EISENHOWER REGRETTED PUSHING ISRAEL FOR 1956 SINAI WITHDRAWAL

Eisenhower Regretted He Pushed for Sinai Withdrawal in 1956 - Joseph Lerner
In Israel's 1956 joint military undertaking with Britain and France, President Eisenhower warned Israel of severe consequences were it not to withdraw from the Gaza Strip and Sinai. Israel complied. Peter Golden in his "authorized biography" of Max M. Fisher, Quiet Diplomat (1992), relates that in October 1965 Fisher met with Eisenhower in Gettysburg. Toward the end of the visit Eisenhower "wistfully commented, 'You know, Max, looking back at Suez, I regret what I did. I never should have pressured Israel to evacuate the Sinai.'" Eisenhower's remark astonished Fisher.

Nixon also told Golden: "Eisenhower...in the 1960s told me - and I am sure he told others - that he thought the action that was taken (at Suez) was one he regretted. He thought it was a mistake." (IMRA)