Khaberni - The participation of the Jordanian Arab Army in the October War of 1973 was an extension of a deep-rooted national message, which began with the Great Arab Revolt, passing through the battles of Jerusalem and the Battle of Karameh, reaching this battle. The Jordanian Army positioned itself on its western borders, forming an impenetrable barrier to protect the national borders and oversee everything happening on the Syrian and Egyptian fronts, raising the readiness of its units and formations to open a third front on its western borders. The opening of the western front was in accordance with Arab understandings and plans if needed. However, developments in the Golan and the approaching arrival of the Israeli army to Damascus prompted the Jordanian army to adjust the plans agreed upon and relocate its forces away to the Golan, where it was unaccustomed to fighting, responding to the call of Arab unity.
In aid to brotherly Syria, defending Damascus, the Royal Armored Brigade/40, by order from His Majesty the late King Hussein bin Talal, moved at 1730 on October 11 towards Syrian territory. King Hussein stood before his soldiers at the border near Daraa, bidding them farewell, saying "You are going to support your land... the land of Arabism." The brigades of the brigade were thus distributed: the Second Royal Tank Battalion towards Dael, the Fourth Royal Tank Battalion towards Muzayrib and Yadudah, and the Prince Abdullah the First Mechanized Battalion towards the Syrian Naimah. At dawn on October 14, the Jordanian command undertook its combat tasks, which included repelling enemy attacks in cooperation with the Syrian and Iraqi forces, forming a second line for the 5th Syrian Division, and executing a counter-attack on the axis of Hara – Mashara – Jabata.
On October 16, the Armored Brigade/40, led by Brigadier General Khalid Hijahoj, advanced, but the brigade's right flank was exposed due to the sudden retreat of the Syrian forces and the delayed advance of the Iraqi forces, resulting in direct fire on the Prince Abdullah the First Mechanized Battalion, causing significant human and material losses. This prompted the brigade commander to replace this battalion with the 4th Tank Battalion, which in turn halted this breach, enabling the rest of the brigade to reorganize its forces and maintain position during this time. His Majesty the late King Hussein visited the battlefield, where he stood among the men of the Armored Forty in a moment that epitomized the essence of leadership and boosted the soldiers’ morale. From there, he sent a message to the Syrian President, offering Jordan and its capabilities to serve the Arab nation. This visit was a spiritual boost etched in the memory of Jordanians, and proved that the Hashemite leader does not lead from afar, but is in the heart of the fire.
On October 19, Brigade/40 launched a new attack on the approach of Tal Mashara – Jabata, regaining the initiative and control over the battle. The Second Tank Battalion breached enemy lines for seven kilometers and secured defensive positions in these battles. The brigade offered twenty-three martyrs from the finest sons of the Arab army, leaving behind an eternal legacy of loyalty, discipline, and sacrifice, led by the story of martyr Captain Fareed al-Sheishani, which can only be told with reverence resembling fighters' prayers before dawn.
Fareed... that officer who continued to fight until the last shell in his tank, emerged on foot from the flames, carrying his rifle in one hand and his grenades in the other, advancing as if walking on the pathway to eternity, engaging the enemy face to face, protected only by his faith, and no cover but the dust of the land he swore to leave only as a free man or a martyr.
The October War for Jordan represented an authentic Arab stance, where the Jordanian soldier fought in the Golan as if he were in Al Balqa, and died on the way to Damascus as if on the path to Karameh; he fought with an unwavering robustness, epitomizing a firm belief that every Jordanian bullet was fired for the sake of Arab land. To document this, the Armed Forces of Jordan, the Arab Army, releases the new documentary "Jordanian October," produced by the Military Media Directorate to highlight the participation of the Jordanian Arab Army in the October War of 1973, and to retell the story, enhancing it with the display of military documents about the battle, published for the first time. Every scene in the film, every piece of revealed document confirms the Jordanian Arab essence in October, showing that the men of the Arab Army, bearing the sacred message of Arabism, form steel shields on every tank, behind every cannon, in every Jordanian aircraft, defending the Arab soil.
