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Israel and Egypt ·

The Sinai Disengagement Agreements (1974, 1975)

Two military agreements – a separation of forces and an interim agreement – signed after the 1973 war; the first states explicitly that it is not a final peace agreement.

In 30 seconds

After the 1973 war, two agreements separated the Israeli and Egyptian armies in Sinai, mediated by US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. They were not peace, but in the second one the parties undertook not to resolve the conflict by force. Four years after it, the peace treaty was signed.

Where it stands today

The agreements are historical: they were replaced by the 1979 Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty, which provided for a full Israeli withdrawal from Sinai4.

In one sentence

To pull the armies apart after the war and open a path to negotiation.

The challenge

When the 1973 war ended, the armies were entangled on both sides of the Suez Canal and the ceasefire was fragile. Egypt wanted Israel to pull back from the canal; Israel wanted security arrangements and an Egyptian commitment not to return to war.

The road there

  1. Kissinger begins shuttling between Aswan and Jerusalem1.
  2. The disengagement agreement is signed at Kilometre 101 by chiefs of staff David Elazar and Mohamed Abdel Ghani el-Gamasy, in the presence of the commander of the UN Emergency Force2.
  3. Contacts on a second agreement stall; President Ford announces a reassessment of US policy1.
  4. The Interim Agreement is signed in Geneva, after being initialled on 1 September3.

The people

What was agreed

  • 1974: Egyptian forces deploy west of Line A, and Israeli forces – including those west of the canal – east of Line B2.
  • 1974: the UN Emergency Force is stationed between the lines, with zones of limited forces and armaments on either side2.
  • 1974: the agreement is not a final peace agreement but a first step toward a just and durable peace2.
  • 1975: the parties undertake that the conflict will not be resolved by military force, but by negotiation3.
  • 1975: Israel withdraws eastward, and a UN buffer zone is set up in the area it leaves1.
  • 1975: early-warning stations in the Mitla and Giddi passes, run by American civilians3.

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The geography

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Schematic map of Israel and its neighbours with line typesGulf of AqabaGulf of SuezEGYPTSinaiISRAELGaza StripJerusalemGazaSharm el-SheikhEilat · Aqaba · TabaRafahSuez

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Layers · Legend
  • International boundary agreed in a peace treaty
  • Treaty line with Jordan, “without prejudice to the status” of the territory beyond it
  • 1949 armistice line (“Green Line”) — not an agreed final border
  • “Blue Line” — UN line of withdrawal (2000), not a border
  • Ceasefire / disengagement line with Syria (1974)
  • Other international boundary
  • West Bank and Gaza Strip: permanent status not agreed
  • Golan Heights: held by Israel since 1967; annexation not recognised by the UN
  • UN area of separation (UNDOF)

Classification follows the original research as of 7 Oct 2026. This schematic map is not a legal boundary map or a live update.

  • International boundary agreed in a peace treaty
  • Treaty line with Jordan, “without prejudice to the status” of the territory beyond it
  • 1949 armistice line (“Green Line”) — not an agreed final border
  • “Blue Line” — UN line of withdrawal (2000), not a border
  • Ceasefire / disengagement line with Syria (1974)
  • Other international boundary
  • West Bank and Gaza Strip: permanent status not agreed
  • Golan Heights: held by Israel since 1967; annexation not recognised by the UN
  • UN area of separation (UNDOF)

Schematic map. Lines are approximate and are not a legal determination. Data: Natural Earth (public domain), 1:10m scale; line classification and place names by this site. Lines as of October 2026. Peace map

The hard decisions

  • Israel gave up territory without receiving peace; Egypt accepted a partial, separate arrangement with no solution for the other fronts or the Palestinian question.
  • Negotiations on the second agreement took months and produced an open crisis between Washington and Jerusalem1.

What was carried out

  • The forces were separated and the UN force deployed between them3.
  • The United States set up three manned stations and three unmanned sensor fields in Sinai1.

What was not

—

What remains open

  • The agreements showed that both sides could sign an arrangement and keep it, but peace required a different kind of political decision – the one that came with Sadat's visit to Jerusalem.

Sources

  1. Official archive U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian
    Shuttle Diplomacy and the Arab-Israeli Dispute, 1974–1975
  2. Primary United Nations (UNISPAL) · 18 January 1974
    Letter dated 18 January 1974 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the Security Council (Egyptian-Israeli Agreement on Disengagement of Forces)
  3. Primary United Nations (UNISPAL) · 1975
    Yearbook of the United Nations 1975 (excerpts)
  4. Primary United Nations Treaty Series · 26 March 1979
    Treaty of Peace between the Arab Republic of Egypt and the State of Israel