Defense Ministry releases color footage from Yom Kippur War
47 years later, rare footage shows scenes of soldiers during the war
By ANNA AHRONHEIMColor footage Yom Kippur War/Defense Ministry
Forty-seven years to the day that the Yom Kippur War broke out, the Defense Ministry has released new archival material showing never before seen in-color footage of the deadly 1973 war.The Yom Kippur War project in color includes many scenes, including rare photos of excellent quality from the Suez Canal, the lives of soldiers in the Sinai Peninsula, Air Force activity during the war, the folding of parachutes, the visit of the then chief of staff Lt.-Gen. David “Dado” Elazar and other generals including Ariel Sharon who commanded an armored division on the southern front, the appearance of actor Chaim Topol in front of reservists and more.The footage was found as part of the IDF’s Archival digitization project during which films from various Israeli wars were converted to a digital format that would allow for them to be preserved in a higher quality for years to come.The Yom Kippur War came almost as a complete surprise to Israel and warning notice was given too late for an orderly call-up of the reserves before the Syrian and Egyptian armies launched a joint surprise attack on IDF positions in the Golan Heights and the Sinai Peninsula.The Egyptians and the Syrians both made significant initial gains during the first days of the war. The Egyptians crossed the Suez Canal while the Syrians overran the Golan Heights. Within days, the IDF counterattacked.The war lasting until October 26 has gone down in Israel’s history as a failure and saw 2,688 IDF soldiers killed, thousands more wounded and hundreds captured. More than 1,000 tanks and hundreds of aircraft were destroyed or damaged.Military Intelligence was faulted for failing to sound the alarm in time about the movements of enemy forces, leading to the resignation of the chief of staff, the head of Military Intelligence, Maj.-Gen. Eli Zeira and other senior commanders.