Embedded Files
Nasser at the Suez Canal, 1956.
In 1956, the Arab nationalist leader of Egypt, Gamal Abdel Nasser, nationalized (brought a part of the economy under government control) the Suez Canal, which linked the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea. The canal had been operated by a French company and was the lifeline of the British Empire because it provided a transport route between Britain and India.
The Aswan High Dam from space. The dam was eventually built with financial aid from the Soviet Union in the 1970's.
To Arabs, the Suez Canal symbolized western imperialism and domination in the Middle East. Nasser planned to use profits from the canal to build a dam on the Nile River in Egypt that would generate electricity and increase agricultural production. He won United States and British financial backing, but in July 1956 both nations canceled the offer after learning of a secret Egyptian arms agreement with the USSR. Nasser offered to pay compensation to the French company that had owned the canal, but he would not bend under international pressure to return the canal to the West.
Britain, France, and Israel reacted by preparing for a joint military venture to reclaim the canal. Israel joined the British and French effort because it claimed the Egypt had sponsored terrorist attacks on Israel from the Sinai peninsula. On October 29, Israeli forces attacked the Sinai. Two days later, the British bombed Egyptian towns and military installations, and on November 5, French and British troops landed at Port Sa'id on the Mediterranean coast. The next day at midnight, with the capture of the Suez Canal complete, Britain and France agreed to a UN-sponsored cease-fire. British, French, and Israeli forces occupied the entire Sinai peninsula in Egypt.
Men of 3 Para take up positions on El Gamil airfield, 1956.
A Centurion tank of the 6th Royal Tank Regiment disembarks from the tank landing ship HMS PUNCHER at Port Said, 1956.
Situation 1965: You are a member of the United Nations. Which of the following responses to the invasion of the Sinai peninsula do you think most fairly addresses the concerns of all groups involved?
CHOICE A: Condemn the attack, and demand that British, French, and Israeli forces withdraw from the Sinai, returning control of the Suez Canal to Egypt.
CHOICE B: Support the attack, and demand that Egypt relinquish claim to the Suez Canal and allow Britain and France to regain control.
CHOICE C: Pass a resolution making the Suez Canal an International Zone under United Nations control.
CHOICE D: Allow Egypt to retain control of the Suez Canal, but employ peacekeeping forces as a buffer between Israel and Egypt.
1956 - The Outcome - Complete your response before viewing below
1956 - The Outcome - Complete your response before viewing below
Actual Decision: Option 1 - Condemn the attack, and demand that British, French, and Israeli forces withdraw from the Sinai, returning control of the Suez Canal to Egypt.
The United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to censure the British, French, and Israeli invasion. United Nations pressure forced the British and French to remove their forces by late December. Israel withdrew its forces only after the United Nations agreed to monitor Egyptian activity in the southern Sinai. From the port of Sharm al-Shaykh, Nasser had periodically closed the strategic Straits of Tiran, which cut off the Israeli port of Eilat from the Red Sea. As part of the cease-fire agreement, a United Nations Emergency Force occupied Sharm al-Shaykh to ensure that the Straits of Tiran remained open.
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