The Watchman Fell Asleep: the surprise of Yom Kippur and its sources
| Author | Uri Bar-Joseph |
| Publication information | SUNY Press (SUNY Series in Israeli Studies), 2005, 306 pages |
| Abbreviation | ISBN 0791464814 |
Narrative
Uri Bar-Joseph crafted an authoritative explanation of the most traumatic event in Israel’s history, and one of the biggest strategic military surprises of the twentieth century.
The Watchman Fell Asleep was an account of Israel’s intelligence failure before the 1973 Arab attack known as the Yom Kippur War.
It examines how Israel was caught by surprise in the opening stages of the Yom Kippur War.
The book was based on many formerly undisclosed intelligence and military documents, the secret protocols of discussions on the eve of the war, and interviews with relevant figures,
In 2001, the Hebrew version was awarded the Tshetshik Prize for Strategic Studies on Israel’s Security.
In 2002, the book was awarded the Israeli Political Science Association’s Best Book Award.