EGYPT: Breaking with the British

For five days Egypt's cabinet debated a gesture of defiance to Britain. It could recall its ambassador—a relatively mild sort of formal protest; it could withdraw him—a more vigorous step; or it could break off relations, as the street mobs demanded. At this point, British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden, who has the well-schooled diplomat's intuition in such matters, dispatched a conciliatory message to Cairo explaining why General Erskine had to bulldoze some Egyptian huts (TiME, Dec. 17) and offering compensation. U.S. Ambassador Jefferson Caffery, called in by the Egyptian Foreign Office...

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