ABSTRACT
The year 1971 was a turning point in the modem history of the Middle East. In Egypt and Syria, new regimes were established; in Jordan, the sovereignty of the regime was unquestionably reasserted and a period of stability began such as the country had not known since the annexation of the West Bank in 1950; in Iraq, Saddam Husayn became the unquestioned leader of his regime. These changes contributed to the chain of processes which led to the Yom Kippur War (the October 1973 War).
