The official evacuation order for the Sinai Peninsula issued by Defense Minister Ariel Sharon – April 1982

The official evacuation order for the Sinai Peninsula issued by Defense Minister Ariel Sharon – April 1982

“Today we complete the evacuation of Sinai, in accordance with the Camp David Accords and the first peace agreement signed by Israel with the largest and most important of the Arab states – Egypt...” – “Daily Order for the Evacuation of Sinai”, printed signature of then–Defense Minister Ariel Sharon. April 25, 1982.

In his historic letter to commanders and soldiers both in active duty and reserve Defense Minister Ariel Sharon writes: “Who, more than our generation, in the State of Israel - fighting for its existence and advancement for decades has personally known the horrors of war in Sinai and on all other battlefields. In the Six-Day War, the War of Attrition, and later in the most bitter and difficult of them all, in which we once again defeated the enemy - the Yom Kippur War. The sands of the Sinai Desert, which have accompanied us since the rebirth of our nation - rebuilding and re-rooting itself in its land, are saturated with the blood of our fighters... We are not retreating from Sinai. We are demonstrating our will to advance toward peace...”. He also addresses the broad opposition that arose when the Government of Israel ordered the IDF to evacuate settlements, “with their residents and homes, their fields and gardens”, and refers specifically to the evacuation of Yamit by IDF forces: “No Arab army ever succeeded nor will it ever succeed in destroying an Israeli city. Only we, with our own hands, were forced to destroy Yamit. We were forced to wipe it off the face of the earth, in order to uphold the peace agreement on time and without Jewish blood being shed.” and concludes with a commitment, in the name of the Government of Israel, to defend peace.

The evacuation of the Sinai Peninsula in 1982 marked the practical culmination of the peace agreement between Israel and Egypt. It constituted a historic precedent in which the State of Israel withdrew from a large territory captured in war not as a result of military defeat, but as part of a deliberate political decision. The withdrawal symbolized a shift from a territorial-security doctrine to a strategic approach based on international legitimacy, recognized borders, and the reduction of war risks. The dismantling of settlements and military bases in Sinai illustrated the social and emotional price of peace, but also the depth of commitment shown by the leadership on both sides foremost Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin to a process that was seen at the time as revolutionary and irreversible. The evacuation reshaped the map of the Middle East and became a central benchmark in Israeli discourse on borders, security, and the meaning of peace. Ariel Sharon's role in the Sinai evacuation was complex and deeply significant. As Defense Minister at the time of the agreement’s implementation, he bore the practical responsibility for carrying out the large-scale withdrawal even though he was ideologically opposed to territorial concessions and the evacuation of settlements. Some 20 years later, Sharon now serving as Prime Minister would carry out a similar action in the form of the “Disengagement Plan”, a unilateral evacuation of settlements from the Gaza Strip and northern Samaria, which in effect created a deep political rift and ideological fracture within the very political camp from which he had emerged.

[1] leaf. Printed on both sides. Age stains. Good condition.