BC

Ahmose I the Egyptian army commander fighting the Hyksos in 1700 BC.

First regular army in the world was established in Egypt around the year 3200 BC. After the unification of King Menes of Egypt, sitting on her throne. And it became the most powerful army in the world and thanks to him the Egyptians created the first empire in the world stretching from Turkey in the north to the south of Somalia and Iraq in the east to the west of Libya, was this is the golden age of the Egyptian army. Ancient Egyptian military and made many great leaders, and the Egyptian army force that the main point was the texture of the Egyptians, not foreign mercenaries, and through the compulsory service system and call for service during the war. The army consists of infantry and horse-drawn carriages, Spears, soldiers bayonets and other branches and the fleet, which was protected marine coast of Egypt are all in addition to the Nile River.

After the Macedonian conquest of Egypt in 332 BC. By Alexander the Great, that's just passed away on June 13, 323 BC. The third has not been thirty years old. In the wake of his death divided the states of Macedonian Empire between his commanders, Egypt was named commander of the share of Ptolemy, and so Egypt has entered the era of the Ptolemies. During that era he brought the first Ptolemy and his successors the Greeks and the like to serve in the Ptolemaic belligerent forces. So boarding Ptolemy IV throne of Egypt, and attacking Antiochus III of the limits of the Ptolemaic state in Syria, terrifying Ptolemy IV organizing the army and incorporated for the first time a large number of Egyptians in the army and trained and armed them according to the assets arts of modern warfare was credited in his victory over his enemy in the battle of Rafah in 217 BC.

Alexander oversees the demarcation set the foundations of the city of Alexandria.

and proved to the Egyptians during their competence battle in the field of war and their superiority on the pad martial arts in this era of the Greeks and the Macedonians stimulate victory in those Egyptians battle to do in the face of their rulers tyrants and Revolution them, as increased external threats against the Ptolemies, and increased conflicts between the family ruling, and worked to get close to Rome, paving her way to extend its influence on Egypt as a result of the weakness inherent in the Ptolemaic rulers nights, so even elevated to the throne of Egypt Cleopatra last rulers of the Ptolemies, which seized control of the Roman emperor Julius Caesar and later Marc Antony, and remained on the throne of Egypt Even the victory of Octavius on Marc Antony at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC, and that ended the Ptolemaic era and the beginning of the Roman era in Egypt. During this era the Romans did not use the Egyptians in the ranks of the military and their protection in Egypt but to the citizens of Greek cities due to the ongoing revolutions Egyptians against them. After the split the Romanian Empire to East and West, Egypt became a subsidiary of the Empire Romania and East known about the Byzantine Empire in 323 AD during the reign of Emperor Constantine I.

7th century

A 15th-century depiction of Saladin

Following the Muslim conquest of Egypt in 640, the army and the tasks of defense became confined to Muslims only exempted non-Muslims peer-annual tribute, and bring with the establishment of government offices in the reign of ʿUmar ibn Al-Khattāb, the 'Amr ibn al-'As who became ruler of Egypt, the establishment of the Office of the Soldiers of them, where he was the soldiers and their salaries names registered for the first time, due to the importance of Egypt's location has been interest in the establishment of garrison where and strengthened until it reached 13 thousand, and in the reign of Uthman launched Byzantines war freely against Egypt saved by Abdallah ibn Sa'd and to Egypt at the time, and was able to win the battle of the masts, and in the reign of Caliph Uthman began the first attempts to open the neighboring countries, where it began in Cyrenaica and in the era of Muawiya managed to open African Egypt and the founding of the city of Kairouan, Egypt was the time to launch the norm these conquests.

In the era of Tulunid state use of Egyptian, Turkish and Sudanese elements it began, and began Ahmad ibn Tulun in the establishment of its own and separate from the Abbasid Caliphate Army, and the military reached Tulunid in Amjad days 100 thousand fighters, and in the era of the Fatimids cared well the affairs of the army and fortify the city of Cairo, which they founded and have created walls around the famous gates, expanded bureaucracy which oversees the army, where he became a Court called Diwan army was created Office of salaries and the Office of feudalism, and it was the military commander of the so-called time to «Asefhslar soldiers» and was also called the help of principalities and the mastermind of the army, and it was the princes of the army who oversee the military running things and devoted a third of the Fatimids abscess for the army, and in the era of the Fatimids, Egypt witnessed a wide wars with Qaramita, Byzantines, Crusaders, including the Battle of Ascalon and Bilbes in 1099.

