On July 26, 1956, Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser announced the nationalisation of the Suez Canal Company, the joint British-French enterprise which had owned and operated the Suez Canal since its construction in 1869. The United Kingdom and France joined the Israelis on 31 October, seeking to depose Nasser and regain control of the Suez Canal in order to reopen the Straits of Tiran and the Gulf of Aqaba which the Egyptin ruler had closed. The U.S. exerted heavy political pressure to force a withrawal.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower later expressed regret over the U.S. decision to pressure Britain and France to withdraw from the Suez Canal during the 1956 crisis. Eisenhower indicated to congressional leaders that the U.S. might have made a mistake by saving Gamal Abdel Nasser's regime and creating a power vacuum in the Middle East that the Soviet Union could fill. He felt that by forcing the British and French to withdraw, the U.S. alienated key allies and ultimately failed to prevent increased Soviet influence in the region.
Initial decision: Eisenhower opposed the Anglo-French-Israeli invasion, fearing it would escalate into a wider war, push Arab nations to align with the Soviet Union, and undermine Western moral authority, especially after the Soviet suppression of the Hungarian uprising. The US threatened economic sanctions to force the withdrawal.
Consequences: The intervention backfired, as Nasser gained prestige and strengthened his Soviet ties, while the US damaged its relationships with its European allies. This led directly to the 1967 Six Day war.
Later regret: In hindsight, Eisenhower recognised that this decision was a strategic misstep, as it empowered Nasser and opened the door to greater Soviet influence in the Middle East. He felt it was a mistake to have intervened so forcefully against his allies.
Changed approach: This experience led Eisenhower to adopt a new policy of actively countering Soviet influence in the Middle East, which he demonstrated by sending US troops to Lebanon in 1958 under the Eisenhower Doctrine.
He most certainly did, later describing his stance as the biggest mistake he ever made during his presidency.
Eisenhower’s decision reflected principles and Cold War calculations - not simple betrayal: he objected to military intervention, feared Soviet exploitation, and used economic and diplomatic pressure to force withdrawal.
The Iran 12 day war
Similarly, President Trump stopped Israel from continuing to attack Iran after twelve days. I believe it is clear that if Israel had continued to attack Iran for another week or more, the Iranian people would have risen and thrown out the Ayatollahs and their IRGC thugs. Instead, the Ayatollahs were saved or rescued from the brink of removal and have quickly reverted to their belligerent, arrogant and threatening selves and have just tested new ballistic missiles.
Why President Trump stopped Israel can only be guessed at. Trump is no fool neither is he naïve. What could it be? I don’t think China or Russia were a potential threat. Did Trump think the Iranian regime would learn a lesson? They certainly have not. Did he feel sorry for them?
Peacenik that President Trump may be, there was and remains absolutely no reason to allow the medieval and evil Ayatollah regime to survive. If there was a regime change in Iran, all Iran’s surrogates would immediately be cut off from funding and military supplies from Iran. The only continued danger and issue would be Turkey trying to replace Iran with the terrorist surrogates.
Stopping Israel from finishing the war was a mistake and an historical mistake.
The war is not over. Hamas has not yet been destroyed and refuses to disarm and is in constant breach of the ceasefire. Similarly, Hezbollah is being resupplied by Iran and growing in aggression and rebuilding itself. The Houthis have not been stopped yet. So, whilst they have all been degraded, we are a long way from a final defeat and conclusion, which means that round two will commence in due course. Of course round two may be more difficult, which will include more Russian and Chinese weapons, and who knows what else.
The main arms and WMD-related technology suppliers to Iran remain Russia, China, and North Korea.
Here is an irony. Iran's nuclear program was launched as part of the “Atoms for Peace” program that was announced by U.S. president Eisenhower in 1953. The U.S. helped Iran create its nuclear program in 1957 by providing Iran its first nuclear reactor and nuclear fuel, and after 1967 by providing Iran with weapons grade enriched uranium. Of course Eisenhower didn’t have a crystal ball and Iran was then ruled by a US ally, the Shah.
Up front let me say that Israel is blessed in having President Trump in the White House at this time. Israel couldn’t wish for a better friend or ally. However, President Trump is first and foremost the President of America and, with no ill will towards Israel, has a bigger picture to deal with and would like to see peace everywhere. He has a lot on his plate including rectifying the damage done by Obama, Biden and the increasingly discombobulated Democrats.
Why let Iran off the hook? On March 7 2025, Trump announced that he had written a letter to Ali Khamenei, expressing his desire to initiate new nuclear negotiations with Iran. He warned that failure to accept the proposal could expose Iran to serious military consequences. Iran’s response was its usual rude arrogance and Islamic projection of their superiority.
According to Emirati political scientist Abdulkhaleq Abdullah, the letter included demands that Iran fully dismantle its nuclear program, halt all enrichment, and end support for regional proxy groups, with compliance required within two months. Two months have since come and gone and, of course, the demand has been fully rejected by Iran. So far nothing has happened and Iran laughs at empty threats.
So here is the bigger Geopolitical picture.
What I believe Trump is looking at is a possible war with China in two to three years’ time. China threatens Taiwan and a number of Japanese Islands. China could mobilise, load, and land a massive PLA (People’s Liberation Army) invasion force across the Taiwan Strait in as little as 96 hours. Beijing’s anti-access/area-denial arsenal is optimized to blunt US air, sea, space, and cyber power, but far less capable against distributed, networked land forces embedded across the Indo-Pacific.
