A ship canal, about 166 km (103 mi) long, traversing the Isthmus of Suez and linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez with the Mediterranean Sea. Built under the supervision of Ferdinand de Lesseps, it was opened in 1869 and came under British control after 1875. The British withdrew in 1956, and Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal, precipitating a crisis in which Israel invaded Egypt, and Great Britain and France sent armed forces to retake the canal. United Nations intervention forced an armistice, and the canal was reopened in April 1957. The canal was again closed during the 1967 Arab-Israeli War and remained closed until June 1975. a canal (=artificial river) in northeast Egypt which was opened in 1869 and which joins the Mediterranean Sea with the Gulf of Suez and the Red Sea. It is used by ships going between Europe and the Indian Ocean. Ship canal, Isthmus of Suez, Egypt. Connecting the Red Sea with the eastern Mediterranean Sea, it extends 100 mi (160 km) from Port Said to the Gulf of Suez and allows ships to sail directly between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean. Built by the French-owned Suez Canal Co., it was completed in 1869 after 11 years of construction. Its ownership remained largely in French and British hands until Egypt nationalized it in 1956, setting off an international crisis (see Suez Crisis). It has a minimum width of 179 ft (55 m) and a depth of about 40 ft (12 m) at low tide. Though protected by international treaty, the canal has been closed twice. The first closing was during the Suez Crisis. The canal again was closed by the Six-Day War (1967) and remained inoperative until 1975. It is one of the world's most heavily used shipping lanes