Middle East Conflicts (1956, 1967, 1973)

In the Middle East, long-running conflict between Arab states and Israel on the existence of the state of Israel, its borders, and relations with neighboring Arab countries. The Arab-Israeli conflict has been the source of at least five wars and a large number of minor conflicts. It has also been the source of two intifadas, or popular Palestinian uprisings, against Israel.

The Suez War (1956)

The first major Arab-Israeli war, the Suez War, took place in 1956 in Sinai, Egypt. The best synthesis of the roles of the various players in this conflict is probably found in the words of scholar Richard Neustadt. In his book Alliance Politics (1970), he wrote, “France, and later Israel, were London's partners, objects of American concern throughout, while Egypt set the stage, Russia played the ‘heavy’, and the United Nations furnished a Greek chorus.”

Throughout 1956, tensions increased between Israel and Egypt. On July 26, Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser announced the nationalization of the Suez Canal, which was under British control. Nasser then closed the canal to Israeli shipping. In response to Egypt's nationalization of the canal, British prime minister Anthony Eden told U.S. president Dwight Eisenhower that Britain was contemplating the use of force.

U.S. policy, meanwhile, was largely dominated by the effort to solve the dispute by peaceful means. President Eisenhower did not want to facilitate Soviet penetration into the Middle East as a supporter of Arab independence. The Egyptian takeover of the canal also jeopardized French economic interest—48% of France's oil supply came through the canal. France also had an open dispute with Egypt because of Nasser's support for rebels in the French colony of Algeria in Africa.

In France on October 23, 1956, Great Britain and Israel drew up a military plan to attack Egypt. The British-Israeli campaign began on October 29, 1956, with Israel's invasion of the Sinai Peninsula. Using parachutists and moving with lightning speed, Israeli soldiers closed off the Gaza Strip and reached the Suez Canal in just four days.

Two days after the start of the Israeli invasion, dubbed Operation Kadesh, Anglo-French forces launched an attack called Operation Musketeer. The plan was to strike the Egyptian Air Force by bombing from the Mediterranean islands of Cyprus and Malta and from aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean Sea. Anglo-French forces successfully bombed Egyptian air bases, and parachutists entered Port Said, an Egyptian port on the canal.

The Eisenhower administration condemned the Israeli-Anglo-French military action against Egypt and tabled a United Nations resolution calling for a cease-fire. The resolution was vetoed by Great Britain and France in the UN Security Council, but it received Soviet support.

When British and French troops landed in Port Said on November 5, the Soviet Union threatened unilateral [Page 458]intervention. At this point, British prime minister Eden was under great pressure. His greatest miscalculation was that he was unable to enlist U.S. support.

An agitated Palestinian man speaking to Israeli soldiers during the intifada, the violent uprising of Palestinians against Israel, which has been a recurring element of the Middle East Conflict. (The word intifada means “uprising” in Arabic.) Throughout the intifada, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) played a lead role in orchestrating the insurrection, which led to the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians and Israelis. The most recent intifada began in September 2000.

Corbis.

On November 6, a cease-fire went into effect after the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution introduced by the United States condemning the Israeli, British, and French attack. The resolution proposed that UN forces be put in charge of the combat areas temporarily. Honoring the cease-fire, the Anglo-French troops stopped some 23 miles down the Suez Canal from Port Said. The invading armies were forced to withdraw from Egypt and the Suez in March 1957 under pressure from the United States.

...