Egyptian Army
The Egyptian Army (Egyptian Arabic: الجيش المصري, romanized: El Geish el Masry, Coptic: Ⲛⲉⲛⲁⲗⲁⲥⲱϯ ⲛ̀ⲕⲏⲙⲓ) or Egyptian Ground Forces (Egyptian Arabic: القوات البرية المصرية, romanized: El-Quwwāt El-Barriyya El-Maṣriyya) is the land warfare branch of the Egyptian Armed Forces. It is the largest service branch of the Egyptian Armed Forces.
Egyptian Army | |
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الجيش المصري (Egyptian Arabic) Ⲛⲉⲛⲁⲗⲁⲥⲱϯ ⲛ̀ⲕⲏⲙⲓ (Coptic) | |
Flag of the Egyptian Army | |
Active | 1803–1819 (de facto) 1820–present |
Country | Egypt |
Type | Army |
Role | Ground warfare |
Size | 310,000 active personnel 375,000 reserve personnel 685,000 total personnel |
Part of | Egyptian Armed Forces |
Armed Forces Chief of Staff's Office | Heliopolis, Cairo |
Motto(s) | Victory or Martyrdom |
Colours | Red, White, Black |
March | "We painted the face of our nation on our hearts." (Arabic: رسمنا على القلب وجه الوطن, rasamna ala al qalb wagh al watan) |
Mascot(s) | Saladin's Eagle |
Engagements | See list
|
Decorations | See list
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Commanders | |
Minister of Defense And Military Production | Mohamed Ahmed Zaki |
Chief of the General Staff | Lieutenant General Osama Askar |
The modern army was established during the reign of Muhammad Ali Pasha (1805–1849), widely considered to be the "founder of modern Egypt". Its most significant engagements in the 20th century were in Egypt's five wars with the State of Israel (in 1948, 1956, 1967, 1967–1970, and 1973), one of which, the Suez Crisis of 1956, also saw it do combat with the armies of the United Kingdom and France. The Egyptian army was also engaged heavily in the protracted North Yemen Civil War, and the brief Egyptian–Libyan War in July 1977. Its last major engagement was Operation Desert Storm, the liberation of Kuwait from Iraqi occupation in 1991, in which the Egyptian army constituted the second-largest contingent of the allied forces.
As of 2023, the army has an estimated strength of 310,000 of which approximately 90,000–120,000 are professionals and the rest conscripts. There exists an additional 375,000 reservists.