ownership a proposal turned down flat by President
NASA US Secretary of State John Foster
Dulles told the British that
nevertheless America would not support
an attack on Egypt Dalles strongly
believed that military action against
NASA was pushed the entire Arab world
into the arms of the
Soviets besides President Eisenhower was
running for
distraction it was a warning that Eden fatefully
fatefully
ignored Britain and France had already
but it was not Britain or France that
struck first against NASA it was
Israel on the 29th of October Israeli
paratroopers landed in the Egyptian sin
seizing the Strategic mitla pass and
Forces at the UN Israel insisted it was
acting in self-defense against raids by
Palestinian Fighters known as fedin
operating from bases in Gaza and Sinai
is determined to wipe out the bases in
the siai wilderness from which murder
and death and D rtion are launched
against but there were no fedin bases in
Sinai Britain and France claiming to be
acting on behalf of the International
Community issued an ultimatum to both
sides stop fighting within 12 hours and
withdraw all forces 10 mi from the sez
compliance Egypt was effectively being
told to abandon the sign and the
refused so on the 31st of October
British and French aircraft taking off
from carriers in the
mediterraneum and bases in Cyprus and
Malta began bombing Egyptian airfields
air defenses and infrastructure [Music]
seemed Israeli Prime Minister David
benuron had been considering an attack
months he was encouraged by Moshe Diane
the hawkish commander of Israel's Armed Forces
Forces
NASA like all leaders of Arab states did
not view the new Jewish State as
legitimate now receiving modern weapons
from Czechoslovakia he was seen as a
Potential Threat to Israel's
survival they were also determined to
end Egypt's blockade of The Straits of
tyan which prevented Israeli access to
the Red Sea and limited opportunities for
for
trade France wanted to Ally with the
Israelis to get rid of NASA but British
prime minister Sir Anthony Eden was
anxious about being seen as the
aggressor so the French came up with an
idea at s near Paris representatives of
Britain France and Israel met in secret
war Israel would invade Egypt allowing
Britain and France posing as peacemakers
to issue an ultimatum they knew only
Israel would
accept then claiming to be acting to
safeguard the canal they would invade
Egypt and overthrow
NASA though they had no real plan for
gone it would take years for the full
on the 5th of November after a week of
bombing and with Israeli troops winning
the battle in
Sinai British and French paratroopers
were dropped onto targets around port
side and port fuad at the mouth of the sez
Canal once on the ground they quickly
infrastructure the next morning under
cover of air strikes and Naval
began Fierce street fighting raged
throughout the
day but the Egyptians were massively
outgunned and it proved a one-sided contest
contest
around 600 Egyptian soldiers and police were
were
killed British and French deaths total just
just [Music]
[Music]
26 Egyptian civilians suffered most up
to 1,000 lost their lives with many more
left homeless by Air Raids and
shelling by the end of the day the
but they couldn't prevent the Egyptians
sabotaging the sez Canal
itself they sank ships in its narrow
channel blocking the canal and putting
it wasn't hard to see that the British
French and Israelis were working
together and at the United Nations World
them for once the US and Soviet Union
were United in
condemnation a typically animated Soviet
Premier Nikita kusov even threatened to
fire rockets at Paris and
London President Eisenhower thought the
invasion had no moral or legal
justification and he was furious with
his British Ally for going behind his
back the British and French governments
delivered a 12-hour ultimatum to Israel
and Egypt now followed up by armed
attack against
Egypt the United States was not
consulted in any way about any phase of
these actions nor were we informed of
them in advance
as it is the Manifest right of any of
these nations to take such decisions and
actions it is likewise our right if our
judgment so dicted for we do not accept
the use of force as a wise or proper
instrument for the settlement of international
international
dispute Eisenhower wanted International
attention focused on
Hungary where Soviet troops were at that
moment brutally crushing a popular uprising
instead Britain and France's Reckless
intervention was likely to push Arab
Union in the UN Security Council Britain
and France used their veto to block
resolutions that criticized Israel's
intervention but with both World
superpowers condemning their attack they
now faced a vote in the general
sanctions Britain's economy had been
fragile before The Crisis began now
Market fears caused the British currency
to crash threatening economic disaster
only a massive loan from the
international monetary fund could save
Britain but Eisenhower blocked any IMF
aid until Britain agreed to a unbacked
ceasefire in
Egypt Eden facing growing opposition
abroad at home and from within his own
government had few
options just two days after British
troops landed in Egypt they announced a ceasefire
ceasefire
the French abandoned by their Ally had
suit within days the un's first major
peacekeeping operation got underway as
Danish un troops arrived in Egypt to
[Music]
as they packed up and reembarked on
their Landing ships to return home it
was officially job well
done but in truth Suez had been a humiliating
humiliating
Fiasco the political leadership had been
Reckless the military objectives
confused and as soon as International
pressure had mounted up the British had
had no option but to abort the entire mission
mission
that winter under intense American
pressure Israeli forces also withdrew from
[Music]
Sinai the sez crisis forced Britain and
France to accept that they were now
second rank
Powers no longer could they act as they
wished on the world stage without first
considering dur ing the view of the United
United
States the lesson taken by the British
was never again to jeopardize their
America for France the lesson was that
Britain and America were unreliable
allies and their interests were better
served by closer ties within [Music]
[Music]
Europe Israel achieved some objectives
including the opening of The Straits of
Tran to Israeli
shipping but with NASA still in power
future conflict with Egypt and its other
Arab neighbors was almost
certain the Sinai War proved to be a
precursor to the far more decisive
later British prime minister Sir Anthony
Eden's career and health were
ruined he resigned but not before lying
to Parliament about his knowledge of the
secret deal with Israel my
of I wish my successor all good
forun and God's PE to you
you president nassa fad as the hero of
the Arab world for having stood up to
Europe European
imperialists had in reality been saved
by us and un
intervention but his modernizing reforms
championing of the Arab cause and
opposition to foreign intervention mean
his memory is still revered by Arabs
[Music]
East the impact of the sez crisis on
America was perhaps the most far-reaching
far-reaching
the collapse of British and French
Prestige amongst Arab Nations meant the
US would now take the lead in countering
Soviet expansion in the Middle East and
securing the West's oil [Music]
[Music]
supplies the sez crisis would accelerate
us involvement in this volatile [Music]
[Music]
region the consequences would stretch
century de over a possible war in Iraq
has given an Ever sense of urgency to their
mission join the ranks of our brilliant
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