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Treaty of Peace between the Arab Republic of Egypt and the State of Israel (26 March 1979)

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aliasesEgypt-Israel Peace Treaty, Israel-Egypt Treaty

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Summary

The peace treaty signed 26 March 1979 implementing the Camp David framework for an Egypt-Israel treaty: the state of war ends and peace is established on exchange of ratification instruments; Israel withdraws all its armed forces and civilians from the Sinai behind the international boundary between Egypt and mandated Palestine within three years (interim withdrawal behind the El-Arish–Ras Mohammed line within nine months), Egypt resuming full sovereignty; the boundary is recognized as inviolable, without prejudice to the status of the Gaza Strip; Articles III-VIII establish normal relations (full recognition, diplomatic, economic and cultural relations, end of boycotts), reciprocal security arrangements with limited-force Zones A-D and UN forces and observers removable only with the Security Council’s approval including the five Permanent Members’ affirmative vote, free passage through the Suez Canal and the Strait of Tiran and Gulf of Aqaba, good-faith fulfilment independently of any other party or external instrument, dispute settlement by negotiation, conciliation or arbitration, and a claims commission; Annex I and its Appendix regulate the withdrawal, zones, aerial and naval regimes, UN operations, liaison, the five interim subphases and the interim buffer zone’s Israeli technical installations; Annex III phases in diplomatic, economic, cultural, movement, transport and communications relations on completion of the interim withdrawal; and the Agreed Minutes qualify Articles I, IV, V and VI and add Egyptian oil sales to Israel (Treaty of Peace between the Arab Republic of Egypt and the State of Israel (26 March 1979), lines 1-180).

What the file is

The Avalon Project (Lillian Goldman Law Library, Yale Law School) reproduction of the treaty with Annexes I and III, the Appendix to Annex I and the Agreed Minutes, as one web page, © 2008. About 7,221 words of substantive text, within 180 lines including Avalon navigation. The Avalon page head titles it “Treaty Between Israel and Egypt : 1973” — as printed on the site; the treaty text itself is dated March 26, 1979, which the treaty, the Camp David entity accounts and the date of signature all support. Annex II is a map heading only; Maps 1-3 referred to in Annex I and its Appendix are not reproduced. The signature block at the end prints the two governments’ lines without names, followed by Jimmy Carter as witness. Minor slips as printed are noted in the reading notes (among them “Buffer Zone I of the 1976 Agreement” in Appendix Article II and “The Joint Committee” for the Joint Commission in Appendix Article IV).