Saladin and Guy of Lusignan after Battle of Hattin

In the era of Nasser Saladin interest increased army military facility to establish a strong army capable of addressing the attacks of the Crusaders, where Saladin, the completion of construction of the walls and the founding of the mountain (Castle, which was named in his name) as well as the Castle Pharaoh's Island in Taba to protect the Gulf of Aqaba, also divided the army into teams and named each one of them the name of one of the great leaders such as stamens and fitness and others, and the number of Knights of the army during his reign to 8640 horsemen, and was able to Saladin with his army, consisting of Egypt soldiers and sham victory in the battle of Hittin and fight battles in Tyre, Acre, Ramle, and was able to complete the King to address attacks Crusaders at Damietta and Cairo, and in the reign of good King began to rely on the Mamluks, and Trkoa in positions until they reached the top leadership of the army, and was able to Egyptian forces from the victory over the Crusaders at the battle of Mansura in 1250, and in the Mamluk able Saifuddin Qutuz preparing a strong army and the victory over the Mongols in a battle named Goliath, and was able to recover the Baybars complete cities in the Levant of the crusaders, and in 1517 the Ottoman from the victory over the Mamluks in the Battle of Ridaniya underwent Egypt after the rule of the Ottoman Empire.

19th century

Muhammad Ali pasha of Egypt displaying his army and navy.

Because of the ambitions of Muhammad Ali expansion should have a strong army can go ahead with opening and carries the burden of securing the homeland from the inside, I've tapped that idea after Fraser expedition and then the massacre of the castle and start opening the Arabian Peninsula and came on the back of the Egyptian army, which was led in the Hijaz war, which consists of Kurds, Albanians, Circassians who was a so-called form (Albahbozk) Any militia by Bedouins who join army as mercenaries, but they were not fluent in only technology (hit and run) among arts irregular warfare. The first attempts to Muhammad Ali to establish a modern army upon his return from the campaign against the Wahhabis in 1815 after noticing that the army fighting style is still outdated and does not rise to the modern art of war. Met Muhammad Colonel Soliman Pasha al-Faransawi one of the commanders of Napoleon Bonaparte who came to Egypt in 1819 and was very impressive Mohammed Ali mandated him to the education of five hundred Mamluks martial arts and modern so Aswan where he founded the Muhammad Ali's first military school in 1820, and joined by others from the Mamluks five hundred men of the governor, are the first nucleus of the army of modern Egypt.

Masacre de mamelucos en El Cairo ordenada por Mehmet Ali in 1811.

Muhammad Ali of his son Isma'il Pasha requested that extends about twenty thousand of Sudanese to be trained in the art of fighting in Bani Udai School, but the experiment failed to disease outbreaks among the Sudanese climate variation. I went in kind Muhammad Ali Egyptian peasants who strongly resisted the recruitment of sense that recruitment is only a sweatshop in addition to leaving their land and their farming, but after a while they felt the usefulness of what they are doing so in addition to the sense of dignity under the banner of Egypt. The advent of the month of January 1823 the formation of the first six verses of the first Egyptian regular army to begin hard training for a year and a half of the officers and soldiers together, to witness Muhammad Ali in Cairo the first military parade in June 1824 for the officers and soldiers of the Egyptian army, and issue the governor ordered him to establish the first camp in Khanka housed between twenty and twenty-five thousand soldiers, then established them Muhammad Ali a military hospital in Abu Zaabal.

Muhammad Ali Pasha of Egypt, with newly formed Egyptian army.

Then School of Medicine and later established a military school for pedestrians and School Staff in Khanka and started counting until the military strength reached 169 thousand officers and soldiers in 1833 and amounted to 236 thousand in 1839 established the Muhammad Ali Deewana army called the (Office of jihadist) put on his head Col. Suleiman Pasha Elfrinswe and entrusted with organizing the affairs of the army and secure the needs of ammunition and supplies. Fought the Egyptian army in the era of Muhammad Ali several wars organization, including the campaign against Sudan condemned all allegiance to the Egyptians ends in 1822. The second organization wars were Morh war, interspersed by the fall of the whole of Greece in the hands of the Egyptians, even endowed with England, Russia and France to restore Greece, and they besieged the Ottoman and Egyptian fleets and beat until sink all ships. After the Greek War of Independence sent Muhammad Ali's son Ibrahim Pasha at the head swept Sham campaign and denounced him all the cities of loyalty until he arrived at Konya and became the capital of the caliphate on the threshold of the European powers forced him to abandon the Levant and Egypt by virtue of retaining genetically to offspring.

