Which nations conspired with Israel to invade the Sinai Peninsula and seize the Suez Canal during the 1956 crisis after Nasser nationalized the canal?

• A. The United States and the Soviet Union
• B. France and the United Kingdom
• C. Jordan and Saudi Arabia
• D. Canada and Australia

Answer: (B)

This question tests knowledge of the alliance behind the 1956 Suez Crisis. After Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal, Israel, with Britain and France, plotted and carried out an operation to invade the Sinai and seize control of the canal, aiming to reassert Western influence and remove Nasser from power. The nations that joined in the plan were France and the United Kingdom alongside Israel, a collaboration arranged in secret (the Sèvres Protocol) to present a united front and then withdraw under international pressure. The United States and the Soviet Union did not conspire in the invasion; they opposed it and played key roles in pressuring the Western powers to withdraw. Canada, Australia, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia did not participate in the invasion.