On 31 January 2015 a "unified command" was established to oversee counterterrorism operations east of the Suez Canal.[1]Osama Askar, commander of the Third Army, was promoted to lieutenant general and given command of the new "unified command."[2] Askar will also retain his seat on the SCAF. Askar's former deputy, Muhammad Abdullah, has been appointed commander, and Tarek Anwar Helal the chief of staff, of the Third Army.[3]
In May 2018 the Third Army comprised the 4th Armoured Division; the 19th Infantry Division, which included an armoured brigade, but whose remaining troops might have been un-mechanized infantry; the 23rd Mechanized Division; and the 11th Armoured Brigade.[4] Previous
army commander Osama Askar had previously commanded the 23rd Mechanized Division earlier in his career.[5] The 23rd Division, under Brig Gen Ahmad 'Aboud el Zommer, was previously part of the Second Field Army during the Yom Kippur War.[6]
Operation Badr order of battle, 1973
Just before the beginning of Operation Badr in October 1973, the army had the following troops under its control:[6]
Headquarters Third Army (Southern Canal Zone) - Maj Gen Abdel Mun'im Wasel
Chief of Staff - Maj Gen Mustafa Shaheen
Chief of Artillery - Maj Gen Munir Shash
7th Infantry Division* - Brig Gen Ahmad Badawi Said Ahmad
25th Independent Armored Brigade*[10] - Col Ahmed Helmy Badawy
As a brigadier general, Ahmed Badawi commanded the 7th Infantry Division during the Yom Kippur War, and after the Third Field Army became encircled, was placed in command of the cut-off force. The isolated part of the army was made up of the 7th and 19th Infantry Divisions, plus two independent armoured brigades, on the east bank, and a mixture of units in Suez city itself.[11]
