Suez Canal

A ship canal, about 166 km (103 mi) long, traversing the Isthmus of Suez and linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez with the Mediterranean Sea. Built under the supervision of Ferdinand de Lesseps, it was opened in 1869 and came under British control after 1875. The British withdrew in 1956, and Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal, precipitating a crisis in which Israel invaded Egypt, and Great Britain and France sent armed forces to retake the canal. United Nations intervention forced an armistice, and the canal was reopened in April 1957. The canal was again closed during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War and remained closed until June 1975.