Section by section

  • Preamble (lines 1-90). A just, comprehensive and lasting peace under Resolutions 242 and 338; adherence to the Camp David Framework of September 17, 1978, intended as a basis for peace with each prepared Arab neighbor; the treaty as an important step toward settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict in all its aspects; an invitation to the other Arab parties to join the process; provisions agreed in the free exercise of sovereignty to implement the Framework for the Conclusion of a Peace Treaty.
  • Article I. The state of war terminates and peace is established on exchange of instruments of ratification. Israel withdraws all armed forces and civilians from the Sinai behind the international boundary and Egypt resumes full sovereignty over the Sinai; on completion of the interim withdrawal the parties establish normal and friendly relations.
  • Article II. The permanent boundary is the recognized international boundary between Egypt and the former mandated territory of Palestine (map at Annex II), “without prejudice to the issue of the status of the Gaza Strip”; inviolable; mutual respect for territorial integrity including territorial waters and airspace.
  • Article III. Charter and international-law relations: mutual respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence and the right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries; no threat or use of force; each party prevents belligerency, hostility or violence originating from its territory or its forces, refrains from organizing or assisting such acts anywhere, and brings perpetrators to justice. Normal relationship: full recognition, diplomatic, economic and cultural relations, termination of economic boycotts and discriminatory barriers, mutual due process, per Annex III.
  • Article IV. Reciprocal security arrangements: limited force zones and UN forces and observers per Annex I; UN personnel not to be withdrawn at either party’s request and removable only with Security Council approval with the affirmative vote of the five Permanent Members, unless the parties otherwise agree; a Joint Commission to facilitate implementation; review and amendment of the arrangements by mutual agreement.
  • Article V. Free passage for Israeli ships and cargoes through the Suez Canal and its approaches under the Constantinople Convention of 1888, with non-discriminatory treatment; the Strait of Tiran and Gulf of Aqaba are international waterways open to all nations for unimpeded and non-suspendable freedom of navigation and overflight.
  • Article VI. Charter rights unaffected. Good-faith fulfilment without regard to any other party’s action or inaction and independently of any external instrument; application of multilateral conventions; no conflicting obligations; subject to Charter Article 103, treaty obligations prevail over the parties’ other obligations in a conflict.
  • Articles VII-IX. Disputes by negotiation, then conciliation or arbitration; a claims commission for all financial claims; entry into force on exchange of ratification instruments; the treaty supersedes the September 1975 Egypt-Israel Agreement; annexes, protocols and maps are integral; registration with the Secretary-General under Charter Article 102.
  • Annex I, Article I. Withdrawal completed not later than three years from exchange of ratification instruments, in two phases: interim withdrawal behind the El-Arish to Ras Mohammed line within nine months, final withdrawal behind the international boundary within three years, with the Zones of Map 1; a Joint Commission supervises, dissolved on final withdrawal.
  • Annex I, Article II (Zones). Zone A (Suez Canal and Gulf of Suez coast to line A): one Egyptian mechanized infantry division — three mechanized infantry brigades, one armored brigade, seven field artillery battalions with up to 126 pieces, seven anti-aircraft battalions with up to 126 guns of 37 mm and above, up to 230 tanks, 480 armored personnel vehicles, 22,000 personnel. Zone B: four Egyptian border battalions with light weapons, up to 4,000 personnel, supplementing the civil police. Zone C (to the international boundary and Gulf of Aqaba): only UN forces and Egyptian civil police with light weapons; UN Force camps in the area within about 20 km of the Mediterranean and in the Sharm el Sheikh area. Zone D (Israeli side): four Israeli infantry battalions, no tanks, artillery or anti-aircraft missiles except individual surface-to-air missiles, up to 180 armored personnel vehicles and 4,000 personnel, with UN observers. Cross-boundary access only at designated check points; only permitted forces, installations and weapons in the Zones.
  • Annex I, Articles III-V. Aerial regime: combat and reconnaissance flights only over Zones A and D respectively; unarmed aircraft limits in Zones B and C; only civilian airfields. Naval regime along Zones A and D coasts, coast guard in B, police boats in C, innocent passage preserved. Early warning systems only in Zones A and D.
  • Annex I, Article VI (UN Operations). Check points, patrols and observation posts along the boundary and line B and in Zone C; verification not less than twice a month and additional verification within 48 hours of a request; ensuring freedom of navigation through the Strait of Tiran; UN Force in Zones A-C, Observers in Zone D; the Force and Observers drawn from nations other than the Security Council’s permanent members.
  • Annex I, Articles VII-IX. Liaison system after the Joint Commission dissolves: Egyptian office in El-Arish, Israeli office in Beer-Sheba, direct telephone links. Preservation of and access to war memorials. Interim arrangements governed by the Appendix and Map 2.
  • Appendix, Articles I-II. Withdrawal principles: the 1975 Agreement’s military arrangements persist until the interim withdrawal from the J and M Lines; UN forces enter evacuated areas first to establish buffer zones; Egyptian deployments follow within seven days. Five subphases to the interim line: El Arish area within two months; between line M and line A within three; east and south of that area within five; El Tor–Ras El Kenisa within seven; the remaining areas including Santa Katrina and east of the Giddi and Mitla passes within nine. Battalion-by-battalion border deployments, naval activity phasing, and daylight Israeli evacuation convoys on four hours’ notice under UN escort.
  • Appendix, Article III-IV. Redeployment of the United Nations Emergency Force until final withdrawal. The Joint Commission’s functions (coordination, problem resolution, demarcation, handover of installations, return of missing bodies, check points, liaison teams), meeting at least monthly, on 24 hours’ notice when requested, first meeting within two weeks of entry into force.
  • Appendix, Article V (Interim Buffer Zone). A UN buffer zone west of the interim line; Egyptian civil police within it; four Israeli military technical installations (T1-T4, with map coordinates) manned by up to 150, 350 (T2 and T3) and 200 personnel with small arms only, open to inspection only by an agreed third party at least monthly, supplied and maintained under UN escort in daylight, withdrawn when Israeli forces leave the interim line.
  • Appendix, Articles VI-VIII. Joint inspection and intact transfer of agreed infrastructures, utilities and installations, including airfields, roads, pumping stations and ports; continued water availability at supply points until final withdrawal; minefield and barrier clearance, with maps for uncleared fields delivered at least 15 days before UN entry. United States airborne surveillance flights and the U.S.-operated Sinai Field Mission continue until the specified withdrawals complete. Egypt resumes full sovereignty over each evacuated part on Israeli withdrawal.
  • Annex II. Map of the Israel-Egypt international boundary — heading only, map not reproduced.
  • Annex III, Articles 1-3. Diplomatic and consular relations and ambassadors, removal of discriminatory economic barriers and termination of boycotts, and normal cultural relations, each upon completion of the interim withdrawal, with trade and cultural agreement negotiations within six months after it.
  • Annex III, Articles 4-6. Free movement of nationals and vehicles and unimpeded access to religious and historical places; good neighbourly relations and abstention from hostile propaganda; Chicago Convention rights, civilian-only use of the El-Arish, Rafah, Ras El-Nagb and Sharm El-Sheikh airfields, roads and railways reopened, a highway between Egypt, Israel and Jordan near Eilat, and normal postal, telephone and other communications and port access on completion of the interim withdrawal; Treaty Article 5 implemented on exchange of ratification instruments.
  • Annex III, Articles 7-8. Commitment to respect and observe human rights and fundamental freedoms for all in accordance with the UN Charter; innocent passage through territorial seas.
  • Agreed Minutes. Sovereignty resumes area by area on withdrawal (Article I); the Article IV review begins within three months of a request, amendment only by mutual agreement; the Article V and VI minutes quote and preserve the treaty sentences they qualify, including the agreed statement that “there is no assertion that this Treaty prevails over other Treaties or agreements or that other Treaties or agreements prevail over this Treaty” against Article VI(5); a U.S. proposal on UN Force composition if the parties cannot agree; and normal commercial sales of Egyptian oil to Israel as part of normal economic relations.
  • Signature block. For the Government of Israel and for the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt (names not printed in this block), witnessed by Jimmy Carter, President of the United States of America.

