Suez Crisis Books

About Suez Crisis

The Suez Crisis of 1956 was a pivotal Cold War-era conflict centered around control of the Suez Canal, a crucial maritime route connecting the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. The crisis began when Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal, previously managed by British and French interests, aiming to assert Egyptian sovereignty and fund the Aswan Dam project after the withdrawal of U.S. and British support. In response, Britain, France, and Israel coordinated a military intervention: Israel invaded the Sinai Peninsula while British and French forces landed near the canal under the pretext of separating combatants. The military campaign achieved initial success, but international reaction—especially from the United States and the Soviet Union—was swift and condemnatory. Under intense pressure, including economic threats from the U.S. and nuclear posturing by the USSR, the invading powers withdrew. The United Nations intervened, deploying a peacekeeping force to stabilize the region. The crisis marked a major geopolitical turning point: it underscored the decline of British and French imperial influence and highlighted the rising dominance of the U.S. and USSR in global affairs. It also elevated Nasser as a leader of Arab nationalism and reshaped Middle Eastern politics, setting the stage for decades of regional tension.