Husni Mubarak

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Husni Mubarak (2009) Signature of Husni Mubarak

Muhammad Husni Mubarak , also Mohamed Hosny Mubarak ( Arabic محمد حسني مبارك, DMG Muḥammad Ḥusnī Mubārak ; *  May 4, 1928 in Musaliha, al-Minufiyya Governorate ; † February 25, 2020 in Cairo ), was the autocratic ruling President of the Arab Republic of Egypt from October 14, 1981 to February 11, 2011 . In the wake of the protests during the Arab SpringHe resigned in 2010/11, in which around 850 demonstrators were killed in Egypt. In connection with the deadly violence against demonstrators, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in early June 2012. In August 2013, an Egyptian criminal court ordered Mubarak to be released from custody. On March 2, 2017, he was acquitted by the Egyptian Supreme Court of Appeals and on March 24, 2017, he was released from the army hospital with the condition not to leave Egypt.

Life

Early years

Mubarak entered the Egyptian Armed Forces after completing his schooling and graduated from the Cairo Military Academy on February 2, 1949. This was followed by entering the Air Force Academy in Bilbeis and on March 13, 1950, he became an Air Force officer . In the 1950s he was a pilot in Spitfire squadrons and an instructor at the Air Force Academy for two years . From February 1959 to June 1961 he took part in the Frunze Military Academy and in a jet pilot training course in the Soviet Union . In the following years he was a squadron leader and squadron leader in various units and took part as a fighter pilot in missions in the North Yemeni civil war. In October 1968 he became commander of the West Cairo Airbase and on November 17, 1967, commander of the Air Force Academy. In 1969 he was appointed Chief of Staff and later Commander in Chief of the Egyptian Air Force. Mubarak fought in the 1973 Yom Kippur War and was promoted to Air Chief Marshal. In April 1975 he became vice president. In 1979 he was sent by President Anwar al-Sadat to the peace talks with Israel .

Takeover and rule

After Sadat was assassinated by the al-Jihad organization , Mubarak became Prime Minister of Egypt on October 14, 1981. Until February 2011, he ruled Egypt in a state of emergency , which he repeatedly extended throughout his reign. In February 2011 he was overthrown by the revolution in Egypt .

During a visit to Berlin, Mubarak signed the city's guest book (1989).

Egypt's role in the Arab world was weakened after the rapprochement with Israel through Sadat . Under Mubarak, Egypt returned to the Arab League in 1989 without giving up its position in the Middle East and relations with Israel.

Mubarak ruled autocratically and relied on the representatives of the "October generation" ("Jil Uktubar"). The basis of his power was the army , which sees itself as the guardian of national identity, independence and stability. Since taking office, Mubarak sought to create a balance between ideologies and social groups, and in this way to consolidate his regime. In order to combat Islamist counter-movements, he declared “ democracy ” and “ pluralism ” to be the goals of his government. Yet there was only as much opposition in Egypt as Mubarak allowed. Even the drawing up of the electoral lists for the Egyptian people's representation required the approval of the majority loyal to the president in parliament, so only “handpicked” candidates stood for the opposition parties.

In his first years in office, he expanded the opposition's leeway in the press and parliament. At the same time, Mubarak maintained an alliance with the conservative clergy at Azhar University because he counted on their moderating influence. Political opponents and critics therefore spoke of a sham democracy , since Mubarak stuck to his autocratic style of government despite some concessions.

On June 26, 1995, his motorcade was shot at while driving to the summit meeting of the Organization for African Unity (OAU) in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa . Mubarak was unharmed. According to the BBC, there were a total of six assassination attempts on Mubarak during his presidency.

In terms of economic policy, Mubarak orientated himself on the economically liberal concept proposals of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Opposition groups were suppressed. The Muslim Brotherhood has a semi-legal status, its activities and members of parliament are partly tolerated and partly persecuted. Since the 1990s there have been repeated attacks by Islamist extremists on tourists, Copts , state officials and Mubarak himself (1994, 1996). Domestic political pressure has increased in the past ten years, among other things due to dissatisfaction with the lack of democratic participation in society for many people as well as due to poor working conditions, great poverty and unemployment in the country.