Most modern wars

Egyptian army entering the castle Adana, During the First Egyptian-Ottoman War.

Egyptian army soldiers during the Fraser campaign in 1807

Throughout history, the Egyptian army fought many wars since the Pharaonic era and through the Islamic era and ending the era of the modern Egyptian state for several different reasons, including the expansion of influence in order to protect strategic depth to the Egyptian border, and to assist allies in the wars, but repel the invaders and aggressors attacks remain the most important defense of Egypt. In the era of Muhammad Ali the Egyptian army launched a campaign against Sudan with a view to forming a unity of the Nile Valley and the strengthening of national unity between the two countries. And it ended with the extension of Egyptian influence throughout the Sudan, He also participated the Greek War of Independence in order to help the Ottoman army put down the revolt in Greece and expand the Egyptian state and extend its influence overseas, Egyptian Army launched a crackdown on Syria's 30,000-strong fighters under the leadership of Ibrahim Pasha, it succeeded in the annexation of Syria and achieve the goals of Muhammad Ali and expansionary economic and refute the Ottoman army sent by the Ottoman sultan to stop the Egyptian army, And went crawling to the Anatolia arrived in Astana, which limits the Ottoman Sultan was forced to acquiesce to Ibrahim Pasha, and agree on a Magistrate in what is known Kutahya Convention, which ruled that abandons the Ottoman Sultan Muhammad Ali for Syria and the province of Adana to install it on Egypt and the island of Crete and the Hijaz in return for the Egyptian army Galloway from the rest Anatolia. During the reign of Abbas Pasha he made the Egyptian army with the help of the Ottoman Empire in its war against the Russian Empire called "Crimean War" fleet Marine consisting 12 vessels, and 6850 Marine troops under the command of Amir Hassan Pasha of Alexandria, and the army of ground consisting 72 cannon, and 19,722 ground troops under the command of the team properly Fathi Pasha, and the war ended with the victory of the Ottoman Empire and the defeat of the Russians. During the reign of Said Pasha Posted aorta 453-strong Egyptian-Sudanese troops to Mexico to help France in its war against the Mexican government after being abandoned by both England and Spain. The Egyptian army also participated in the defense of Palestine and Arabism and fought five wars against Israel (in 1948, 1956, 1967.1967 to 1970, and 1973). And wars against the British army and the French army. The Egyptian army also participated significantly in the North Yemen Civil War, and Libyan–Egyptian War in July 1977. It had a big part in Operation Desert Storm to liberate Kuwait from Iraqi occupation in 1991.

World War I

Units of the Egyptian Camel Transport Corps crossing the Jordan River by the pontoon bridge at Ghoraniyeh in March 1918

World War I (WWI), also known as the First World War, or the Great War, was a global war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history.^[2][3] Egyptian army participated in the war with the Allies in the August 5, 1914, more than 1,200,000 thousand troops at a time when Egypt's population is estimated it with 14 million people, came to joining the Allies because of the occurrence of Egypt under the influence of the British occupation since 1882 and the Declaration of Britain's protection to Egypt in 1914 and separated from the Ottoman Empire. Egyptian army were killed in three continents "Asia, Africa and Europe," and ranked eighth in terms of the number of troops, And it fell more than half a million troops in the war, The burial of the fallen soldiers from different countries in the Commonwealth cemeteries, Thus, the Egyptian army is to be the fifth in the order of the armies of the number of the martyrs at the level of allied countries where there are more than 100 thousand cemetery distributed in France, Belgium, Italy, Greece and the Malta, was the captain Allied armies in Europe for the bravery of the Egyptian soldier, saying: Egyptian soldier is ideal Diehard commander of the forces.

1948 Arab–Israeli War

The Israeli prisoners of war from the Battle of Nitzanim, presumably in Egypt. Picture taken between June 7, 1948, and March 7, 1949.

The 1948 Arab–Israeli War or the First Arab–Israeli War was fought between the Israel and a military coalition of Arab states. This war formed the second stage of the 1948 Palestine war, There had been tension and conflict between the Arabs and the Jews, and between each of them and the British forces, ever since the 1917 Balfour Declaration and the 1920 creation of the British Mandate of Palestine. British policies dissatisfied both Arabs and Jews. The Arabs' opposition developed into the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine, There had been tension and conflict between the Arabs and the Jews, and between each of them and the British forces, ever since the 1917 Balfour Declaration and the 1920 creation of the British Mandate of Palestine. British policies dissatisfied both Arabs and Jews. The Arabs' opposition developed into the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine, while the Jewish resistance developed into the Jewish insurgency in Palestine (1944–1947). In 1947 these ongoing tensions erupted into civil war, following the 29 November 1947 adoption of the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine which planned to divide Palestine into three areas: an Arab state, a Jewish state and the Special International Regime for the cities of Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The war ended with the defeat of Arab armies, Israel's occupation of Palestine and for several reasons the most important of the suffering of most of the Arab country at the time of colonialism and lack of national sovereignty, and the lack of arming the armies sufficient in addition to the weakness of the tactical organization.

