From the Archive, 29 September 1970: President Nasser Dies of Heart Attack
President Nasser died last night of a heart attack. Cairo Radio, in a broadcast, said that he had experienced the first symptoms while returning from ceremonies to mark the end of the Arab summit talks. He died three hours later. He was 52.
The strain of the past few days must have told on the President, who has been suffering from heart trouble for some years. The Arab world has just gone through its worst crisis since the June war with Israel in 1967 – and in some ways the Jordanian civil war was worse, since it was Arab killing Arab.
For Nasser it was a bitter time. Early this year he had taken the risk – against the advice of most other Arab leaders – of accepting the American peace initiative and stating his readiness for a settlement with Israel negotiated through the United Nations.
Only King Hussein among the Arabs gave him full support. Then latterly Hussein himself came into conflict with the Palestinians on his own territory, just because he had said that he would accept a negotiated peace. With the civil war, and the brutal conduct of some Bedouin units, Hussein’s credit among the Arab states was running out. Nasser, too, was thus in danger of isolation.
Nasser had worked intensively in the past six days to bring about a ceasefire in Jordan and a reconciliation between the warring factions. Against all expectations, he succeeded on Sunday night in getting Yasser Arafat, commander of the guerrilla forces, to sign an accord with Hussein.
It was underwritten by all the other Arab States. Its survival now that Nasser, its architect, is gone, must lie in question.
In 1954, at the age of 36, Gamal Abdel Nasser had become leader of the Egyptian nation. He took over from General Neguib, President since the removal of King Farouk two years earlier.
Behind the scenes, Nasser, with a group of young fellow officers, had been one of those who brought about the 1952 revolution. Neguib was always a figurehead: the real leader emerged when Nasser, somewhat reluctantly, was persuaded to thrust him aside.
From then onwards Nasser had three aims: to rid Egypt of foreign influence, and especially of the British; to unite the Arabs; and to bring his people out of feudal backwardness into twentieth century life.
The first he achieved in just over two years, thanks largely to the abortive Anglo-French invasion in October, 1956, at Suez. The second he never achieved. With the third, thanks to irrigation, land reform, and education he was on the way to achieving. The Aswan Dam, built with Soviet aid, was a material factor in improving Egypt’s lot.
Who will succeed him? Anwar Sadat, Ali Sabri, Field-Marshal Fawzi, and Mohamed Heikal have all been seen as possibilities. The inner structure of power is something of a secret. Soviet influence will certainly be felt, and could go in Sadat’s favour. The disturbance, all the same, will be felt throughout the Arab world.
Mr Kosygin, the Soviet Prime Minister, will attend President Nasser’s funeral in Cairo on Thursday, the Soviet Embassy there stated last night.
Source: Al-Ahram Online