The real “centre of gravity” in any Taiwan contingency will be PLA ground troops, and that Washington must urgently build a “strategic land power network” with Asian partner armies to deter that threat before it materialises. Along the way China has been waging a form of unrestricted warfare, economic, informational, and legal, for more than a decade, and calls for a faster, forward defence strategy that matches US rhetoric about a Pacific pivot with concrete action on the ground.
However, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping is no longer effectively in power. Basically he has been reduced to a titular head by his military leader Zhang and the Chinese Politburo. Xi reigned for a dozen years before he was cornered into relative impotence.
I have always said China’s economic engine is situated in the United States and Trump’s strategy has certainly cut that down. The collapse of communist China is a possibility. Because the China was no longer the major economic or military power it had become in recent years, it now only has sufficient weight to act as a disruptor for the coming few years; maybe not even that and could look to military action to save itself…. maybe.
Trump has been urgently rebuilding US military strength and doesn’t want all its resources concentrated on the Middle East. He wants peace in the Middle East, but, I am afraid, he has misjudged or underestimated the Ayatollah’s madness, arrogance, religious fanaticism, religious ambition and determination. In displaying kindness and allowing them to survives, Trump has, in my considered opinion, made a grave mistake. Unless there is a regime change in Iran, there will not be peace in the Middle East. Maybe the pending visit of Netanyahu with Trump will change this.
The same can be said about Qatar and its unbelievable supply of money used and abused as a weapon at every turn. Ignoring Qatar and its Muslim Brotherhood agenda is a dangerous mistake. The US does have a large military base in Qatar and whilst Iran presents a real danger, I presume this is what is calculated into Trump’s thinking. However, long term Qatar must be stopped and cut down to size.
Qatar is essentially a family/clan run small country. I am no expert on Qatar, but Israel’s attack on the Hamas leaders in Doha I believe sent a sudden and real fear into its rulers. They are not invulnerable and maybe a regime change may be a blessing, flowing white robes et al.
Simultaneously Europe faces two threats. One is Russia, whose army has been dramatically shown up by Ukraine to not be the threat once imagined. They are not the tanks and hordes of WWII that pushed Germany back and overran the Nazi regime.
However, what Russia does possess is the world's largest nuclear arsenal, with estimates around 5,400 to 5,900 total warheads, including roughly 1,700 deployed strategic warheads on ICBMs, submarines, and bombers, plus a large stockpile of non-strategic (tactical) nuclear weapons. This arsenal, alongside the US, accounts for nearly 90% of global nuclear weapons.
I must add that Putin miscalculated his attack on Ukraine and in the process has lost a million soldiers, which means there are a million grieving families in Russia and this places him and his presidency under threat. So Putin is doing the usual dictator's dance trying to not only justify himself and his decisions, but looking to direct anger elsewhere.
The second threat to Europe is from itself. Its feckless, left wing and chronically weak leaders I don’t believe have the will, strength, determination or intellect to face up to any of the challenges Europe faces. These leaders only see their own political survival and nothing else. What this means is that America, for the third time, for the sake of not only saving Europe, but also Western Civilisation, will have to once again rescue Europe, reluctant as some American isolationist may be.
I haven’t touched on the equally weak, discombobulated and misdirected leadership in the US’ traditional allies, Canada, Australia and Britain. Europe and these countries also face feeble, decrepit and tragically weak self-destructive leadership.
Islam is a growing and dangerous threat everywhere. If not for President Trump, there would not be a single leader in the world right now able and willing to stand up to and counter Islam’s threat. Islam’s threat is varied and growing and now also includes criminal Turkish gangs in Europe thanks to mass purges in Turkey, the appointment of partisan loyalists with no regard for merit and widespread corruption reaching the highest levels of political power under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) allies, who, together with poor management of their faltering economy, has created the perfect environment for a new generation of mafia networks to grow. Turkey is yet another Islamic threat and problem.
I must quote Winston Churchill, who should be taken seriously today more than ever: “How dreadful are the curses which Mohammedanism lays on its votaries! Besides the fanatical frenzy, which is as dangerous in a man as hydrophobia in a dog”.
Trump has three years within which he hopefully can turn this tide and all the threats I have referred to above. He has a lot on his plate, which includes who will succeed him as President. In my opinion JD Vance is not the man as he is an isolationist and I think Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz would be far better and more substantial candidates.
G-d forbid a Democrat should win the next election. However, as things stand right now and with their dismal record, the Democrats do not have a decent potential candidate at all. Gavin Newsom would be another guaranteed disaster and I have read that the discombobulated, bothered and bewildered Democrats would even consider AOC. May Hashem have mercy not only on America, but on the entire world.
In short, President Trump is no Superman, but he is right now the next best thing and the only one who can save the world. All the internal and ridiculous attacks and media in American fortunately don’t faze him. In the next few weeks some serious decisions have to be made, which includes finally destroying the Iranian Ayatollah regime and allowing Israel to finally not only disarm Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis and all internal terrorists, but also, finally, destroy all their leaders including those hiding in Qatar, Turkey and elsewhere and together with its allies, remove all their operatives in Europe, USA, Britain, Canada, Australia and wherever they may be.
This time, let Israel for once finish the job. The positive difference that would make to the Middle East and the world would be enormous.
David Hersch is Chairman of SAIPAC, the South African Israel Public Affairs Committee. Former chairman of the South African Zionist Federation (Cape Council) as well as a former national vice-chairman of the South African Zionist Federation (SAZF). He is also former member of the South Jewish Board of Deputies (Cape Council). Retired businessman and broadcaster.
24 December 2025