Egyptian President Anwar Sadat is murdered by Islamic extremists.

The assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat took place on October 6, 1981, during a military parade in Cairo commemorating Egypt’s 1973 victory over Israel in the Yom Kippur War. Sadat was reviewing the troops when a group of soldiers and officers suddenly attacked, throwing grenades and opening fire on the reviewing stand. The attack lasted less than a minute but left Sadat and several others dead, with many more wounded. The event was televised, shocking both Egypt and the international community.

The assassination was carried out by Islamic fundamentalists within the Egyptian army, members of Egyptian Islamic Jihad, who opposed Sadat’s policies—particularly his peace treaty with Israel and his increasingly authoritarian rule. The group’s leader, Lieutenant Khalid Islambouli, led the assault, motivated by anger over what they saw as Sadat’s betrayal of Arab and Islamic causes. They viewed the Camp David Accords (1978) and subsequent Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty (1979) as a grave sin, believing that Sadat had surrendered to Western and Zionist interests.

Sadat’s assassination revealed the deep political and social divisions within Egypt at the time. Although he was celebrated internationally for his peacemaking efforts, at home he faced growing dissent—from Islamists opposed to his secular rule and from those suffering under economic strain and political repression. His government had jailed thousands of dissidents, including clerics and activists, in the months leading up to the attack, which only fueled further resentment.

In the aftermath, Vice President Hosni Mubarak—who was wounded in the attack but survived—assumed the presidency and ruled Egypt for nearly three decades. The assassins were quickly captured, tried, and executed, but the event marked a turning point in Egyptian politics. Sadat’s death not only underscored the volatility of the Middle East but also symbolized the immense risks leaders faced when pursuing peace in a region marked by conflict, ideology, and historical tension.