[News] The Torture Career of Egypt's New Vice President

Sun Jan 30 17:03:30 EST 2011

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January 29, 2011

The Torture Career of Egypt's New Vice President: Omar Suleiman and 
the Rendition to Torture Program

By Stephen Soldz

In response to the mass protests of recent days, Egyptian President 
Hosni Mubarak has appointed his first Vice President in his over 30 
years rule, intelligence chief Omar Suleiman.

When Suleiman was first announced, Aljazeera commentators were 
describing him as a "distinguished" and "respected " man. It turns 
out, however, that he is distinguished for, among other things, his 
central role in Egyptian torture and in the US rendition to torture 
program. Further, he is "respected" by US officials for his 
cooperation with their torture plans, among other initiatives.

Katherine Hawkins, 
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=824785>an expert 
on the US's rendition to torture program, in an email, has sent some 
critical texts where Suleiman pops up. Thus, Jane Mayer, in 
<http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Side-Inside-Terror-American/dp/0385526393/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1296347655&sr=8-1>The 
Dark Side, pointed to Suleiman's role in the rendition program:

Each rendition was authorized at the very top levels of both 
governments....The long-serving chief of the Egyptian central 
intelligence agency, Omar Suleiman,     negotiated directly with top 
Agency officials.  [Former U.S. Ambassador to Egypt] Walker described 
the Egyptian counterpart, Suleiman, as "very bright, very realistic," 
adding that he was cognizant that there was a downside to "some of 
the negative things that the Egyptians engaged in, of torture and so 
on. But he was not squeamish, by the way" (pp. 113).

Stephen Grey, in 
<http://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Plane-Rendition-Torture-Program/dp/B002ECEUSU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1296350988&sr=1-1>Ghost 
Plane, his investigative work on the rendition program also points to 
Suleiman as central in the rendition program:

To negotiate these assurances [that the Egyptians wouldn't "torture" 
the prisoner delivered for torture] the CIA dealt principally in 
Egypt through Omar Suleiman, the chief of the Egyptian general 
intelligence service (EGIS) since 1993. It was he who arranged the 
meetings with the Egyptian interior ministry.... Suleiman, who 
understood English well, was an urbane and sophisticated man. Others 
told me that for years Suleiman was America's chief interlocutor with 
the Egyptian regime -- the main channel to President Hosni Mubarak 
himself, even on matters far removed from intelligence and security.

Suleiman's role in the rendition program was also highlighted in a 
<http://cablesearch.org/cable/view.php?id=05CAIRO5924&hl=EGIS>Wikileaks 
<http://cablesearch.org/cable/view.php?id=05CAIRO5924&hl=EGIS>cable:

the context of the close and sustained cooperation between the USG 
and GOE on counterterrorism, Post believes that the written GOE 
assurances regarding the return of three Egyptians detained at 
Guantanamo (reftel) represent the firm commitment of the GOE to 
adhere to the requested principles. These assurances were passed 
directly from Egyptian General Intelligence Service (EGIS) Chief 
Soliman through liaison channels -- the most effective communication 
path on this issue. General Soliman's word is the GOE's guarantee, 
and the GOE's track record of cooperation on CT issues lends further 
support to this assessment. End summary.

Suleiman wasn't just the go-to bureaucrat for when the Americans 
wanted to arrange a little torture. This "urbane and sophisticated 
man" apparently enjoyed a little rough stuff himself.

Shortly after 9/11, Australian citizen Mamdouh Habib was captured by 
Pakistani security forces and, under US pressure, torture by 
Pakistanis. He was then rendered (with an Australian diplomats 
watching) by CIA operatives to Egypt, a not uncommon practice. In 
Egypt, Habib merited Suleiman's personal attention. As related by 
<http://www.homepagedaily.com/Pages/article7178-the-torturers-apprentice.aspx>Richard 
Neville, based on Habib's memoir:

Habib was interrogated by the country's Intelligence Director, 
General Omar Suleiman.... Suleiman took a personal interest in anyone 
suspected of links with Al Qaeda. As Habib had visited Afghanistan 
shortly before  9/11, he was under suspicion. Habib was repeatedly 
zapped with high-voltage electricity, immersed in water up to his 
nostrils, beaten, his fingers were broken and he was hung from metal hooks.

