Issue No.328
Supplement
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5 - 11 June 1997 Issue No.328 Supplement |
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Recommend this page | ||
"I have taken a decision with which I need your help. I have decided to withdraw totally and for good from any official post or political role, and to return to the ranks of the masses, performing my duty in their midst, like any other citizen.
Al-Ahram's front page of 10 June
"The forces of imperialism believe that Gamal Abdel-Nasser is their enemy. I want it to be clear to them that it is the whole Arab nation, not just Gamal Abdel-Nasser.
"The forces hostile to the Arab nationalist movement try to portray it as Abdel-Nasser's empire, a falsehood, since the hope of Arab unity began before Abdel-Nasser and will continue after Abdel-Nasser...
"In accordance with the text of Article 110 of the Interim Constitution issued in March 1964, I have assigned my colleague, friend and brother Zakariya Mohieddin to take over the post of president, and to act in accordance with the stipulations of the relevant article of the constitution...
"This is a time for action, not grief... My whole heart is with you, and let your hearts be with me. May God be with us -- hope, light and guidance in our hearts."
It was only as Nasser's resignation statement was broadcast live on Egyptian television and radio on 9 June that millions of Egyptians and Arabs realised the full scope of the defeat. In homes and coffee houses across the land, the nation had gathered to listen to the leader's words, and everywhere the bitter tears streaming down people's faces told the same story: a common dream of dignity and liberation was being shattered.
No sooner was the statement broadcast, however, than millions were pouring into the streets throughout the country. Their rejection of Abdel-Nasser's speech was expressed in a battle cry: "We shall fight".
The humiliating defeat of June '67 was a gauntlet thrown in the face of the century-old Egyptian and Arab nationalist movement, ruthlessly exposing its defects and shortcomings. As the pages of this supplement reveal, the challenge was met in part: the armed forces were totally reformed and rebuilt, even as they were engaging the occupation forces in a two-year War of Attrition and secretly preparing for the "impossible" task of recrossing the Suez Canal, stunning Israel and the world in October 1973. The catastrophic involvement of the army in the political life of the country was terminated, and democratisation came to occupy a prominent place on the national agenda. A military victory was achieved in '73 and Sinai was finally liberated.
Yet the continuing occupation of Arab lands, the overwhelming oppression of the Palestinian people and denial of their fundamental rights, the arrogance of power that has come to define Israel's attitude towards its Arab neighbours -- all these are remnants of June '67, an indication that the challenge has yet to be fully met.
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