Saddat had been an active member in the Free Officers Movement before 1952 and became the Vice President during the rule of Abd al-Nasser. He is considered the second president of the Arab Republic of Egypt. In 1970, Saddat was elected the President of Egypt. On October 6, 1973 Egypt regained its national pride by launching a sudden attack on the Israeli army. Egypt and Syria crossed the cease-fire lines in the Sinai and Golan Heights (which were occupied by Israel in 1967); crossed the Suez Canal; and destroyed Barlef Line. Other Arab countries shared in the war by cutting the oil supply to the West, a matter affected the Western aid to Israel. In November 1977, Saddat went to Jerusalem to make negotiations regarding peace with Israel, which ended with the signing of the Camp David Agreements in 1978, in which Israel agreed to withdraw from Sinai in May 1982. The Egypt–Israel peace treaty brought to Saddat the enmity of most Arab countries that they suspended Egypt from the Arab League and transferred its headquarters from Cairo to Tunisia. In 1981, while watching a parade commemorating the victory of 1973 War, al-Sadat was assassinated.
During the rule of Saddat, greater political freedom and a new economic policy were introduced. In the first years of his rule, he broke prisons and freed most prisoners who were arrested during Nasser era due to their political stands. He also brought to trial a number of former government officials accused of criminal excesses during the Nasser era.
Most importantly was his role in expanding participation in political life and encouraging the founding of new political parties. Although Nasser tended to apply socialism, Saddat followed capitalism and brought to Egypt the infitah or the 'open door' policy.
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