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Egyptian forces lose 200 tanks; drive on Damascus continues. Israelis beat back Egyptians
By Jerusalem Post Military Reporters
October 15, 1973
TEL AVIV The Egyptian forces yesterday lost some 200 tanks after an eight-hour armored battle in an attempt to breach the Israeli defenses along a wide sector of the Suez Canal front. They were repeatedly repulsed after launching their attack at 6 a.m.
The Egyptians opened up with an intensive 90-minute artillery barrage, followed by a massive attack of armor. It was the third consecutive day that the Egyptians attacked and observers here suggested that the determined Egyptian pressure was inevitable following the continued build-up of their forces on the east side of the Canal for the past few days.
The Egyptians are believed to have transferred more tanks across the Canal until yesterday. In yesterdays battle the Israel ground units were actively supported by the IAF which provided close support.
No figured were given as the number of tanks that went into action yesterday but the battle was said to have exceeded in scale the famous WWII fight at El Alamein in which 1450 tanks were involved, or Germanys opening move on the Russian front in June 1941, where 1400 tanks were deployed.
A total of 19 enemy planes were brought down yesterday, 15 of them Egyptian, including two Mirages, and four Syrian aircraft.
Early morning sorties by Egyptian fighter-bombers included for the first time an undisclosed number of French-built Mirages presumably out of the batch delivered by France to Libya.
The IAF continued its raids against Egyptian and Syrian airfields and also provided more of its close air-to-ground support on both fronts as well as against anti-aircraft missiles and military installations in Port Said for the fourth day running.
During Saturday night Israel Navy missile boats attacked the port of Damietta in the Nile Delta, and shelled port installations.
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