At the end of 2004, the opposition succeeded in holding the first demonstration during the Mubarak era, calling for an end to the regime. This led to the founding of the Kifaja movement, against which the secret service and the police reacted with arrests, among other things. After an amendment to the constitution that came about under pressure from the movement, but only slightly, a presidential election with several candidates took place in Egypt for the first time in September 2005 . In the election, which was overshadowed by reports of manipulation and in which only 23 percent of the eligible voters took part due to the skepticism about the reliability of the elections, Mubarak was elected for a fifth term according to official information with 88.6 percent of the votes.

In March 2010, Mubarak underwent an operation in Germany, which sparked speculation about his state of health and a possible resignation. On February 11, 2011, he resigned from all offices due to popular protests in the wake of the Arab Spring.

Support from the west

Mubarak and US President George W. Bush (2002).

The Mubarak regime was supported by the West - from the US, Israel and the European Union. The main reason for this is the fact that Egypt was the first Arab state to conclude a peace treaty with Israel in 1979 (the Israeli-Jordanian peace treaty followed in 1994) and is therefore a predictable figure in the crisis region of the Middle East. For Western diplomacy, the Mubarak system was also a possible ally à la mode against existing and potential Islamist movements. The Muslim Brotherhood movement in particular was suppressed in Egypt.

Relations between Germany and Mubarak's Egypt were considered untroubled. Due to its strategic location in the Middle East, the country was a focus of German diplomatic activity. Berlin paid an average of 64 million euros per year. From the United States, Mubarak received $ 1.3 billion a year in military aid and $ 700 million in economic aid. During the protests in 2011, which at that time already claimed over a thousand demonstrators dead, as well as during the following military government, the payment of military aid by the USA was not suspended.

Property and corruption allegations

According to an estimate by the Algerian newspaper Al Khabar in 2010, the Mubaraks family's fortune is around 40 billion US dollars, which the head of the Basel Institute on Governance believes is realistic. Mubarak himself is said to have amassed a fortune of 10 billion US dollars during his reign, most of which were spent abroad . In an estimate by other experts, the Mubarak family's fortune is even put at 70 billion US dollars. According to the New York Times, US government officials consider the number to be exaggerated and estimate it to be between two and three billion US dollars. Mubarak's family's fortunes were, e. B. extensively obscured by investment banks and private equity investments , which is why the various estimates diverge widely and are considered unreliable. However, the consensus is that it is worth billions. In this context, corruption allegations are made against Husni Mubarak and against leading regime members in general.

According to research by anti-corruption experts, the largest source of money from corruption is the privatization of state-owned companies and land, particularly in the 1990s. The companies were sold intransparently and significantly below their value. In addition, the assets should by insider trading with government bonds have been propagated and free shares in industrial and commercial corporations.

On the day of Mubarak's resignation on February 11, 2011, the Swiss Federal Council decided to freeze all possible assets of Mubarak and those around him in Switzerland with immediate effect in order to avoid misappropriation of Egyptian state property. Twelve people are affected: Hosni Mubarak and his wife, their two sons and their wives, the brother of Mubarak's wife and four ex-ministers and a former organizational secretary of Mubarak's NDP party . On February 16, 2011, the list was supplemented by two more people to a total of 14 people.

Revolution in Egypt and resignation

The revolution in Tunisia in 2010/2011 , which began on December 17, 2010, encouraged many Egyptians to demonstrate. On January 25, 2011 and on the following days, the most violent protests occurred in Egypt since the beginning of Mubarak's presidency. Tens of thousands of demonstrators expressed their displeasure. This protest movement was a novelty in the country, before it had rarely more than a few hundred demonstrators, and rallies were usually quickly broken up by the police. The reasons for the increased willingness to protest are, as in many other Arab countries, displeasure with the authoritarian regime with its well-developed security apparatus, the lack of a say for citizens, corruption in the state, economy and administration, high unemployment, especially among the younger population, and growing poverty . In addition, there is a food price crisis due to increasing demand and speculation , and rising energy prices .

The protests are carried by a wide-ranging movement that includes various social classes apart from the regime elite, both left and bourgeois, secular as well as Christians and Muslims. The proportion of young Egyptians is particularly large. The fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood is passive and has no leadership role in the protests, but some of its younger members also took part in the protests, refraining from some previous fundamentalist positions.

The Mubarak government has been supported mainly by the USA, Europe and Israel until the end. The main reasons for this are security policy concerns in the event of a takeover of the Egyptian government by Islamist opposition members and Mubarak's actions against Islamist terrorist activities in the Gaza Strip.

