DEADLINE MET Mission Begins

DETAILS

By January 1982, it was clear the MFO would meet its deadline to commence its mission. The Force would be in place by March 20, 1982, and the mission of the MFO would begin on April 25, 1982, the day that Israel would return the Sinai to Egyptian sovereignty.

In February, the MFO opened a small office in Cairo. This office, like its counterpart in Tel Aviv, began to lay the foundation for the procurement and diplomatic duties that would eventually take place in the two Receiving States.

During the first part of 1982, the selection and training of military personnel took place in the Southern Pacific, the Americas, and Western Europe, as the twelve Troop-Contributing Nations prepared their contingents for deployment to the Sinai.

On April 25, 1982, the date specified in the Treaty of Peace, representatives of Egypt, Israel, and the MFO met at North Camp (now Forward Operating Base North). After brief, cordial conversation, Israel's Star of David was replaced with the red, white, and black banner of the Arab Republic of Egypt. At that significant moment in the turbulent history of the region, the Sinai was returned to Egyptian sovereignty, and the MFO took up its mission of peace.