<P> Despite having no commercial or military interest in the area, many countries were concerned with the growing rift between Western allied nations . The Swedish ambassador to the Court of St. James, Gunnar Hägglöf wrote in a letter to the anti-war Conservative M.P. Edward Boyle, </P> <P> I don't think there is any part of the world where the sympathies for England are greater than in Scandinavia . But Scandinavian opinion has never been more shocked by a British government's action--not even by the British - German Naval Agreement of 1935--than by the Suez intervention . </P> <P> The attack on Egypt greatly offended many in the Islamic world . In Pakistan, 300,000 people showed up in a rally in Lahore to show solidarity with Egypt while in Karachi a mob chanting anti-British slogans burned down the British High Commission . In Syria, the military government blew up the Kirkuk--Baniyas pipeline that allowed Iraqi oil to reach tankers in the Mediterranean to punish Iraq for supporting the invasion, and to cut Britain off from one of its main routes for taking delivery of Iraqi oil . King Saud of Saudi Arabia imposed a total oil embargo on Britain and France . </P> <P> When Israel refused to withdraw its troops from the Gaza Strip and Sharm el - Sheikh, Eisenhower declared, "We must not allow Europe to go flat on its back for the want of oil ." He sought UN-backed efforts to impose economic sanctions on Israel until it fully withdrew from Egyptian territory . Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson and minority leader William Knowland objected to American pressure on Israel . Johnson told the Secretary of State John Foster Dulles that he wanted him to oppose "with all its skill" any attempt to apply sanctions on Israel . Dulles rebuffed Johnson's request, and informed Eisenhower of the objections made by the Senate . Eisenhower was "insistent on applying economic sanctions" to the extent of cutting off private American assistance to Israel which was estimated to be over $100 million a year . Ultimately, the Democratic Party - controlled Senate would not cooperate with Eisenhower's position on Israel . Eisenhower finally told Congress he would take the issue to the American people, saying, "America has either one voice or none, and that voice is the voice of the President--whether everybody agrees with him or not ." The President spoke to the nation by radio and television where he outlined Israel's refusal to withdraw, explaining his belief that the UN had "no choice but to exert pressure upon Israel". </P>

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