After violent protests with numerous injuries and deaths, Mubarak dismissed the cabinet on January 29, 2011 and appointed a new cabinet. He appointed Ahmad Schafiq , the former chief of staff of the Air Force, as the new prime minister, and his confidante Omar Suleiman , until then head of the Jihaz al-Muchabarat al-Amma secret service , as vice-president (for the first time since Mubarak took office in 1981) . The secret service used thugs against the demonstrators in February. In addition, from February 3rd, the Internet and mobile phone networks were switched off to make communication more difficult for the demonstrators.

On the evening of February 1, 2011, after over three million citizens across the country demonstrated against the government in Egypt, Mubarak said on state television that he would not run again in the elections in September that year.

In a speech on the evening of February 10, 2011, Mubarak announced that he would remain in office despite all his calls for resignation. However, he also announced that he would hand over his duties to the newly appointed Vice President Omar Suleiman until the end of his term of office .

In the late afternoon of February 11, 2011, Vice President Suleiman announced that Mubarak had decided to resign completely due to the ongoing mass protests and that the affairs of state were in the hands of the Supreme Military Council. A military coup cannot be ruled out.

Travel ban, conviction, appeal procedures and release from pretrial detention

On February 28, 2011, Mubarak, his wife Suzanne, his two sons Alaa and Gamal and their wives were banned from leaving the country. In addition, the family's assets in Egypt were frozen.

On April 11, 2011, he was summoned by the Egyptian attorney general to comment on allegations of corruption in a court in Cairo. Shortly thereafter, it became known that he had been taken to a hospital in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, due to health problems. On April 13, he was detained for 15 days for investigative inquiries into allegations of corruption.

On May 24, 2011, the Egyptian public prosecutor brought charges against Mubarak, his two sons Gamal and Alaa , the businessman Hussein Salem , who was closely associated with Mubarak, and his former intelligence chief Hussein Kamal al-Din Ibrahim Salem. Prosecutors accused Mubarak of complicity in the killing of more than 800 demonstrators during the 2011 mass protests and called for the death penalty . He is also accused of abuse of power and misappropriation of state property for personal gain. The trial of Husni Mubarak and his two sons began on August 3, 2011. Due to Mubarak's illness, the trial was adjourned to September 2011.

The allegation of corruption against Mubarak and two of his sons was dropped in June 2012 due to the statute of limitations . On June 2, 2012, Mubarak was sentenced to life imprisonment in Egypt . The court convicted Mubarak of failing to prevent the deadly violence against demonstrators, but held the order of deadly force as unproven. It also acquitted Mubarak of allegations of corruption.

In January 2013, a court of cassation in Cairo granted an appeal, according to which the case against Mubarak will be renegotiated. The trials of Interior Minister Habib al-Adli, who has been sentenced to life imprisonment, as well as Mubarak's sons Alaa and Gamal and six former security forces officers are also being renegotiated . This decision was celebrated by both Mubarak's supporters and Mubarak opponents, who continue to call for the death penalty. The Islamist Muslim Brotherhood commented on the verdict on their website with the words that the "door to the execution of Mubarak" was now open - although, according to Egyptian lawyers, the verdict in an appeal process (allegedly) could not be harsher than the first instance even if ( also) the public prosecutor has appealed. Mubarak therefore does not face the death penalty.

The new trial against Mubarak began on April 13, 2013 in Cairo. A few minutes after it began, the hearing was broken off because the presiding judge declared himself biased and referred the case back to the appellate court.

On August 21, 2013, an Egyptian criminal court ordered Mubarak, who had been in custody for more than two years, to be released from custody. A day later he was transferred to an Egyptian military hospital, where he is to be placed under house arrest.

On May 21, 2014, Mubarak was sentenced to three years in prison for embezzlement. After proceedings for the death of more than 800 demonstrators during the protests in spring 2011 had already been dropped in November 2014, the prison sentence imposed in May 2014 for corruption was lifted in January 2015. On May 9, 2015, the prison sentence for corruption was upheld by a court in Cairo.

Private

Mubarak and his wife Suzanne Thabet have two sons ( Alaa Mubarak and Gamal Mubarak ). Gamal Mubarak was traded as the successor to his father in the office of Egyptian President. This prospect was shattered with the fall of Hosni Mubarak.