That treatment wasn't enough for Suleiman, so:

To loosen Habib's tongue, Suleiman ordered a guard to murder a 
gruesomely shackled Turkistan prisoner in front of Habib -" and he 
did, with a vicious karate kick.

After Suleiman's men extracted Habib's confession, he was transferred 
back to US custody, where he eventually was imprisoned at Guantanamo. 
His "confession" was then used as evidence in his Guantanamo trial.

The Washington Post's intelligence correspondent Jeff Stein reported 
<http://voices.washingtonpost.com/spy-talk/2011/01/egypts_spy_chief_stands_in_the.html>some 
additional details regarding Suleiman and his important role in the 
old Egypt the demonstrators are trying to leave behind:

"Suleiman is seen by some analysts as a possible successor to the 
president," the Voice of American 
<http://www.voanews.com/english/news/middle-east/Despite-Curfew-Egypt-Protests-Escalate-114807289.html>said 
Friday. "He earned international respect for his role as a mediator 
in Middle East affairs and for curbing Islamic extremism."

An editorialist at Pakistan's "International News" 
<http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=27859&Cat=9>predicted 
Thursday that "Suleiman will probably scupper his boss's plans [to 
install his son], even if the aspiring intelligence guru himself is 
as young as 75."

Suleiman graduated from Egypt's prestigious Military Academy but also 
received training in the Soviet Union. Under his guidance, Egyptian 
intelligence has worked hand-in-glove with the CIA's counterterrorism 
programs, most notably in the 2003 rendition from Italy of an 
al-Qaeda suspect known as 
<http://voices.washingtonpost.com/spy-talk/2010/10/italian_prosecutor_wants_stiff.html>Abu 
Omar.

In 2009, <http://www.foreignpolicy.com/>Foreign Policy magazine 
<http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2009/07/20/the_list_the_middle_easts_most_powerful_spies>ranked 
Suleiman as the Middle East's most powerful intelligence chief, ahead 
of Mossad chief Meir Dagan.

In an observation that may turn out to be ironic, the magazine wrote, 
"More than from any other single factor, Suleiman's influence stems 
from his unswerving loyalty to Mubarak."

If Suleiman succeeds Mubarak and retains power, we will likely be 
treated to plaudits for his distinguished credentials from government 
officials and US pundits.  We should remember that what they really 
mean is his ability to brutalize and torture. As Stephen Grey puts it:

But in secret, men like Omar Suleiman, the country's most powerful 
spy and secret politician, did our work, the sort of work that 
Western countries have no appetite to do ourselves.

If Suleiman receives praise in the US, it will be because our leaders 
know that he's the sort of leader who can be counted on to do what it 
takes to restore order and ensure that Egypt remains friendly to US interests.

There are some signs, however, that the Obama administration may not 
accept Suleiman's appointment. Today they criticized the 
rearrangement of the chairs in Egypt's government. If so, that will 
be a welcome sign that the Obama administration may have some limits 
beyond which it is hesitant to go in aligning with our most brutal "friends."

We sure hope that the Egyptian demonstrators reject the farce of 
Suleiman's appointment and push on to a complete change of regime. 
Otherwise the Egyptian torture chamber will undoubtedly return, as a 
new regime reestablishes "stability" and serves US interests.

Author's Bio: Stephen Soldz is psychoanalyst, psychologist, public 
health researcher, and faculty member at the 
<http://www.bgsp.edu/>Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis. He is 
co-founder of the Coalition for an Ethical Psychology and is 
President of <http://psysr.org/>Psychologists for Social 
Responsibility. He was a psychological consultant on two of the 
Guantanamo trials. Currently he maintains the 
<http://psychoanalystsopposewar.org/blog/>Psyche, Science, and Society blog.

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