October 29 – November 5, 1956 · Sinai Peninsula Theater
October 29 – November 5, 1956
Israel's armored columns raced across the Sinai in a coordinated blitzkrieg-style operation that was secretly coordinated at Sèvres, France, where the three powers agreed Israel would attack first to provide the pretext for Anglo-French intervention. Moshe Dayan orchestrated multiple simultaneous axes of advance: paratroopers at the Mitla Pass, armor through Abu Ageila, infantry along the northern coastal road through Rafah, and a southern drive toward Sharm el-Sheikh. Egyptian units retreated in disorder as their chain of command broke down. Israel captured the entire Sinai Peninsula in eight days, advancing 170 miles to the Canal. US and Soviet pressure then forced a humiliating withdrawal.
Commanders