After his flight from Cairo by helicopter on February 12, 2011, the whereabouts of Husni Mubarak were meanwhile unknown. There was also speculation about his health. As it turned out later, the supposedly seriously ill Mubarak had retired to Sharm El Sheikh in a private villa. After he was taken into custody in April 2011, he suffered a heart attack during questioning on April 12 and had to be admitted to a clinic. On July 17, 2011, he fell into a coma, according to his lawyer. At the start of the trial in Cairo in August 2011, Mubarak was rolled into the courtroom while lying in a sick bed.

After Mubarak was sentenced, he was transferred to the medical station at Tora Prison near Cairo. On June 11, 2012, Mubarak suffered a heart attack, according to medical sources. He also refused to eat. However, his condition improved in July 2012, so that intensive medical care was no longer necessary.

In January 2020, Mubarak had an operation and was then in an intensive care unit. On February 25, 2020, he died at the age of 91 in Cairo.

Movies

  • Pharaoh in today's Egypt - Husni Mubarak 60-minute documentary film by Jihan El-Tahri (France 2012)

Web links

Commons : Muhammad Husni Mubarak  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Woker, Martin: Severe judgment on the Nile. In: nzz.ch. June 3, 2012, Retrieved June 3, 2012 .
  2. ^ A b Egypt: Mubarak sentenced to life imprisonment. In: faz.net , June 2, 2012 (accessed June 2, 2012).
  3. ↑ a b Country profile: Egypt. In: BBC News
  4. ↑ Khaled Alkhamissi: A feeling of dignity. ( Memento from February 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) In: fr-online.de , February 4, 2011
  5. ↑ tagesschau: Permanent rulers with distorted self-image ( memento from February 14, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), February 11, 2011
  6. ↑ a b c d billions for the autocrat. In: sueddeutsche.de , January 26, 2011.
  7. ↑ a b c Berlin plans for the time after Mubarak. In: Spiegel Online , January 31, 2011.
  8. Jump up ↑ Difficult Times for Middle Eastern Christians. In: domradio.de , January 5, 2011.
  9. ↑ a b c The treasure of the Mubaraks. In: fr-online.de , February 13, 2011
  10. ↑ a b Rich, richer, Mubarak? In: Deutsche Welle
  11. ↑ Mubarak family fortune could reach $ 70bn, say experts. In: The Guardian
  12. ^ The secret billions of potentates ( Memento from February 25, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Financial Times Germany March 22, 2011
  13. ↑ DAPD: Mubarak is said to be richer than Bill Gates , February 14, 2011
  14. ^ Federal Council has any assets of Egypt's ex-President Hosni Mubarak in Switzerland. ( Memento from February 15, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) In: admin.ch , February 11, 2011
  15. ^ Federal Council blows to hunt for Mubarak accounts. In: Schweizer Fernsehen , February 11, 2011
  16. ^ Federal Council blocks Mubarak's funds. In: Tages-Anzeiger , February 12, 2011
  17. ↑ Amendment ( Memento of September 19, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Regulation on measures against certain persons from the Arab Republic of Egypt. In: admin.ch , February 16, 2011
  18. ↑ Thousands of Egyptians march against Mubarak. In: Spiegel Online . Retrieved January 27, 2011 .
  19. ↑ UN concerned about high food prices ( Memento from September 3, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) In: Deutsche Welle , February 4, 2011
  20. ↑ It's about bread and work, not Sharia. In: Der Standard , January 27, 2011
  21. ^ Charles Hirschkind: From the blogosphere to the street the role of social media in the Egyptian uprising. Jadaliyya - Arab Studies Institute, February 9, 2011
  22. ↑ Belonged Mubarak appoints new management team. In: nzz.ch. January 29, 2011, accessed October 14, 2018 .
  23. ↑ can / AFP / AP / dapd / Reuters: Speech of the President: Mubarak promises to withdraw in installments. In: Spiegel Online . February 1, 2011, accessed May 13, 2020 .
