Region | Egypt
New social issues fade memories of defeat
Clutching an old copy of a local newspaper carrying the picture of the late Egyptian president Jamal Abdul Nasser, Hafez Fat'hi trembles as he recalls the days which followed Egypt's military defeat in the 1967 Middle East War.
- By Ramadan Al Sherbini, Correspondent
- Published: 23:38 May 3, 2009
- Image Credit: AP
- President of the United Arab Republic Jamal Abdul Nasser (right), and King Hussain of Jordan, sign a defence treaty at the Kubbeh Palace in Cairo on May 30, 1967.
Cairo: Clutching an old copy of a local newspaper carrying the picture of the late Egyptian president Jamal Abdul Nasser, Hafez Fat'hi trembles as he recalls the days which followed Egypt's military defeat in the 1967 Middle East War.
"On the initial days of the war, our media told us our troops had downed hundreds of Israeli planes. But we all woke up to a terrible nightmare that all these were sheer lies and that our jetfighters were crippled before they could even fly," Fat'hi, a 66-year-old former teacher, told Gulf News.
"The crushing defeat on June 5, 1967, was like an earthquake, which shattered the dreams, which we lived with Nasser. His decision to quit added to the trauma."
In the wake of Israel's stunning victory over the Egyptian army, Nasser, who championed Arab nationalism, declared he would leave power.
"How could he leave us at that agonising moment? I joined thousands of Egyptians who poured into the streets demanding he stay. He went back on his decision. But I think the 1967 routing wrote Nasser's death certificate three years before his actual departure," added Fat'hi.
Absent from libraries
On the 40th anniversary of the Six-Day War, the Egyptian media devoted a lot of space to political analyses and interviews with former soldiers who survived death in the Sinai desert.
But for Sherine Ahmad, a high school student, the issue is of no interest.
"I have a smattering of knowledge about this war collected from local old movies and some lines scattered in my textbooks," she said. "The focus in my history book is on the October victory and how President [Hosni] Mubarak launched the first strike against Israel," she adds, referring to Egypt's 1973 surprise attack against the Jewish state.
"My school library does not have a single book on the 1967 war. I think 40 years are a distant past for me. After all, we have peace with Israel," she added with laughter.
"I don't care whether it was a defeat or Naqsa," said Mohammad Sayed, a commerce school graduate. 'Al Naqsa' was the term used by the Nasser regime to refer to the military defeat.
"What I just want is a rewarding, permanent job to make a family of my own," added Sayed, who said he had been a casual worker since his graduation five years ago.
"Talking about the past is of no use. We need to concentrate on solving the present problems such as unemployment and a shortage of affordable houses. And don't forget that now Israel is officially a friendly country where some young Egyptians go to look for jobs and marry," said Sayed.
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