Suez Crisis much-watched debates about the Suez war on "Free Speech" mirrored the divided public response to the war. The British government pressured the BBC to support the war, and seriously considered taking over the network. Eden's major mistake had been not to strike in July 1956 when there was widespread anger at Nasser's nationalisation of the Suez Canal Company, as by the fall of 1956 public anger had subsided, with many people in Britain having come to accept the "fait accompli", and saw no reason for war. This was especially the case as Eden's claims that the Egyptians would hopelessly mismanage
Suez Crisis sided with the Arab states in several disputes with Israel in 1953–54. Moreover, Dulles did not share any sentimental regard for the Anglo-American "special relationship", which led the Americans to lean towards the Egyptian side in the Anglo-Egyptian disputes. During the extremely difficult negotiations over the British evacuation of the Suez Canal base in 1954–55, the Americans generally supported Egypt, though at the same time trying hard to limit the extent of the damage that this might cause to Anglo-American relations. In the same report of May 1953 to Eisenhower calling for "even-handedness", Dulles stated that the Egyptians were not