Nasser, Gamal Abdel

also spelled Jamal 'Abd al-Nasir

Gamal Abdel Nasser, photograph by Yousuf Karsh.

(born Jan. 15, 1918, Alexandria, Egypt—died Sept. 28, 1970, Cairo) Egyptian army officer who was prime minister (1954–56) and president (1956–70) of Egypt. In his youth, he took part in anti-British demonstrations. As an army officer, he led a coup that deposed the royal family (1952) and installed Gen. Muhammad Naguib as head of state. In 1954 he deposed Naguib and made himself prime minister. The Muslim Brotherhood tried to assassinate him but failed. In 1956 he promulgated a constitution that made Egypt a one-party socialist state with himself as president. In the same year, he nationalized the Suez Canal (see Suez Crisis) and secured Soviet assistance to build the Aswan High Dam after the U.S. and Britain canceled their offer of aid. Soon thereafter, Egypt weathered an attack by British, French, and Israeli forces. A charismatic figure, he aspired to lead the Arab world and succeeded briefly in forming the United Arab Republic with Syria (1958–61). He led the Arab world in the disastrous Six-Day War against Israel but had tentatively accepted a U.S. peace plan for Egypt and Israel when he died of a heart attack. He was succeeded by Anwar el-Sadat.