Forgotten heroes
THE BEARDS worn by the men being honoured here are no indication of political Islam -- far from it: these are October War heroes who, having spent the 1973 War and its aftermath beyond enemy lines for six months, had simply not had time to shave when they were met by Ahmed Ismail, the field marshal at the time. The October victory is arguably Egypt's best celebrated national achievement but its true heroes remain largely unknown, robbed of their achievement by politicians and media hacks. Likewise, it is feared, the January revolutionaries of Tahrir. Twenty years from now, will the young Facebook-savvy instigators of 25 January be excluded by the revolution-snatchers and forgotten as were these veterans?
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