They were, however, able to exert not only moral and financial suasion, but also the threat of potential military force against the British, French, and Israelis. Both Eisenhower and John Foster Dulles, the American Secretary of State, were somewhat incapacitated with health issues. The United States was also opposed to the violation of Egyptian sovereignty. Fury and outrage erupted across the Islamic world at Britain’s perceived neo-colonial behaviour. World opinion roundly condemned the three nations for their aggression and lack of respect for Egyptian sovereignty.

for as much as the operation was a success in military terms, it was a disaster politically. British Prime Minister Anthony Eden treated the nationalization as a direct affront to British prestige and became so incensed that (according to Von Tunzelmann ) he ordered Nasser’s assassination.īut, as the BBC History Magazine reported: When Nassar nationalized the Suez Canal Company, all of that was threatened. In addition, though not measurable in dollars or barrels, Britain did not want to lose “its divinely and racially ordained place at the top of the world.” But even aside from the profits, Britain needed the oil. According to the author, the British Treasury estimated the value of its assets in the Canal Zone to be 500 million pounds. Some 1.5 million barrels of oil a day went through the canal, of which 1.2 million were destined for Western Europe. He compounded the offense in Western eyes by nationalizing the British- and French-controlled Suez Canal in July of 1956 in retaliation for the failure of Britain or the United States to finance his pet project, the Aswan Dam.Īt the time, Britain was the largest single shareholder in the Suez Canal Company, one of Britain’s last remaining colonial possessions. Gamal Abdel Nasser had become the president of Egypt after deposing the pro-British leadership in 1952. Smoke rises from oil tanks beside the Suez Canal hit during the initial Anglo-French assault on Port Said, November 5, 1956.

Blood and sand alex von tunzelmann