Key passages

  • “Israel will withdraw all its armed forces and civilians from the Sinai behind the international boundary between Egypt and mandated Palestine, as provided in the annexed protocol (Annex I ), and Egypt will resume the exercise of its full sovereignty over the Sinai.” (Article I)
  • “The permanent boundary between Egypt and Israel in the recognized international boundary between Egypt and the former mandated territory of Palestine, as shown on the map at Annex II, without prejudice to the issue of the status of the Gaza Strip.” (Article II, as printed)
  • “The Parties undertake to fulfill in good faith their obligations under this Treaty, without regard to action or inaction of any other party and independently of any instrument external to this Treaty.” (Article VI)
  • “This Treaty supersedes the Agreement between Egypt and Israel of September, 1975.” (Article IX)

Evidence the work relies on

A negotiated treaty, not an evidentiary work. It rests on Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338, the Camp David Frameworks of 17 September 1978 which it implements, the UN Charter (Articles 102 and 103 among them), the Constantinople Convention of 1888 and the Chicago Convention of 1944. Its operative content is its own articles, zones, ceilings and timetables; it cites no reports or statistics.

Analysis

The treaty converts the second Camp David framework’s headings into a complete military-administrative regime: every commitment carries a zone, a ceiling, a deadline or a verification mechanism, and the two timetables (nine months to the interim line by five named subphases, three years to the boundary) are the spine. Three features structure its politics. First, delinkage is written in: fulfilment is owed “without regard to action or inaction of any other party and independently of any instrument external to this Treaty”, and the preamble’s invitation to other Arab parties is hortatory — nothing in the operative articles conditions Sinai withdrawal or normalization on West Bank and Gaza progress, and the Gaza Strip appears only in Article II’s without-prejudice clause. Second, the UN presence is locked by the Permanent Members’ affirmative-vote rule in Article IV, the same device the framework used for Sharm el-Sheikh. Third, the Agreed Minutes both preserve and soften Article VI(5): the treaty text gives its obligations priority subject to Charter Article 103, while the minute records that neither this treaty nor any other is asserted to prevail — both formulations are carried in the file and held side by side here, as the treaty itself does.

People, organizations, places and events

Egypt-Israel Treaty of Peace (1979), Camp David Accords, Jimmy Carter, Egypt, Israel, Sinai Peninsula, Suez Canal, West Bank, Gaza, UN Security Council Resolution 242, UN Security Council Resolution 338, United Nations Emergency Force

Concepts

Self-determination

How it relates to other sources

The treaty is the operative completion of the second half of Camp David Accords: A Framework for Peace in the Middle East; Framework for the Conclusion of a Peace Treaty between Egypt and Israel (17 September 1978): framework terms recur nearly verbatim (the 50 km division limit becomes Zone A’s division; the four-battalion limit east of the border becomes Zone C/D arrangements; the El-Arish–Ras Muhammad interim line keeps the framework’s endpoints). The first framework’s West Bank and Gaza process has no counterpart here, which is the textual ground for the readings on the Camp David Accords page: Said’s account of a separate pact shutting the Palestinians out, Zionist Israel and the Question of Palestine’s record of Egypt’s exclusion from the Arab League for its solo action, and Perceptions of Palestine’s note that there was no linkage between Sinai withdrawal and the Palestinian issue. The earlier Egyptian-Israeli General Armistice Agreement is the treaty’s predecessor instrument for the same boundary; this treaty supersedes only the September 1975 agreement by its own terms.

Open questions

  • The Avalon page head dates the treaty “1973”; the treaty text, its preamble’s Camp David date and the signature date in the text give 26 March 1979. The discrepancy is the site’s, held here without resolution from inside the file beyond the treaty’s own date line.
  • Annex II’s map and Maps 1-3 are not reproduced, so the zone lines A, B and D and the interim line cannot be located from this file beyond their textual descriptions.
  • Annex I Article VIII as printed undertakes preservation of “the War Memorials erected in the memory of soldiers of the other Party, namely those erected by Egypt in Israel” and names no Israeli memorials in Egypt; whether the sentence is truncated in the reproduction cannot be settled from the text copy.
  • The end signature block prints no names for either government; the signatories are identified in the file only by office in the witness line for Carter.
  • Article VI(5) and its Agreed Minute state opposite priority formulations; both are recorded above and in the reading notes without reconciliation.

Coverage

lines 1-180 of 180, read in full.

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