Gamar Abdel Nasser
was born in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1918.
He was educated at the Cairo Military Academy and eventually became
an instructor at the institution. During the Second
World War Nasser developed republican views. He secretly recruited
cadets and young officers into what became known as the Free Officers
Movement.
The failed 1948
Palestine campaign reinforced Nasser's view that the government of
Farouk I was inefficient and corrupt.
In 1952 General Mohammed Neguib and Colonel
Nasser forced Farouk to abdicate. After the Egyptian
Revolution Neguib became commander-in-chief, prime minister and
president of the republic whereas Nasser held the post of Minister
of the Interior.
In April 1954
Nasser replaced Neguib as prime minister. Seven months later he also
became president of Egypt. Over the next
few months Nasser made it clear he was in favour of liberating Palestine
from the Jews. He also began buying fighter aircraft, bombers and
tanks from the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia.
Nasser redistributed
land in Egypt and began plans to industrialize the country. He also
began the building of the Aswan Dam. Nasser was convinced that this
would extend arable lands in Egypt and would help the industrialization
process. He also advocated Arab independence and reminded the British
government that the agreement allowing to keep soldiers at Suez expired
in 1956.
President Dwight
Eisenhower became
concerned about the close relationship developing between Egypt
and the Soviet Union. In July 1956 Eisenhower
cancelled a promised grant of 56 million dollars towards the building
of the Aswan Dam. Nasser was furious and on 26th July he announced
he intended to nationalize the Suez Canal.
The shareowners, the majority of whom were from Britain
and France, were
promised compensation. Nasser argued that the revenues from the Suez
Canal would help to finance the Aswan Dam.
Anthony
Eden, the British prime minister, feared that Nasser intended
to form an Arab Alliance that would cut off oil supplies to Europe.
Secret negotiations took place between Britain,
France and Israel
and it was agreed to make a joint attack on Egypt.
On 29th October
1956, the Israeli Army invaded Egypt. Two days later British and French
bombed Egyptian airfields. British and French troops landed at Port
Said at the northern end of the Suez Canal on 5th November. By this
time the Israelis had captured the Sinai peninsula.
President Dwight
Eisenhower and
his secretary of state, John
Foster Dulles,
grew increasingly concerned about these developments and at the United
Nations the representatives from the United
States and the Soviet Union demanded
a cease-fire. When it was clear the rest of the world were opposed
to the attack on Egypt, and on the 7th November the governments of
Britain,
France and Israel
agreed to withdraw.
They were then replaced by UN troops who policed the Egyptian frontier.
Nasser now blocked
the Suez Canal. He also used his new status to urge Arab nations to
reduce oil exports to Western Europe. As a result petrol rationing
had to be introduced in several countries and two months after the
invasion Anthony Eden resigned
from office.
Nasser was now
acknowledged as leader of the Arab world. Egypt now joined with Syria
to form the United Arab Republic. In March 1958 Yemen and the United
Arab Republic formed the United Arab States. Nasser also encouraged
Arab nationalism and revolution took place in Iraq. However, deployment
of US and British armed forces stopped this happening in Jordan and
the Lebanon.
Nasser status
was undermined by the heavy losses suffered during the Six-Day
War. He resigned on 9th June 1967 but following large demonstrations
supporting him he reversed this decision.
Gamar Abdel Nasser
remained in office until dying of a heart attack in 1970. He was replaced
by his friend Anwar Sadat.
(1)
Peter
Wright, Spycatcher (1987)
At the beginning of the
Suez Crisis, MI6 developed a plan, through the London Station, to
assassinate Nasser using nerve gas. Eden initially gave his approval
to the operation, but later rescinded it when he got agreement from
the French and Israelis to engage in joint military action. When this
course failed, and he was forced to withdraw, Eden reactivated the
assassination option a second time. By this time virtuallyall MI6
assets in Egypt had been rounded up by Nasser, and a new operation,
using renegade Egyptian officers, was drawn up, but it failed lamentably,
principally because the cache of weapons which had been hidden on
the outskirts of Cairo was found to be defective.
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