Early life
Muhammad Anwar el-Sadat was born on December 25, 1918, in a village near the Nile River. At the time Egypt was a protectorate (territory) of Britain. Although the country regained its independence in 1922, the British retained influence there. Sadat attended Muslim schools and graduated from the Cairo Military Academy in 1938. During World War II (1939–45) he sided with the Germans in the hope that their troops would help drive the British out of Egypt once and for all. He was arrested twice during the conflict. The first time he escaped, and the second time he was held until 1949.
Political career
In 1950 Sadat joined the Free Officers, an organization led by Gamal Abdel Nasser. The group planned to overthrow the Egyptian king and set up a republican government. In 1952 Sadat participated in an armed but bloodless takeover of Egypt's government, ousting King Farouk. Nasser became president. Sadat held various high positions in Nasser's administration, eventually serving as vice president. When Nasser died in September 1970, Sadat became acting president. The next month he won election to the office.
In 1967 neighboring Israel had taken control of Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, a piece of land situated between the Gulf of Suez (in the Mediterranean Sea) to the north and the Red Sea to the south. Determined to take back Egypt's land, Sadat in October 1973 sent troops to attack Israeli forces in the occupied peninsula. Although Israel counterattacked and continued to hold the Sinai, Sadat was praised for the bold move throughout the Muslim world. (See also Arab-Israeli wars.)
In an effort to resolve the problem of the Sinai, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin invited Sadat to visit Israel. In November 1977 Sadat traveled to Jerusalem to speak to the Israeli parliament. In his speech Sadat acknowledged Israel's right to exist, marking the Jewish state's first recognition from a Muslim nation. Despite strong opposition among Muslims, Sadat participated in peace talks with Israel's leaders. For their efforts, Sadat and Begin were jointly awarded the Nobel peace prize in 1978. The next year Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty, the first between a Muslim nation and Israel.
Many Egyptians were angry with Sadat for signing the treaty. Adding to the president's problems at home, the economy was failing. On October 6, 1981, as Sadat watched a military parade in Cairo, he was shot and killed by Muslim extremists. By the terms of the treaty he had signed in 1979, the Sinai Peninsula was returned to Egypt in 1982.