Tripartite Aggression

An 'Archer' in position at Rafah, Sinai War, 1956.

The Suez Crisis, also named the Tripartite Aggression,^[4] was an invasion of Egypt in late 1956 by Israel, followed by the United Kingdom and France. The aims were to regain Western control of the Suez Canal and to remove Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser from power.^[5] After the fighting had started, the United States, the Soviet Union, and the United Nations forced the three invaders to withdraw. The episode humiliated Great Britain and France^[6] and strengthened Nasser.^[7][8] Represented the causes of aggression in the forced England to leave submissively for the Suez Canal after heavy losses in lives and materiel in the June 13, 1956, and France's desire for revenge from Egypt because they strongly supported Algerian War, in addition to Israel, which wants to destroy the Egyptian army, which has started to recover and is armed with one of the most from the source.

The pretext for an attack is to secure President Gamal Abdel Nasser, the Suez Canal, a decision taken after the withdrawal of the United States, Britain and the World Bank to finance the deal by the Aswan High Dam, which was dreamed created to be the center of development. Aggressive Faced fierce resistance from the Egyptian people, The Soviet Union and the Arab countries and China threatens to intervene by sending volunteers to Egypt, The United Nations is pressing the attacking nations. Ended aggression in the April 9, 1957 the withdrawal of all forces of the three countries aggressor from Egyptian territory and the opening of the Suez Canal to navigation after it closed lasted nearly five months.

North Yemen Civil War

Six-Day War

War of Attrition

October War

Gulf War

Sinai insurgency

Structure

Under the Ministry of Defence is the Egyptian Military Operations Authority with its headquarters in Cairo.^[9] The Egyptian Armed Forces' Chief of Staff's office is in Cairo. He is also chief of staff of the army. Formally, he is also chief of staff of the air force and navy as well, but apparently the commanders of the other two services frequently report directly to the Minister of Defence/Commander-in-Chief.^[10] From the Chief of Staff's office are directed three command-and-control headquarters and nine command-and-control field headquarters.

Structure of the First Field Army (click to enlarge)

Structure of the Second Field Army (click to enlarge)

Structure of the Third Field Army (click to enlarge)

Ranks and insignia

Egyptian Army ranks
	Commissioned Officers & Enlisted personnel
Shoulder straps	—-
Patches	Private	Expert/Specialist	Raqīb	First Raqīb	Assistant	First Assistant	Lieutenant	First Lieutenant	Captain	Major	Lieutenant Colonel	Colonel	Brigadier General	Major General	Lieutenant General	Colonel General	Field Marshal
Code NATO	OF-1	OF-2	OF-3	OF-4	OF-5	OF-6	OF-7	OF-8	OF-9	OF-10	OF-11	OF-12	OF-13	OF-14	OF-15	OF-16	OF-17

Uniform

The Egyptian Army uses a British style ceremonial outfit, and a desert camouflage overall implemented in 2012. The Identification between different branches in the Egyptian Army depends on the branch insignia on the left upper arm and the color of the beret. Also, the airborne, Thunderbolt, and republican guard each has its own camouflage overall.

Camouflage Suit

Army	Airborne	Thunderbolt	Republican Guard

Weapons inventory

Egypt's varied army weapons inventory complicates logistical support for the army. National policy since the 1970s has included the creation of a domestic arms industry (including the Arab Organization for Industrialization) capable of indigenous maintenance and upgrades to existing equipment, with the ultimate aim of Egyptian production of major ground systems.^[11] This target was finally met with the commencement of M-1 Abrams production in 1992.^[12] (Egypt had received permission to build an M-1 factory in 1984.) Prior to this, large acquisitions had included nearly 700 M-60A1 main battle tanks from the US from March 1990, as well as nearly 500 Hellfire anti-tank guided missiles.

See also

• Egyptian Military museum
• List of Battles of Egypt
• Central Security Forces
• List of countries by number of active troops

References

Further reading

• Kenneth Pollack, Arabs at War
• Steve Rothwell, Military Ally or Liability, The Egyptian Army 1936-42, accessed February 2009