  24. ↑ Egypt's President Mubarak hands over power to Vice Suleiman ( Memento from January 12, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  25. ^ Travel ban imposed on Mubarak. In: ORF . February 28, 2011, accessed February 28, 2011 .
  26. ↑ Interior Minister: Mubarak Receives Order by Prosecution for Probe. Egyptian Ministry of Information, accessed April 12, 2011.
  27. ↑ Mubarak is said to have suffered a heart attack. In: Spiegel Online , April 12, 2011.
  28. ↑ Ministry of Information of Egypt: Hosni Mubarak imprisoned , accessed on 14 April 2011th
  29. ↑ Prosecutor refers Mubarak, sons and Hussein Salem to criminal court. In: The Daily News Egypt , May 24, 2011
  30. ↑ Attorney general Refers Mubarak and sons for criminal prosecution. In: Al-Masry Al-Youm , May 24, 2011
  31. ^ Egypt's Mubarak referred to the criminal court. ( Memento from January 19, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) In: The Egyptian Gazette , May 24, 2011
  32. ↑ Mubarak is due to be tried in August. In: Spiegel Online , June 1, 2011
  33. ↑ "Whoever has killed must be killed". In: Spiegel Online , August 3, 2011
  34. ↑ Mubarak is due to be tried on August 3, faz.net June 1, 2011
  35. ↑ Trial against Hosni Mubarak: A cage for the despot. In: sueddeutsche.de , August 3, 2012.
  36. ↑ Tumults before the trial: Mubarak returns to the court in his sick bed. In: spiegel.de , August 15, 2011
  37. ↑ Hamza Hendawi and Maggie Michael: Life imprisonment for Egyptian ex-president: Mubarak is complicit in the death of 900 demonstrators according to the verdict . Published on Abendblatt.de on June 2, 2012, accessed on June 2, 2012
  38. ^ Trial in Egypt: Mubarak remains in prison for the rest of his life. In: Spiegel Online , June 2, 2012 (accessed June 2, 2012).
  39. ↑ http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2012/06/02/mubarak-sentenced.html
  40. ↑ Egypt: The trial of Husni Mubarak is being reopened. In: welt.de , January 13, 2013 (accessed January 13, 2013).
  41. ↑ The trial against Mubarak is being reopened. In: FAZ , January 14, 2013
  42. ^ Egypt: scandal at Mubarak trial - judge gives up presidency. In: Spiegel Online , April 13, 2013 (accessed April 13, 2013).
  43. ↑ Egypt's ex-dictator: Court orders release of Mubarak in Spiegel Online , August 21, 2013 (accessed on 22 August 2013).
  44. ↑ Gebauer, Matthias: Crisis in Egypt Mubarak's release stokes fear of a bloody Friday at Spiegel Online , August 22, 2013 (accessed on August 22, 2013).
  45. ↑ http://www.n24.de/n24/Nachrichten/Pektiven/d/4781066/husni-mubarak-zu-drei-jahren-haft-verendungt.html
  46. ^ Mubarak's sentence revoked , accessed January 13, 2015
  47. ↑ Because of corruption: Ex-Head of State Mubarak has been imprisoned for three years. In: Spiegel Online . May 9, 2015, accessed December 28, 2015 .
  48. ^ Refuge for the Pharaoh , spiegel.de, February 15, 2011 (accessed February 15, 2011)
  49. ↑ Mubarak is in custody , focus.de from April 13, 2011 (accessed on August 4, 2011)
  50. ↑ Mubarak suffers heart attack , cnn.com of April 13, 2011 (accessed April 13, 2011)
  51. ^ Egypt: Confusion about health of the ex-president. The press, July 18, 2011
  52. ↑ Mubarak and sons reject murder allegation , spiegel.de of August 3, 2011 (accessed August 4, 2011)
  53. ↑ Mubarak has heart attack on way to jail. AP via News24, June 2, 2012, accessed June 2, 2012 .
  54. ↑ AFP : Mubarak revived .
  55. ↑ Spiegel Online: Mubarak is back in prison . July 16, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2012
  56. ↑ Hosni Mubarak: Former Egyptian President dies aged 91.BBC News, February 25, 2020, accessed February 25, 2020 (English).
personal data
SURNAME Mubarak, Husni
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Mubarak, Muhammad Husni (full name); محمد حسني مبارك (Arabic)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Egyptian politician, President of Egypt
DATE OF BIRTH May 4, 1928
PLACE OF BIRTH Musaliha, al-Minufiyya Province
DATE OF DEATH February 25, 2020
Place of death Cairo