Libyan-Egyptian border war
| date | July 21-24, 1977 |
|---|---|
| place | Libyan-Egyptian border area |
| Casus Belli | Resistance to the rapprochement between Egypt and Israel |
| output | Egyptian victory |
| consequences | Return to the status quo ante bellum |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 3 brigades | 3 divisions |
| losses | |
|
400 dead and wounded 60 tanks Airplanes: 1 MiG-23MS |
100 dead and wounded Airplanes: 4 MiG-21 2 Su-20 |
.svg){kind=small}
The border war between Libya and Egypt was a brief border war between the two North African states in July 1977.
On July 20, 1977, Libyan artillery units shelled the Egyptian border town of Sallum (also Sollum ) and the Halfaya Pass after a protest march with several hundred angry Libyans at al-Sallum was stopped by Egyptian soldiers. The Libyans wanted to demonstrate against the rapprochement between Egypt and Israel in Cairo . Both sides verbally attacked each other and made each other responsible for the conflict.
Course of the fighting
On July 21, 1977, tank formations and motorized infantry units of the armed forces of Egypt, also supported by artillery units , advanced into the border area and returned the Libyan artillery fire. Around two divisions of the Egyptian 1st Army, which were usually stationed around Cairo, were ordered to the border with Libya. The Egyptian air forces attacked with fighter aircraft type Suchoi Su-20 and MiG-21 military bases of the Libyan army near the border on. Two radar systems and an anti-aircraft missile site in the al-Jaghbub oasis and on the Mediterranean coast near the city of Bardiyya were destroyed. Parts of the Egyptian 3rd Panzer Division advanced towards the Libyan city of Musaid (Musaed) behind the common border. According to unconfirmed reports, Soviet technicians ( military advisors ) are also believed to have perished.
On July 22, 1977, the Egyptian air forces intervened in a second wave of fighter aircraft of the type Su-20 and MiG-21, the Libyan air bases in al-Adam ( Gamal Abdul Nasser Airport south of Tobruk ) and al-kurta on, it should by Egyptian Seven Libyan aircraft are reported to have been devastated. An Egyptian combat aircraft type MiG-21 Fishbed was in the attack by a Libyan Fliegerfaust type Grail 7 SA- shot. The airfield of the Kufra oasis was also attacked by Egyptian fighter jets. Some Egyptian paratroopers are said to have jumped behind the Libyan lines. The surprised Libyan air defense, supported by Mirage V fighter jets and some Mi-8 helicopters equipped with electronic countermeasures ( ECM ) devices , pursued the attacking Egyptian planes and shot down a MiG-21 Fishbed fighter . A Libyan Mirage V machine was shot down by an SA-7 Fliegerfaust.
On July 23, 1977, the Egyptian air forces attacked the Libyan air base near al-Adam in a third wave with fighter planes. At that time, however, all the Libyan machines were in the air. A Libyan Mirage 5DE fighter aircraft shot down an Egyptian MiG-21 Fishbed. The al-Adam air force base was badly damaged. Libyan warplanes attacked the Egyptian base of Marsa Matruh and other targets on the border.
Three Libyan Mirage and a MiG-21 Fishbed were shot down on July 24, 1977 by Egyptian interceptors and anti-aircraft positions according to Egyptian information. In addition, a terrorist base in Libya about 35 km from the border was destroyed.
Armistice and Consequences
After mediation by Arab states, u. a. Algeria and the leader of the PLO, Yasser Arafat , stopped fighting after Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat gave orders on July 24, 1977 to stop all attacks and agree to a ceasefire . The fighting ended the day after that. The division in the Arab world continued unabated after the conflict and was seen as a serious setback in their position. Many conservative Arab countries expressed sympathy for Egypt under Anwar al-Sadat, the so-called social-revolutionary-progressive states endorsed the Libyan position under Muammar al-Gaddafi .
In August 1977 an exchange of prisoners of war between Libya and Egypt was agreed and led to an initial detente between the two Arab states. During the four days of fighting, around 400 soldiers were injured or killed on the Libyan side, while Egyptian losses amounted to around 100 men.