I write today about what happened in January 25, 1951. On that day, several Egyptian police officers gathered in the city of Ismailia governorate administrative building, and decided to face seven thousand English soldiers who were armed with tanks, armored vehicles and guns. The Egyptians were less than 800 soldiers with old guns. Commander of British forces ordered them to surrender and to hand over their weapons and withdraw from the Canal Zone. He threatened to demolish the building on their heads like they had just blown up 156 houses in Kafr Ahmed Abdu in Suez in response to guerrilla operations.
Junior officers agreed not to surrender and not to hand over their weapons for the English army. They decided to stand a chance until the final breath knowing they fight an unequal battle and they are most likely to die. The senior officers, Muslims and Christians, took the same decision and took an oath to fight till the end.
The battle started and the Englishmen asked them again to surrender, but the officers had agreed to fight till the end.
The blood of fifty soldiers blessed Ismailia, and 80 honorable young soldiers were injured. The rest of the soldiers were captured by the British army. The record of the martyrs of January 25, 1951 reads the names of Muslims along with Christians as they sacrificed their blood for the homeland.
In July 1954, President Gamal Abdel Nasser praised their bravery assuring that they stood and fight for the sake of their honor and their nation.
Abd al-Rahman al-Rafai in his book "Introductions to July 23 Revolution" said that fighting occupation was the main goal of the people. People used to demonstrate demanding weapons to fight the occupation. All workers refused to cooperate with the British soldiers including railway and ports’ workers. More than 60.000 workers left the British camps though they represented the only source of their livelihood!
Army officers trained the guerrillas and provided them with weapons in Port Said, Suez and Ismailia. National liberation gathered all Egyptians and the battle of January 25 was a great introduction for such liberation.
